‘Getting to fair’ aims to break down the barriers consumers can face when accessing and engaging with essential services. It is a three-year roadmap for the commission to improve the experience of consumers facing vulnerability, by supporting our regulated and administered sectors to provide more responsive, inclusive and accessible services.

The aim of the strategy is to create fairer more equitable access for all Victorians, regardless of which of our regulated services they use.

All customers benefit from this approach, but particularly people who may be struggling with changes in circumstances or who are enduring difficulties. During difficult times, the inability to access essential services, like clean drinking water, affordable lighting and heating, sustainable council rates, should not be a cause for further difficulty.

While anyone may see the barriers to accessing essential services, for those experiencing vulnerability, the barriers appear bigger and more daunting. They also feel less confident that they have the power to change things. These barriers also tend to be cumulative, repeated across multiple services, compounding the stress and the harm.

To address this complexity, this strategy is built around three key objectives, namely: working with consumers, working with regulated businesses, and working on ourselves. Each objective is underpinned by a series of actions to be further developed and implemented over the life of the strategy.