The Liberal Nationals will establish an Ombudsman for Retirement Housing for retirement villages if they are elected in the next state election on November 24 2018.

The Ombudsman will provide binding resolutions to eligible disputes in the retirement village sector to ensure those living retirement and lifestyle village residents feel safe and protected.

Currently there is no dedicated process for dealing with retirement housing disputes, which means older Victorians who have retirement village disputes have to go through VCAT, or ask assistance via Consumer Affairs Victoria.

Both these processes can be lengthy, expensive, and lead to non-binding resolutions, which can create more insecurity for residents and don’t resolve the dispute.

There are currently more than 440 registered retirement village operators in Victoria, and around 45,000 residents.

“Older Victorians deserve to be able to resolve their disputes with retirement housing accommodation providers quickly, fairly and cost-effectively,” Shadow Minister for Consumer Affairs, Heidi Victoria said.

“We will seek to rectify the current problems with the system to give older Victorians more security, certainty and peace of mind.”