Businesses have to consider many provisions of the Trade Practices Act 1974 when they advertise their products or services—not just those related to price representations. The unfair practices and consumer protection provisions in parts V and VC of the Trade Practices Act are quite simple rules that are designed to ensure that businesses trade fairly with consumers.
These provisions support the sound and ethical business practice of telling the truth and are mirrored in state and territory fair trading legislation. They apply to any kind of conduct or behaviour in commercial matters that could be misleading, deceptive or untruthful such that the conduct or behaviour could give another party to a transaction the wrong impression or idea.
Pricing goods and services in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Trade Practices Act can be confusing for many businesses. Recognising this, the ACCC has released several industry-specific guides, checklists and publications, some of which specifically address the issue of pricing practices, to help businesses comply with their legal obligations and minimise their risks. In particular, the ACCC has recently published a range of materials to assist industry to comply with the new clarity in pricing provisions of the Act.
The links below will take you to our publications on advertising, but you should review the complete list of publications (see Publications on the left-hand side of this page) to see whether there are more detailed ones on issues that concern you.
Businesses must obtain independent legal advice. The guides and other publications can only provide an indication of general principles and factors that the courts may consider when determining whether any particular conduct has breached the Trade Practices Act.
