The Consumer Action Law Centre says the federal Scams Prevention Framework Bill should be strengthened so service providers are required to reimburse victims.
"If business is on the hook for reimbursing scams it would do all it can to stop them," chief executive Stephanie Tonkin told a Senate hearing on Tuesday.
Ms Tonkin said in their current state the laws required scam victims to prove that multiple corporations didn't meet their obligations and that the breaches of various corporations had caused their loss.
She said the "unreasonable burden on victims to prove their case through dispute resolution" was concerning.
Australian Banking Association CEO Anna Bligh called for more clarification around the framework. (Lukas Coch/AAP PHOTOS)
The call for a reimbursement model was echoed by the Australian Communications Consumer Action Network, along with imposing penalties for senior business personnel who made reckless statements about their company's compliance with the framework obligations.
"This will incentivise effective prevention by financial institutions, telecommunications providers and digital platforms," chief executive Carol Bennett said.
Choice also voiced concerns about the workability of the bill's proposed resolution process for consumers.
Australian Banking Association chief executive Anna Bligh said the framework needed "a lot more clarification" as it may lead to obligations that conflict with industry codes.
"The best way to ensure compliance and impact from legislation is to make sure that obligations are absolutely crystal clear, that there are not overlapping obligations," she said.
Communications Alliance chief executive Luke Coleman said the proposed framework had multiple avenues for liability with multiple regulators and overlapping responsibilities.
Each regulated sector should be accountable under one sector code, enforceable by one sector regulator, he said.
"The current code establishes quadruple jeopardy," he said.
The association of technology companies, Digital Industry Group also said critical amendments were necessary to ensure the laws were effective and clear.
"We need one clear set of obligations that are targeted to each sector, including digital platforms, that outline specific, reasonable steps they must take," managing director Sunita Bose said.
"Instead, we have a generic set of obligations."
The group, whose members include Meta, Microsoft, Google, Apple and eBay, also called for clarity around the liability outlined in the proposed laws.
"No one can confidently explain today when companies are liable for scams because those key details haven't been worked out," Ms Bose said.
She said that would frustrate consumers and cause industry groups to blame each other for scams, which could potentially result in lengthy legal battles "rather than collaborating to beat scammers at their game."
The Treasury Department said the government had taken a broad approach with the legislation because scams were occurring in multiple sectors.
Acting First Assistant Secretary Tom Dickson said the bill contained numerous ways for consumers to seek redress, including internal and external dispute resolution.Â
He said there were also provisions to prevent service providers from being prosecuted or paying penalties more than once when scams occurred on their watch.
