Hunted Australia’s Nick and Lavinia Address the “Wildly Unfair” Twist That Saw Them Captured

It’s safe to say, the first season of Hunted Australia has dominated screens all over the country, and it’s not difficult to see why.

The thrilling reality series is unlike any other, and among the vast array of dating and musical shows (which are all great in their own way), Hunted feels different.

The show, which sees teams of two attempt to evade being captured by the Hunters, is nail-biting to say the least.

On Sunday night, Nick from Team Nick and Lavinia were caught, leaving Lavinia on the run alone and with no money in her pocket.

It didn’t take long for the Hunters to catch up to her.

However, their elimination didn’t come without controversy after the Hunters froze their bank cards — something viewers have claimed is “wildly unfair”.

I gotta say that freezing the bank account is wildly unfair. #HuntedAU

— Adam Rida (@AdamRida) July 31, 2022

so they can freeze their bank accounts and ping their phones to get an exact location…. uh where's the challenge in catching them again? #HuntedAU

— Ella Gawchan (@EllaGawchan) July 31, 2022

How is it within the rules for them to freeze their bank account?! Have they done that for all teams?? #HuntedAU

— Susan (@NovaStar77) July 31, 2022

The hunters cancelling the bank cards is cheating.. everyone else on the run can use theirs still #HuntedAU

— shaun (@666shaun666) July 31, 2022

Don’t think it’s fair that the hunters cancel or freeze bank cards.. it’s a game and that feels like cheating .. too much power and now manipulation! #HuntedAU pic.twitter.com/vHz9LPqokk

—  JustinJB_01 ™ © (@JustinJB_01) July 31, 2022

However, Nick and Lavinia hold no bad blood towards the Hunters, saying they were aware from the beginning that it was a possibility.

“We knew it was an option,” Lavinia told POPSUGAR Australia. “We definitely went in thinking it could very likely happen.”

Having done their research before entering the competition, Nick said they saw it happen on the UK version of the show.

“We knew that if we couldn’t take money out on day one, then we’d never try and take it out,” said Lavinia.

“Our strategy was to never take the money out at all because we wanted to throw the Hunters off.”

Their strategy took them far; however, after they were cornered and forced to leave their belongings in a field, Lavinia and Nick had no choice but to access their funds through an ATM.

“We knew it was a 50/50, they could have frozen it, they could have not. But we definitely knew it was a possibility. It wasn’t a great feeling,” she said.

Viewers watched the tired and desperate duo find out their card had been terminated, as the Hunters cheered as they witnessed their struggle.

“We really needed that money; it would have made a huge difference if we had the money, so it just added more misery to an already miserable situation,” said Nick.

Only two teams remain in the competition: Stathi and Matt, and Jake and Rob. Tonight, in the grand finale of Hunted Australia, they will battle it out in the hopes to win a share of the $100,000 prize.