Australian Capital Territory Consolidated Acts Australian Capital Territory Consolidated Acts(1) In this section:
"buyer" includes a person to whom the rights and liabilities of a buyer have passed by assignment or by operation of law.
"seller" includes a person to whom the rights and liabilities of a seller have passed by assignment or by operation of law.
(2) This section applies to an agreement to sell goods under which it is agreed, expressly or impliedly, between the seller and the buyer that—
(a) the purchase price, or, if a deposit is paid, the balance of the purchase price—
(i) is to be paid by instalments, whether the number of instalments or the amount of all or any of the instalments is fixed by the agreement or is left to the option of the buyer; or
(ii) is to be paid at the end of a fixed or ascertainable period with an option, express or implied, for the buyer to make payments in relation to the purchase price during that period; and
(b) the buyer shall, at a time subsequent to the date of the agreement, make a selection of the goods to be accepted by him or her under the agreement, whether or not the buyer indicates at the date of the agreement a choice or preference in relation to the goods or the type or class of goods to be selected by him or her.
(3) The seller shall be deemed to hold all money received by the seller under an agreement to which this section applies in trust for the buyer to be disbursed as the buyer directs, and, until the money is so disbursed, the seller shall maintain the money in a trust account, whether general or separate, with a bank, credit union or building society in the ACT.
(4) Money maintained in a trust account in accordance with subsection (3) is trust money and is not available for the payment of the debts of the seller to any other creditor of the seller or liable to be attached or taken in execution under an order or process of any court at the instance of any such other creditor, but nothing in this section takes away or affects any just claim or lien that the seller may have against or on the money.
(5) Subject to subsection (6), a bank, credit union or building society shall not, in connection with any transaction in relation to any account of a seller kept with it or with any other bank, credit union or building society, incur any liability or be under any obligation to make an inquiry or be deemed to have any knowledge of any right of any person to any money paid or credited to such an account that it would not incur or be under or be deemed to have in the case of an account kept by a person entitled absolutely to all the money paid or credited to it, but nothing in this subsection relieves a bank, credit union or building society from any liability or obligation to which it would be subject apart from this Act.
(6) Notwithstanding anything in subsection (5), a bank, credit union or building society where a seller keeps an account for buyers' money shall not, in relation to any liability of the seller to the bank, credit union or building society, other than a liability in connection with that account, have or obtain any recourse or right, whether by way of set-off, counterclaim, charge or otherwise, against money standing to the credit of that account, but nothing in this subsection deprives a bank, credit union or building society of any right existing at the commencement of this Act.
Maximum penalty: 50 penalty units.