Consumers’ Federation of Australia (CFA) is pleased to release this new tool for consumer advocates to monitor the implementation of the recommendations from the Review of the Australian Consumer Law (ACL) and the Productivity Commission Report into ACL Administration and Enforcement. These reports set a substantial agenda for consumer law reform which has been welcomed [...]
The Australian Communications Consumer Action Network (ACCAN) is disappointed that complaints to the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman (TIO) have increased by a massive 41.1 per cent during 2016-17. This rise in complaints is reflective of the experiences we are hearing from consumers and indicates there are systemic issues with customer service in the industry. Customer [...]
Energy Consumers Australia (ECA) and the Queensland Consumers Association (QCA) have welcomed the ACCC’s Preliminary Report for its Electricity Supply & Prices Inquiry. In his Preliminary Report, ACCC chairman Rod Sims has confirmed that the electricity market is not working as it should and not delivering good value for money outcomes for consumers. The QCA says this confirms what [...]
Free onsite and offsite access to Australian standards online, is being made available via membership of the National Library of Australia and the State Library of your domicile. Check the status with the library for more details. Access is provided for users' private research or study purposes only and not for users' business, commercial or [...]
Consumers across NSW will have more money in their pockets thanks to Australian-first gift card reforms, Minister for Better Regulation Matt Kean announced on 10 October 2017. Mr Kean said the proposed plan would see mandatory three-year expiry dates for all gift cards sold in NSW, putting up to $60 million a year back in [...]
ACCAN CEO, Teresa Corbin, discussed a range of telecommunications consumer issues in a speech today at the CommsDay Melbourne Congress. In particular, Ms Corbin outlined issues related to nbn’s Special Access Undertaking (SAU) and consumer issues relating to the NBN rollout. The SAU is a document that establishes the regulatory regime of the National Broadband Network for [...]
This Stay Smart Online Week, the ACCC is warning the community to watch out for common online scams they might encounter. The online sphere – email, the internet, social media and mobile apps – has overtaken telephones as scammers’ preferred tool of the trade to contact potential victims. In 2017, the ACCC’s Scamwatch site has [...]
Tough new ticket scalping reforms will help stamp out dodgy price gouging practices in the live entertainment industry, NSW Minister for Better Regulation Matt Kean announced today. The proposed reforms would put consumers first and stop tickets from being swept up and resold at grossly inflated prices on the secondary market. Mr Kean said the proposed [...]
Consumer Affairs Australia and New Zealand (CAANZ) is consulting on guidance about the application of the Australian Consumer Law (ACL) to the activities of charities, not-for-profit entities and fundraisers. The need for new guidance was recognised by the 2017 Review of the ACL, where it was acknowledged that some charities, not-for-profits and fundraisers face difficulties [...]
One year ago today, the Access to Justice review was released by the Victorian Government. The review proposed a sensible fix for the thousands of Victorians who buy lemon cars each year. To mark the date, Consumer Action Law Centre (Consumer Action) is launching a new campaign, “Fix my car”, to drive home the need to implement this [...]
Consumer group CHOICE has referred Coles Complete Cuisine cat food and Nature’s Way (Pharmacare) Kidsmart Vita Gummies to the ACCC for alleged breaches of Australian Consumer Law after they were named and shamed at the 12th annual CHOICE Shonky Awards. “Whether it’s making dodgy claims about the nutritional profile of cat food or claiming sugar laden vitamins are good [...]
We take this opportunity to thank all the Consumers Federation of Australia Standards representatives for their hard work and achievements on the Standards Australia Technical Committees and international standards committees. World Standards Day promotes the role of standards in meeting the needs of consumers, industry, business and government. This year’s theme is “Standards make cities [...]
