Consumer Protection has appointed a new senior regional officer to its Kalgoorlie office to serve residents in the Goldfields, Esperance and Wheatbelt areas of WA.

Mark Ing has worked for the Department for eight years, starting as a client services officer with WorkSafe before taking up a role as an Occupational Safety and Health Coordinator.

More recently, Mark has worked in Consumer Protection’s Property Industries branch as a compliance officer, ensuring that real estate and settlement agents adhere to laws designed to protect tenants and landlords.

“I’m very passionate about making sure that consumers, landlords, tenants and traders are aware of their rights and obligations under both consumer and tenancy laws,” Mr Ing said.

“I look forward to helping the people in the region to resolve any problems they are having with regard to purchasing goods or services from local or online traders and renting or buying a home as well as educating them about scams to prevent losses.

“I encourage anyone who needs our help to contact us either by calling 9026 3250 or email consumer@dmirs.wa.gov.au. I can give them advice, try to conciliate the matter or, for more serious issues, I can assist them in lodging a formal complaint for investigation.”

Mark will be splitting his time between the Kalgoorlie and Perth offices for the first few months and will also conduct numerous field trips throughout his area of responsibility which extends from Esperance in the south, Wiluna in the north, Northam in the west and to the WA border in the east.

Commissioner for Consumer Protection David Hillyard said the appointment will ensure that consumers in the Goldfields region continue to enjoy a personalised service from the Department.

“Meeting the needs of consumers in rural and remote areas of WA is a priority for Consumer Protection and our six regional officers do a fantastic job in connecting with local communities, often with face to face meetings,” Mr Hillyard said.

“Whether consumers live in town, on remote Aboriginal communities or on a farm we want to make sure that they know their rights and know how Consumer Protection can help them should they have any tenancy issues or can’t resolve disputes with traders.

“Mark will initially be operating between both the Kalgoorlie and Perth offices which gives us a unique opportunity to maintain local presence while supporting Mark with the resources of a larger office.”

<ENDS>

Media Contact: Alan Hynd, (08) 6552 9248 / 0429 078 791 / alan.hynd@dmirs.wa.gov.au  

Mark Ing, Senior Regional Officer Goldfields/Esperance/Wheatbelt