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Bill homepage (legislation.vic.gov.au)The main purposes of this Act are—
to provide for the regulation of the funeral industry; and
to regulate pre-paid funeral contracts; and
S. 1(c) repealed by No. 50/2014 s. 35.
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to provide for Codes of Practice; and
to repeal the Funerals (Pre-Paid Money) Act 1993.
Subject to subsection (2), this Act comes into operation on a day or days to be proclaimed.
If a provision of this Act does not come into operation before 1 November 2007, it comes into operation on that day.
In this Act—
associate of a person includes—
in the case of a person which is a body corporate, a related body corporate within the meaning of the Corporations Act; and
any body corporate of which the person is a director or in the management of which the person is concerned;
basic funeral service has the meaning given by section 20;
coffin price list means a list required by section 23;
consideration in relation to a contract includes—
a transfer or assignment of or a promise to transfer or assign money or an investment or an interest in an investment in favour of a party to the contract or an associate of that party; and
any administration fee or brokerage fee paid in respect of the contract;
S. 3 def. of Council repealed by No. 50/2014 s. 36.
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S. 3 def. of Director amended by No. 21/2012 s. 239(Sch. 6 item 18.1).
Director has the same meaning as it has in the Australian Consumer Law and Fair Trading Act 2012;
disbursements means money paid by a funeral provider for funeral goods and funeral services bought from a third party on behalf of a consumer;
firm means a partnership or other unincorporated body but does not include a trust;
funeral goods means products supplied to a consumer in connection with funeral services;
funeral goods and services price list means the list required by section 21;
funeral provider means any person carrying on the business of supplying funeral goods and funeral services to the public;
funeral services means—
services for the care and preparation of human bodies for burial, cremation or other final disposition;
the arrangement, supervision or conduct of a funeral ceremony or final disposition of human remains;
GST has the same meaning as it has in the A New Tax System (Goods and Services Tax) Act 1999 of the Commonwealth;
S. 3 def. of inspector amended by No. 21/2012 s. 239(Sch. 6 item 18.2).
inspector means a person appointed under section 142 of the Australian Consumer Law and Fair Trading Act 2012;
person includes a firm;
pre-paid funeral contract means an agreement or arrangement—
the purpose of which is or includes the payment of money or the giving of other valuable consideration for—
the supply of funeral services (with or without the supply of funeral goods) by a party to the agreement or arrangement; or
the supply of funeral services (with or without the supply of funeral goods) to be arranged by a party to the agreement or arrangement; and
which is made before the death of the person in respect of whom the service is to be supplied;
register of funeral providers means the register established under Division 1 of Part 3;
register of pre-paid funeral contracts means the register established under Division 2 of Part 3;
registration information means the information that the Director is required to record under section 8;
statement of funeral costs means the statement required by section 24.
Pt 2 (Heading and ss 4–6) repealed by No. 50/2014 s. 37.
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Part 3—Registers
Division 1—Register of funeral providers
The Director must establish and maintain a register of funeral providers in accordance with this Division to record the details of persons who carry on the business of a funeral provider in Victoria.
The purpose of the register is to give members of the public access to a list of the funeral providers in Victoria.
The Director may keep the register of funeral providers in any form the Director thinks fit.
The Director must record in the register of funeral providers the following information in respect of each funeral provider in Victoria—
the name of the funeral provider;
the business address of the principal place of business of the funeral provider;
the postal address of the funeral provider;
the address of each place of business of the funeral provider in Victoria;
any other prescribed information.
Any person, on application in accordance with the regulations (if any) and on payment of the prescribed fee (if any) may—
inspect the register of funeral providers; and
make a copy of, or take extracts from, the register of funeral providers.
A funeral provider must provide the Director with the registration information relating to that funeral provider—
in the case of a funeral provider who is carrying on business as a funeral provider on the commencement of section 7 of this Act, within 3 months after that commencement; and
in any other case, within 28 days of commencing business as a funeral provider.
A funeral provider must notify the Director of a change in any of the registration information relating to the funeral provider within 14 days of the change.
Information under this section must be provided in a manner and form approved by the Director.
The Director may send to a funeral provider a copy of the registration information in relation to that funeral provider and a written request that the funeral provider—
confirm that that registration information is correct; or
if the registration information is not correct, notify the Director of any change that is required to the registration information.
Within 28 days of receiving a request under subsection (1), a funeral provider must respond to the request by—
confirming that the registration information is correct; or
if the registration information is not correct, notifying the Director of any change that is required to the registration information.
The Director may at any time amend, vary or remove an entry in the register of funeral providers.
Division 2—Register of pre-paid funeral contracts
The Director may establish a register of pre-paid funeral contracts.
The purpose of the register of pre-paid funeral contracts is to enable information about the existence of a pre-paid funeral contract to be made available to affected persons.
The Director may keep the register of pre-paid funeral contracts in any form the Director thinks fit.
Subject to this Division, the Director may record in the register of pre-paid funeral contracts any information relating to a pre-paid funeral contract provided to the Director under this Division that the Director considers appropriate.
Subject to this section, any person, on application in accordance with the regulations (if any) and on payment of the prescribed fee (if any) may—
inspect the register of pre-paid funeral contracts; and
make a copy of, or take extracts from, the register of pre-paid funeral contracts.
The Director may restrict access to the register of pre-paid funeral contracts in the circumstances determined by the Director.
A funeral provider may apply to the Director to record information relating to a pre-paid funeral contract in the register of pre-paid funeral contracts.
An application under subsection (1) must—
contain the prescribed information; and
be accompanied by the prescribed fee.
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