New data has revealed for the first time the amount paid to predatory funeral insurance company Youpla over three decades.
The new figures released by the liquidators of Youpla show over $174 million was paid to the company by over 100,000 individual members since it was established in 1992.
Formerly known as the Aboriginal Community Benefit Fund, Youpla collapsed in 2022 leaving thousands of Aboriginal policy holders without coverage and with nothing to show for their payments.
The data has shown the role the government-approved service, Centrepay, played in the financial exploitation – with over $169 million paid to Youpla through the platform since 2001.
Centrepay is a service which allows payments to be deducted directly from Centrelink payments.
The Save Sorry Business Coalition, representing First Nations communities across Australia, has been in negotiations with the Federal government for almost a year seeking an enduring resolution to the issue.
Coalition member and Dunghutti man Mark Holden says the failure of successive governments to regulate Youpla’s predatory practices means the current government needs to set a new direction.
“Centrepay became the payments platform of choice for Youpla to take First Nations people’s money, even before they had a chance to buy groceries or clothes for their kids.”
“Previous federal governments and regulators failed to regulate Youpla’s predatory practices and their misleading financial products. This Federal Government now has the chance to set a new direction.”
