CONSUMER PROTECTION – AUSTRALIA

Bupa sued for $35m for misleading customers

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Original article by Michael Smith
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 9 : 1-Jul-25

The Australian Competition & Consumer Commission has asked the Federal Court to impose a $35 million fine on health insurer Bupa for allegedly misleading customers over a five-year period. The ACCC alleges that Bupa gave customers incorrect information in regard to claiming benefits in situations where two or more procedures were taking place at the same time, with some customers having to pay thousands of dollars or cancel medical procedures altogether as a result of the incorrect information. Bupa’s Asia Pacific CEO Nick Stone says he is "deeply sorry" that customers were given the wrong information, while ACCC chair Gina Cass-Gottlieb says Bupa should have invested in the proper training and processes to prevent such mistakes from occurring.

CORPORATES
BUPA AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN COMPETITION AND CONSUMER COMMISSION, FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA

‘Worst of a bad bunch’: Choice names NIB and Meta among worst Australian products and services of the year

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Original article by Sharlotte Thou
The Guardian Australia – Page: Online : 13-Nov-24

Consumer advocacy group Choice has announced the winners of its annual Shonky awards. Choice’s editorial director Mark Serrels says private health insurer NIB has won a Shonky award for charging single parents higher premiums than couples. Meta has also become a Shonky award recipient for not taking sufficient action to remove scam advertisements from its platforms. Other Shonky winners include Daily Juice Co for selling juice drinks that contain food colouring to achieve a ‘green’ look; Choice contends that although the company did not claim that the product contained vegetable content, it was reasonable for consumers to assume that they did.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN CONSUMERS’ ASSOCIATION, NIB HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NHF, META PLATFORMS INCORPORATED, DAILY JUICE COMPANY

Two in five Australians had flight cancelled or delayed over 12 months, survey says

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Original article by Elias Visontay
The Guardian Australia – Page: Online : 19-Dec-23

Consumer advocate group Choice has used a submission to the federal government’s aviation green paper to call for increased protection for airline passengers, including compensation for delayed or cancelled flights. Choice has also released the findings of its research on the performance of Australia’s airlines. It found that 40 per cent of respondents had a flight cancelled or delayed in the year to October 2023; 63 per cent stated that they will given no reason for the flight’s failure to depart on schedule. Meanwhile, 20 per cent had to wait at least six months for a refund, and just 47 per cent received a refund within a month.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN CONSUMERS’ ASSOCIATION

Fake website scams: Grim warning to Black Friday shoppers

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Original article by Chloe Whelan
Herald Sun – Page: Online : 21-Nov-23

Australian shoppers are expected to spend $6.36bn in the Black Friday sales, making it the biggest shopping event on the nation’s retail calendar. However, the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission’s deputy chair Catriona Lowe has warned shoppers to be aware of fake websites that replicate the genuine sites of well-known brands. The products sold on these sites are often fake or simply never arrive. Lowe adds that scammers are now paying for their fake websites to appear at the top of internet search results, so consumers may not be able to trust the first listing they see. Data from the National Anti-Scam Centre shows that there have been 2,760 reports of fake online stores so far in 2023.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN COMPETITION AND CONSUMER COMMISSION, NATIONAL ANTI-SCAM CENTRE

Consumer groups savage responsible lending plan

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Original article by Paul Smith
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 19 : 23-Nov-20

The federal government’s proposed changes to responsible lending laws have been attacked by a consortium of consumer rights advocacy groups. In a submission to the government’s inquiry into the proposed changes, the groups have labelled them as "fundamentally defective". They note that the changes represent a direct contradiction of the banking royal commission’s first recommendation, namely that the National Consumer Credit Protection Act should not be revised to alter the "obligation to assess unsuitability".

