WA Consumer Protection commissioner Trish Blake flags changes affecting car buyers and tenants

The commissioner behind WA's consumer watchdog

Consumer Protection Commissioner Trish Blake has given a candid account of her working style and career in a profile published by WAtoday, in which she explains that her flash of blue hair is a deliberate choice designed to signal to people in her office that they can talk to her on a normal level. She describes it as a trademark that has become a thing in its own right, with family members asking what colour comes next. ¹⁴

According to the WAtoday profile, Blake grew up south of the river in Perth with what she calls a real justice streak, initially planning to become a veterinarian before deciding in her late high school years to pursue social work. She worked at a community legal centre in Fremantle helping manual workers denied Centrelink benefits, including men with significant, life-altering injuries who were told that a capacity to work a few hours a week filing papers made them ineligible for a disability pension. ¹⁴

The profile recounts that Blake later worked in Gosnells, at a time when the suburb recorded the highest rate of domestic violence in the state, before joining what she used to call the dark side of government and rising through the ranks to the role responsible for protecting West Australian consumer rights. She told WAtoday that the beauty of governments is that they have levers they can pull, and described social justice as being in her DNA. ¹⁴

A landmark disciplinary case: the racist real estate agent

Blake told WAtoday that of all the conduct she has dealt with, from dodgy car dealers to real estate agents, the case that sticks with her is the racist real estate agent. Consumer Protection disciplined Bronwyn Pollitt of Mavin Real Estate over an email to two tenants in which she claimed it was impossible to discuss cleaning because of the difference in living standards between a white Australian and what she described as the dirty squaller (sic) of many other countries. The agency suspended Pollitt for eight months. ¹⁴

WAtoday reports that Pollitt has since apologised and undertook training and weekly mentoring during her suspension. Blake described the matter as an absolute pivotal moment and putting a line in the sand for the entire community. She also said the case had an overall positive impact on her agency's staff, which can now provide assistance in 16 different languages, making the service more accessible. ¹⁴

Commissioner Determinations to take bond disputes out of court

Blake flagged the biggest operational change now underway at the agency in her WAtoday interview, calling the Commissioner Determinations the agency is working on a game changer. The process allows the department to step in during bond disputes and make decisions itself, rather than sending matters off to court, in cases where the parties cannot agree. ¹⁴

She explained the problem the change addresses: many bond disputes were clogging up the magistrates court system, and a high level of tenants were not engaging with the process, meaning people often could not get to court and could miss the chance to have their case heard. Blake noted she has no problems with landlords receiving the bond when they are entitled to it, but questioned how the old system was fair or balanced. Under the new arrangements, she told WAtoday, disputes have been lifted and shifted out of the courts into commissioner determinations, with all matters decided on the papers, which she says will free up the courts. ¹⁴

Record redress for consumers, led by vehicle complaints

The operational record behind the profile is quantified in Consumer Protection's own reporting, carried by Mirage.News, which states that Western Australians received a record $11.6 million in refunds, repairs and replacements in the 2025/26 financial year through successful negotiations on behalf of more than 3800 consumers who sought help from the division of the Department of Local Government, Industry Regulation and Safety. That figure is $4 million more than the previous year. Complaints covered household purchases, home repairs, travel, vehicles and online shopping. ⁵

For the motoring audience, the most significant line in that record is that motor vehicle and caravan complaints accounted for the largest share of redress, with more than $7.1 million returned to consumers over problems with purchases and repairs, according to the same Consumer Protection figures reported by Mirage.News. Retail, building and services generated the greatest number of successful outcomes, and tenancy disputes returned more than $800,000 to renters. More than 62 per cent of consumers received a refund rather than a repair or replacement. ⁵

Consumer Protection's own published material explains how that redress happens: the agency can receive and investigate complaints, assess the best way to assist, and intervene where needed, and its conciliation process is free and informal, often resolving disputes quickly. It notes, however, that it cannot compel a trader to provide a particular remedy. Complaints also help the agency identify patterns of behaviour, and where a trader may be breaking the law, Consumer Protection can escalate through trader intervention or enforcement action. ⁵

Annual review and the limits of consumer guarantees

The 2025/26 figures sit alongside the agency's published Year in Review 2024-25, available on the Consumer Protection website, which outlines the major achievements of that financial year. Commissioner Blake is quoted in the publication saying that each year brings new challenges and opportunities, but what stands out most is how much work the agency put into protecting everyday Western Australian consumers. ³

Blake was also frank with WAtoday about the limits of her agency's powers under Australian consumer law. She described the law as a law of two halves: consumer guarantees, which set out what everyone is entitled to when they buy a good or a service, and the offences half, which carries penalties and prosecution powers. For guarantees, she said, there are currently no penalties there, but she added a pointed sign-off: 'But watch this space.' Any change to penalty arrangements for consumer guarantees would require legislative action, and no specific reform was announced in the profile. ¹⁴

West Australian consumers seeking help can find information about their rights and how to make a complaint on the Consumer Protection website, and the agency's media team can be contacted through its published channels. Media statements from the responsible minister, the Hon Dr Tony Buti MLA, Attorney General and Minister for Commerce, are issued through the Western Australian Government Media Office. ⁵²