Consumer protection

Webinar MADE TO MANIPULATE 3 June 2025

The Consumer Policy Research Centre (CPRC) will be hosting a webinar on June 3rd at 4:30pm to 5:30pm AEST, to register for the event follow the directions here. From CPRC’s Events page: Is your online “freedom of choice” just an illusion? Every day, websites and apps deploy sophisticated design traps that manipulate your decisions without…

Read More Webinar: Made to Manipulate – A Global Tour of Dark Patterns

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Australian fast-food franchise Hungry Jack’s Pty Ltd has paid penalties totalling $150,240 after the ACCC issued it with eight infringement notices for alleged breaches of the Australian Consumer Law by failing to comply with the mandatory button battery information standard. The infringement notices relate to a Garfield toy powered by button batteries that was supplied…

Read More Infringement notices issued for button battery information standard breaches

HOME SAFETY

Furniture suppliers are now required to provide safety warnings to consumers about the dangers of toppling furniture after the mandatory information standard for toppling furniture came into effect on 4 May 2025. Since the year 2000 at least 28 people, including 17 children under five, have died in Australia from toppling furniture and televisions. Each year more…

Read More Mandatory information standard for toppling furniture now in affect

Salespeople Do Not Knock Leave these premises immediately

Consumer Action Law Centre is calling for a nationwide ban on unsolicited selling in the first ever designated ‘super’ complaint presented to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC). A designated complaint is a new power that allows complainants to raise an issue with the ACCC, which the ACCC is required to consider and come back with…

Read More Unsolicited door-to-door sales the target of Australia’s first Designated Complaint

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Preliminary research commissioned by the Australian Communications Consumer Action Network (ACCAN) raises alarm bells for policymakers and regulators. Findings point to widespread consumer harm and deep mistrust in the telecommunications industry. The polling, conducted as part of the first tranche of ACCAN’s consumer sentiment research, highlights troubling experiences of telco behaviour and unmet expectations. “Given…

Read More Research highlights consumer distrust in broken telco system

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Today [12/03/2025], CHOICE is releasing its submission to the Federal Government’s consultation on the draft Aviation Customer Rights Charter (the Charter). While the draft Charter represents an important step in the right direction, it needs more work to give consumers clear, comprehensive and strong rights when flights don’t go to plan. “The draft Charter may…

Read More Draft for the new Aviation Customer Rights Charter may be weaker than the consumer law

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The ACCC has marked a further milestone in the transition steps towards the new merger regime with the release of the draft merger assessment guidelines for consultation. The merger assessment guidelines outline the analytical framework the ACCC will apply when assessing notified acquisitions under the new regime, reflecting best practice for competition assessments.  While the new regime…

Read More ACCC opens consultation on assessment guidelines for merger reform

Regulations

The Australian Energy Regulator (AER) recently released the Review of the AER and draft exemption policies for energy networks, retailers, and for customers who may be affected by family violence (based on the advice of Safe and Equal). To view the documents themselves, or for more background into the review, please read the original on…

Read More Energy regulator requests stakeholder submissions after draft and review release

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Australia’s peak communications consumer body, ACCAN, has today called for the weak and ineffective industry-drafted Telecommunications Consumer Protections (TCP) Code to be scrapped in favour of robust and enforceable industry standards that better protect Australian consumers. Communications are an essential service – yet the rules which exist to protect communications consumers are failing in their…

Read More Time to scrap ‘consumer protection’ rules that don’t protect consumers

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The 2022 Insurance Brokers Code of Practice (the Code) is currently under review. The National Insurance Brokers Association (NIBA) is actively seeking engagement with the review from the consumer sector and has provided the Consumers’ Federation of Australia (CFA) with funding to support the consultation. The Independent Reviewer, Phil Khoury (CKR Consulting), is examining several…

Read More Review: Insurance Brokers Code of Practice

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As part of their ‘Our Kids are Sweet Enough’ campaign the Food for Health Alliance has recently released a report, Beyond the label: seeing past marketing on baby and toddler foods in Australia. The Beyond the label report highlights the use of misleading marketing tactics on food packaging to lead parents and caregivers to believe…

Read More Beyond the Label: Misleading Marketing for Baby and Toddler Food

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Consumer advocates say the passing of the Scams Prevention Framework (SPF) fills a gaping hole in the law and in time should protect many Australians from falling victim to the scourge of scams. But thousands of future victims -many of whom will lose everything to sophisticated scams- have an uphill battle for redress. “I am…

Read More Advocates welcome scam laws, but highlight need for reimbursement