The government has announced it will be taking action to prevent businesses ‘ripping off’ Australians by banning a number of unfair trade practices.
“From concert tickets to hotel rooms and gym memberships, Australians are fed up with businesses using tricky tactics that make it difficult to end subscriptions or add hidden fees to purchases,” the government’s statement reads.
“These practices can distort purchasing decisions, or result in additional costs, putting more pressure on the cost of living.”
Under the proposal, the following trade practices will be outlawed:
•‘Subscription traps’ that use arduous and confusing steps to make cancelling a subscription difficult.
•‘Drip pricing’ practices where fees are hidden or added throughout the stages of a purchase.
•Deceptive and manipulative online practices that aim to confuse or overwhelm consumers, omit or hide material information, or create a false sense of urgency or scarcity – this can include warnings that a customer only has limited time to purchase a product.
•Dynamic pricing where a product’s price changes during the transaction process.
•Requiring consumers to set up an account and provide unnecessary information to make an online purchase.
•Where a business makes it difficult for a consumer to contact them when they have a problem with their product or service.
Consumer group CHOICE has welcomed the move, with director of campaigns and communications Rosie Thomas saying it was a “day for consumers to celebrate”.
“Unfair business practices are rife in Australia, tricking people into spending more money, sometimes without their knowledge,” she said.
“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.”
Do you think these changes are fair or unnecessarily restricting business?
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