Joint consumer group submission (led by the Consumer Policy Research Centre) titled “Make Unfair Illegal”. The submission sets out the case for a new economy-wide prohibition on unfair trading to be inserted into both the Australian Consumer Law and the Australian Securities and Investments Act. This would prohibit the proliferation of a number of unfair trading practices that are not grasped by our current laws. Examples include not being able to cancel a subscription online (even though you can sign up that way), the sale of worthless consumer warranties, businesses charging higher prices to some consumers because of the personal information they hold about them and the use of aggressive sales tactics to sell poor value products to people in remote Indigenous communities.
Treasury’s consultation paper sets out four options for reform. Option 4, our preference, would set out a blacklist of unfair practices as well as include a general ban.
Submission - Unfair trade practices - Treasury - November 2023