Articles - 2/105 - Consumers' Federation of Australia

9 May , 2018

Applications now open for Standards Australia Young Leaders Program 2018/19

Do you know any emerging leaders in your sector? Standards Australia are now accepting applications for the 2018/19 Young Leaders Program. The program provides in-depth training on developing standards and includes the opportunity to observe committees in action. It’s the perfect way to launch a standards career. “Being involved in the program gave me confidence to seek…

9 May , 2018

Playing safe with kids’ toys

Keeping kids free from harm is the effect of standards for toy safety. ISO has just updated a toy safety standard to ensure it covers all bases. Made for play, children’s toys are rife with potential hidden hazards ranging from sharp edges to cords or small parts, to name a few. The humble plaything can cause great harm if not designed and manufactured…

7 May , 2018

Sizing woes a Standards issue

Trying to find the right size clothing can be like navigating the minefield that is our clothing size system in Australia. It usually requires taking three different sizes into the change room, or buying them online and returning the duds. The problem is that there is no official sizing system in Australia. The Australian Standard…

7 May , 2018

Can I save on energy?

CHOICE is launching canisaveonenergy.com.au to help people tap into hundreds of dollars in electricity savings. “We’ve decided to intervene in the electricity market and cut out the commercial switching sites which are paid by energy companies to sell their products,” says CHOICE Head of Media Tom Godfrey. “Unfortunately, the electricity market has been stitched up by cosy…

3 May , 2018

Stop blaming consumers for electricity market failure

Dr Martin Gill discusses how electricity retailers continue to justify their poor behaviour by claiming consumers have a choice. This is untrue. As an essential service, consumers must purchase electricity. Consumer rights to access this essential service, at a sensible price, should be protected and not turned into a “game” with a few winners and…

3 May , 2018

Internet of things: privacy and consumers

The Internet of Things (IoT) is the rapidly expanding network of devices, physical objects, services and applications that communicate over the internet. Connected devices number in the billions today, and they transmit data without device owners knowing when or how that happens. This is a big issue for consumers as identified in the latest Economist Intelligence Unit…

1 May , 2018

Government responds to Productivity Commission Inquiry into data availability and use

The following is a media release from The Hon Michael Keenan MP, Minister Assisting the Prime Minister for Digital Transformation The Turnbull Government is today announcing a new national body to oversee access to Government-held data as part of a suite of reforms recommended by the Productivity Commission. The reforms, costing $65 million over the next…

20 April , 2018

Jail time for corporate crooks needed to clean up finance sector

Today the Federal Government announced that there will be tougher penalties for corporate misconduct, and stronger powers for the corporate regulator ASIC. The Federal Government has agreed or agreed-in-principle to every recommendation made in the ASIC Enforcement Taskforce final report that was finalised in December 2017. Company directors will now face up to 10 years’…

17 April , 2018

Continuing rise in telco complaints shows need for urgent reforms

ACCAN is alarmed that complaints to the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman (TIO) have increased by 28.7 percent in the six months to December 2017, compared to the same time the previous year. The peak Australian telecommunications consumer body says the TIO’s latest statistics reinforce the need for urgent industry action to put customers first. “Continuing high numbers of complaints shine a…

11 April , 2018

CHOICE Campaign – Be a unit pricing champion

Consumer group CHOICE have launched a campaign urging consumers to be ‘unit pricing champions’ by crowdsourcing examples of bad unit pricing. What is unit pricing? Unit pricing can be a useful tool to save you money. But it isn’t perfect. Supermarkets try to make it difficult for us, they use small text, don’t display information correctly…

11 April , 2018

Fiona Guthrie AM presents 2018 Ruby Hutchison Memorial Lecture

The following is an edited extract of the 2018 Ruby Hutchison Memorial Lecture, presented by Fiona Guthrie AM, Chief Executive Officer of Financial Counselling Australia. The annual lecture is a CHOICE and ACCC co-project. Queensland’s Courier Mail recently ran a front-page story about payday loans. It told the story of Trina Begg, a single mother of…

5 April , 2018

ACCC finalises report on communications market

The ACCC has today published the final report of its communications sector market study, which includes 28 recommendations and actions on competition and consumer issues. Much has changed since the ACCC published its draft report in October 2017. Since then, the ACCC has secured eight court-enforceable undertakings from various internet service providers on NBN speeds,…