CHOICE responds to the Federal Government's announcement about banning unfair trading practices.
Quotes attributable to Rosie Thomas, Director of Campaigns and Communications:
"This is a day for consumers to celebrate. After years of work by many consumer advocates, CHOICE welcomes the Government's commitment to introduce a ban on unfair business practices. This should bring our consumer protections in line with many other countries and will help the ACCC tackle dodgy business tactics that are costing consumers time and money."
"Unfair business practices are rife in Australia, tricking people into spending more money, sometimes without their knowledge. The proposed ban would save consumers from tricks and traps such as dynamic ticket pricing, gym memberships that are almost impossible to cancel, and costly, pre-checked extras at online checkouts."
"A ban on unfair business practices would also help make sure the law catches up with community expectations. CHOICE's national survey data reveals that 7 in 10 (72%) of people believe Australian businesses are already required to act fairly towards consumers, even though there is no law that requires this."
Nationally representative CHOICE research reveals the common business practices consumers find unfair:
Sign the petition: www.choice.com.au/MakeUnfairIllegal
Editor's notes:
- An unfair trading prohibition has strong support from consumers. Over 31,000 people have signed the petition calling on the Government to make unfair business practices illegal. Sign the petition: www.choice.com.au/MakeUnfairIllegal
- CHOICE Consumer Pulse June 2023 is based on a survey of 1,087 Australian households. Quotas were applied for representations in each age group as well as genders and location to ensure coverage in each state and territory across metropolitan and regional areas. Fieldwork was conducted from 7th to 22nd of June 27, 2023.
Stock images: Getty, unless otherwise stated.
