The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) is preparing for another financial year protecting Australian consumers with the release of its “compliance and enforcement” priorities.
Outgoing Chair of the Commission, Rod Sims said it would hone in on manipulative and/or deceptive advertising in the digital economy; environmental claims and sustainability; and disruptions to global and domestic supply chains.
“Consumers are facing a growing number of manipulative techniques to exploit or pressure them and other practices that seek to distort or disregard their consumer choice in the digital economy” Mr Sims said.
“The manipulative techniques include false scarcity reminders such as low-stock warnings, false sales countdown timers, targeted advertising using a consumers’ own data to exploit their individual characteristics, pre-selected add-ons and design interfaces that discourage unsubscribing,” he said.
“Other practices of concern include manipulation of online reviews and search results, and comparison websites and social media influencers who don’t disclose commercial relationships including paid promotions.”
Mr Sims said the ACCC would also closely scrutinise businesses making environmental and sustainability claims.
He said the Commission was aware of growing concerns that some businesses were falsely promoting environmental or green credentials to capitalise on changing consumer preferences.
“We are also seeing businesses incurring the costs of genuine environmentally-friendly manufacturing processes facing unfair competition from businesses making misleading environmental and sustainability claims without incurring the same costs.”
He said competition issues in global and domestic supply chains, particularly where they were disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic, would be a new competition priority for the ACCC.
Mr Sims said the importance of effective and competitive supply chains had been more evident than ever during the COVID pandemic.
“COVID-related staff shortages, port congestion and transport interruptions have disrupted the supply of many retail goods from fresh food and groceries to clothing and medications,” he said.
“Where we have evidence of businesses taking advantage of the situation to fix prices or share markets, we will take appropriate action.”
Mr Sims said the ACCC’s compliance and enforcement work would not be limited to these priorities, that the Commission would continue to direct resources to matters that provided the greatest overall benefit for the consumer and competition.
Further information about the ACCC’s priorities for 2022-23 can be accessed at this PS News link.
