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With ongoing cost of living pressures impacting household budgets, the Consumer Affairs Victoria has come up with some tips to help you become an informed and savvy consumer and to save some money along the way. When you shop, think carefully before you buy. Learn more about consumer guarantees here. Save at the checkout by…
Read More Top Consumer Tips to Beat Cost of Living Pressures
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The Queensland Consumers Association (QCA) says action is needed to give consumers as well as suppliers a fairer go when dealing with supermarkets. QCA spokesperson Ian Jarratt says the Federal Government’s decision to change the Food and Grocery Code of Conduct to help farmers and other suppliers in their dealings s with large supermarkets, highlights…
Read More Consumers Want a Fair Go for Supermarket Shoppers Too
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Consumers’ Federation of Australia (CFA) and CHOICE has made a submission to the Productivity Commission about future National Competition Policy reforms. The submission stresses the need to analyse potential policy reforms with a focus on their effects on consumers and households, urging the Commission to prioritise understanding how different groups might be affected. The submission’s…
Read More Productivity Commission National Competition Policy Reforms Submission
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The 14 recommendations of a Senate Select Committee inquiry into supermarket prices included several aimed at increasing the transparency of retail grocery prices for consumers. These recommendations included (in Recommendation 9 ) that: The Australian Government amend the Unit Pricing Code made under the Competition and Consumer Act 2010, so that supermarkets are required to:…
Read More Senate Supermarket Inquiry Recommends Grocery Price Transparency
Ian Jarratt of the Queensland Consumers Association in a supermarket with unit price labels in the background
The Queensland Consumers Association (QCA) is calling for the inquiries into supermarkets now being undertaken by a Senate Select Committee, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) and a Queensland Parliament Select Committee to recommend improvements to the clarity of supermarket pricing. In submissions to each inquiry, the QCA says improvements are essential in order…
Read More Advocates Call For Supermarket Inquiries to Recommend Clearer Pricing
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Last week the Consumers’ Federation of Australia (CFA) along with member organisations CHOICE, Queensland Consumers Association (QCA), Financial Counselling Australia (FCA), Consumers SA (South Australia), the Combined Pensioners and Superannuants Association (CPSA) and the Indigenous Consumers Assistance Network submitted our joint group submission to the 2024-25 ACCC Supermarket Inquiry. Generally, the submission calls for the…
Read More Joint Submission to the ACCC Supermarket Inquiry
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The results of recent research on grocery unit pricing (pricing per standardised unit of measurement) in the United Kingdom have been released by Competition and Markets Authority. The research involved: The Queensland Consumers Association says that many of the results are very relevant to grocery unit pricing in Australia including that: The CMA’s conclusions from…
Read More Results of UK Research on Grocery Unit Pricing Released
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Following public consultation on ways to improve price transparency and information about products for consumers, the UK government has announced that it will make several changes.
Read More Consumer Price Transparency and Product Information to be Improved in UK
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A lack of transparent pricing information caused a poor understanding by consumers of how prices were set. This was significantly worsened by a lack of competition. While market concentration was a major issue, the inquiry found prices in Australia are way higher than in many other less competitive markets.
Large price increases occurred across many sectors.
Read More Supermarkets, airlines and power companies are charging ‘exploitative’ prices despite reaping record profits
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The Senate has established a Select Committee on Supermarket Prices, to inquire into and report on the price setting practices and market power of major supermarkets.
The committee is seeking submissions that address the terms of reference by Friday, 2 February 2024 and the committee’s final report is due by 7 May 2024.
Read More Submissions Open for Senate Inquiry into Supermarket Prices
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As a result the UK government included possible unit pricing reforms in a consultation document “Smarter Regulation: Consultation on Improving Price Transparency and Product Information for Consumers” released in September (available here) and is now considering stakeholder responses.
Read More UK Government Considering Reforms to Improve Unit Pricing
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QCA spokesperson, Ian Jarratt says manufacturers use shrinkflation to make “sneaky” price increases and improve or maintain their margins because most shoppers are more aware of, and sensitive to, higher selling prices than reductions in the amount in packages.
Read More Call for Supermarkets to Help Shoppers Spot Package “shrinkflation”
