AFCA appoints new chair

Professor Pollaers’ appointment follows the Hon Helen Coonan’s term of office as AFCA’s inaugural chair.

Professor Pollaers is chancellor of Swinburne University of Technology, chair of the Australian Advanced Manufacturing Council, and chair and founder of Leef Independent Living Solutions Pty Ltd. 

He was formerly chair of the Aged Care Workforce Strategy Taskforce for the federal government, chair of the Australian Industry and Skills Committee, and a member of the Prime Minister’s Industry 4.0 Taskforce. He has had a distinguished executive career in both retail and advanced manufacturing industries.

Ms Coonan said she was pleased Prof Pollaers had been appointed to the role of independent chair and that he’d bring significant experience to AFCA.

“John is an experienced chair and leader whose career is characterised by a commitment to strong governance and visionary, strategic leadership,” Ms Coonan said.

“He has always created strong, effective relationships between industry, government and consumer bodies in all sectors he has been involved in. John’s independence and experience will be instrumental in driving AFCA’s vision to be a world-class ombudsman service into the future.

“John will make an excellent chair. I wish both John and the board well as they continue to deliver against AFCA’s vision and strategy.”

Professor Pollaers said he was delighted to be joining the organisation, noting AFCA’s core purpose is to deliver fair outcomes to members, consumers and small business.

“AFCA provides an essential service to the community. AFCA’s role to effectively work with financial firms, consumers and small businesses to resolve financial complaints, often in complex situations, is critical,” Professor Pollaers said. 

“I am delighted to be working alongside a committed and experienced board to support chief ombudsman and CEO David Locke as we continue to deliver on AFCA’s core purpose to provide fair and independent solutions for financial disputes, and support our members to raise standards and minimise disputes.”

AFCA’s board thanked the outgoing chair, the Hon Helen Coonan, for her dedication and her commitment to building a world-class ombudsman service.

The board acknowledged Ms Coonan’s contribution as AFCA’s inaugural chair, which oversaw AFCA taking over the work of three significant predecessor bodies to provide a single external dispute resolution service with a significantly expanded jurisdiction, an increased membership and the capacity to award significantly increased levels of financial compensation to consumers and small business. 

During Ms Coonan’s tenure as independent chair, AFCA said it had received over 188,000 disputes, with over $522 million being paid in compensation to individual consumers and small business owners.

“Helen has been an exceptional chair of AFCA over the last three years, establishing AFCA as an important national body, helping industry and thousands of consumers to resolve often intractable disputes,” AFCA stated.