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Faulty products continue to cause serious injury and harm to thousands of Australians, with more than 4.5 million items recalled by suppliers in the 2017-18 financial year. New figures show at least 10 people a day are injured and require medical attention as a result of unsafe products, according to mandatory reports provided to the…
Read More Half of all Australian homes affected by unsafe products
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Consumer advocates have welcomed the findings of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission’s (ACCC) Retail Electricity Pricing Inquiry Final Report, released yesterday. Energy Consumers Australia Acting CEO Lynne Gallagher said the final report confirms what consumers have been saying: that the electricity market is not working as it should and not delivering good value for…
Read More Consumer advocates welcome ACCC Final Report on electricity market
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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,…
Read More ACCC finalises report on communications market
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ACCAN welcomes the release of the first round of results from the ACCC’s Measuring Broadband Australia speed monitoring program, and its generally positive findings. ‘We’ve long been calling for the independent monitoring of broadband speeds so consumers know what they’re likely to be getting when they buy a service. We’re strongly supportive of the ACCC’s…
Read More ACCAN welcomes ACCC’s first NBN speed test results
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The Australian Communications Consumer Action Network (ACCAN) welcomes the ACCC’s announcement today that it has commenced proceedings against Telstra for misleading its customers about third party billing services. ACCAN CEO Teresa Corbin said that consumers have been extremely frustrated by these unexpected charges on their telco bills and by the difficulties they experience in resolving…
Read More ACCAN welcomes ACCC action over Premium Billing charges
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The following piece is an excerpt from a piece by Dr. Martin Gill, CFA’s representative on a number of Standards Australia Technical Committees on energy. Retailers should be required to provide sufficient information on bills (and tariff contracts) to ensure consumers can easily compare tariffs. It is also recommended a review be undertaken to determine…
Read More Dr Gill on Simplifying Tariff Comparisons
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The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has found some retailers may be misleading consumers about their rights under the Australian Consumer Law (ACL) after reviewing the online policies of several large Australian clothing retailers. “This year the ACCC has received over 750 complaints regarding consumer guarantees for clothing purchases. We are reviewing the policies…
Read More ACCC Puts Clothing Retailers on Notice
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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…
Read More Consumer Advocate Groups welcome ACCC’s Preliminary Report on retail electricity pricesMedia release from the Australia Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC). Consumer issues including scams, unscrupulous door- to-door sellers, and discrimination in the housing market headline some of the key priority areas in the National Indigenous Consumer Strategy (NICS) Action Plan 2017–2019. NICS members are the ACCC, ASIC, state consumer affairs agencies and the Indigenous Consumer…
Read More Action Plan to Help Indigenous Australians with Consumer Issues
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The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has welcomed the Federal Government’s announcement that it will fund a new broadband performance monitoring program to provide Australian consumers with accurate and independent information about broadband speeds. The program will use hardware-based devices to perform remote testing of around 4,000 households to determine typical speeds on fixed-line NBN…
Read More ACCC to monitor Australia’s broadband performance
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The Chairman of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission Rod Sims says 2017 will see its enforcement teams hone in on misleading and deceptive practices, anti-competitive conduct and unfair contract terms affecting small businesses. Speaking at a Committee for Economic Development of Australia (CEDA) event in Sydney today, Mr Sims launched the ACCC’s 2017 Compliance…
Read More ACCC names key enforcement and compliance priorities for 2017
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Consumers’ Federation of Australia has published its submission to the Commission’s Consumer Law Enforcement and Administration Draft Report. The submission calls for additional public funding for consumer advocacy. Furthermore, CFA encourages the Productivity Commission to develop mechanisms which found fund the necessary consumer advocacy and input, aside from a call on the Federal Budget. The…
Read More CFA publishes Submission to the Commission’s Consumer Law Enforcement and Administration Draft Report