CORPORATES
CONSUMER CREDIT LEGAL SERVICE, CONSUMER ACTION LAW CENTRE, AUSTRALIA. ROYAL COMMISSION INTO MISCONDUCT IN THE BANKING, SUPERANNUATION AND FINANCIAL SERVICES INDUSTRY

Banks to lift their game with new code

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Original article by David Rogers
The Australian – Page: 17 & 20 : 1-Jul-19

The Australian Banking Association’s updated Banking Code of Practice comes into effect on 1 July, and CEO Anna Bligh says it is an "important step" in restoring consumers’ trust in banks following the Hayne royal commission. The revised code will provide increased protection for consumers, and require banks to treat them fairly. The first phase of the open banking regime also commences on 1 July.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN BANKING ASSOCIATION, AUSTRALIA. ROYAL COMMISSION INTO MISCONDUCT IN THE BANKING, SUPERANNUATION AND FINANCIAL SERVICES INDUSTRY, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, VOLT BANK LIMITED, FINANCIAL COUNSELLING AUSTRALIA LIMITED, AUSTRALIAN SECURITIES AND INVESTMENTS COMMISSION, AUSTRALIAN FINANCIAL COMPLAINTS AUTHORITY, AUSTRALIAN FINANCIAL COMPLAINTS AUTHORITY

Sims wants to hit companies in the share price for misconduct

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Original article by Andrew White, Perry Williams
The Australian – Page: 19 & 23 : 27-Feb-19

Australian Competition & Consumer Commission chairman Rod Sims has outlined the competition watchdog’s priorities for 2019. They include greater scrutiny of advertising services on digital media platforms, customer loyalty schemes that collect and use data, and consumer protection guarantees for large household items. Sims also says he hopes courts will use consumer penalty laws passed in 2018 to impose fines for corporate misconduct that are sufficient to have a material effect on a company’s share price.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN COMPETITION AND CONSUMER COMMISSION, COMMITTEE FOR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, DEUTSCHE BANK AG, CITIGROUP PTY LTD, CONSTRUCTION, FORESTRY, MARITIME, MINING AND ENERGY UNION OF AUSTRALIA

ACCC: Click misled consumers

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Original article by Max Mason
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 14 : 10-Jul-18

Electricity and gas retailer Click Energy will dispute allegations of false and misleading conduct. The Australian Competition & Consumer Commission will allege in court that Click Energy’s offer of a 7-29 per cent discount for paying electricity bills on time applied only to its market offer rates, rather than its standard offer rates. ACCC chairman Rod Sims says the discounts were much lower than advertised when compared with Click Energy’s standing offer rates.

CORPORATES
CLICK ENERGY PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN COMPETITION AND CONSUMER COMMISSION, AMAYSIM AUSTRALIA LIMITED – ASX AYS, FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA

Labor credit report delay will entrench banks: Fintechs

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Original article by James Eyers
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 17 : 15-Jun-18

The CEOs of five financial technology lenders have urged shadow treasurer Chris Bowen to reconsider Labor’s push for a key part of the comprehensive credit reporting regime to be delayed for 12 months. The CCR regulations are slated to take effect on 1 July, but Labor has advocated deferring the reporting of repayment history information for a year. The CEOs of SocietyOne, RateSetter, MoneyPlace, Harmoney and WISR have warned that such a delay will allow the major banks to retain their competitive advantage.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, SOCIETYONE AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, RATESETTER AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, MONEYPLACE PTY LTD, HARMONEY LIMITED, WISR LIMITED – ASX WZR

Nurofen range to be pulled over claims

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Original article by Patrick Hatch
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 3 : 15-Dec-15

The Federal Court has ruled that Reckitt Benckiser misled consumers by claiming that its Nurofen painkillers are specially formulated to treat specific medical conditions. The Australian Competition & Consumer Commission took legal action after alleging that each Nurofen product contains the same active ingredient. Reckitt Benckiser has been given three months to withdraw the specific-pain products from sale, but it will be allowed to keep marketing them for 12 months provided the packaging indicates that the products can be used to treat other types of pain.

CORPORATES
RECKITT BENCKISER (AUSTRALIA) PTY LTD, FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN COMPETITION AND CONSUMER COMMISSION, AUSTRALIA. THERAPEUTIC GOODS ADMINISTRATION