Brisbane, Australia – April 12, 2025
A Queensland woman has been left devastated and financially ruined after a catastrophic series of errors by banking giant ANZ spiraled into an eight-year legal nightmare — prompting accusations of “abuse” and even “torture.”
Maria*, 70, from Norman Park in Brisbane, discovered her $700,000 mortgage had been mistakenly discharged by the bank in 2017. Doing what most would consider the right thing, she immediately alerted ANZ to the error — only to be dragged into relentless litigation that continues to this day.
According to documents and medical letters seen by news.com.au, Maria’s ordeal began when ANZ accidentally released both mortgages on her property instead of just one. A Supreme Court judge noted the mistake was “through no fault” of her own. But after Maria informed the bank, ANZ placed a caveat on her property, which later lapsed.
In 2021, the bank reinitiated legal action following an anonymous letter suggesting she was planning to sell the home — without notifying her first. Since then, Maria has endured what she describes as a “brutal” campaign of accusations, delays, and character assassination.
Maria has not made mortgage payments since 2019, and the debt has ballooned to over $800,000 due to accruing interest. Meanwhile, the property value has risen to around $1.8 million — but she says selling it now would leave her with virtually nothing after legal costs and debt repayments.
Her treating psychologist warned ANZ in a letter that the ongoing legal stress is potentially “torturous,” citing her severe anxiety, depression, and inability to sleep. The letter asks whether the pattern of behaviour might be categorised as “vexatious” or “callous,” and whether the ongoing toll on her wellbeing is “rightly called abuse.”
Maria has already spent her superannuation and borrowed heavily from friends to cover legal fees, which have now soared to $300,000. Her lawyers placed a mortgage over another property she owns to secure their fees, and she fears she will be left homeless.
In addition to the original mortgage mistake, Maria alleges a history of incompetence from ANZ, including mortgages being registered against the wrong address and the approval of a loan despite her failing a credit check due to nearing retirement. She says she refused to sign a new mortgage agreement without legal advice after past broken promises.
In one instance, ANZ offered to pay her legal fees but then retracted the offer, providing only $1,000 for a quote that was estimated at $10,000.
Her son, previously part of the legal proceedings, said ANZ refused to participate in the Australian Financial Complaints Authority (AFCA) dispute process and instead pushed the matter into court.
“This is a systematic failure, and my mum is being punished for their mistakes,” he said.
Federal Greens MP Max Chandler-Mather wrote to ANZ expressing concern about the bank’s conduct and the “severe financial and emotional distress” caused to Maria — but he received no reply.
A 2021 ruling by Justice Glen Martin of the Queensland Supreme Court criticised ANZ’s case as “bold and adventurous … but entirely misconceived.” He suggested the bank may have been acting pre-emptively to “get its retaliation in first.”
The saga stems partly from ANZ’s “Breakfree” mortgage package, for which the bank was fined $25 million in 2022 for misleading customers. The Federal Court found the scheme impacted 689,000 accounts over two decades, resulting in $211 million in customer remediation. Maria, however, received just 74 cents in compensation.
After years of ignoring mediation requests, ANZ has finally agreed to a session scheduled for April 30 — but Maria says the damage is already done.
“I haven’t been able to sleep, I feel like I’m losing everything, and all because I told them about their mistake,” she said. “They’ve painted me as a fraudster when all I did was tell the truth.”
