NSW government’s debt collection agency broke law using automated bank withdrawals

Ombudsman report finds Revenue NSW engaged in ‘maladministration’ by taking money directly out of millions of bank accounts

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The New South Wales government’s debt collection agency broke the law when it used an automated system to withdraw money from millions of bank accounts to claw back unpaid fines, a scathing report has found.

The NSW ombudsman Paul Miller’s report, released on Tuesday, found Revenue NSW’s use of AI to generate garnishee orders broke the law from its introduction in 2016 until 2019, and that it was “wrong” until March 2022.

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