Easy access for small business to advice

To help small business do business better, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has established a dedicated small business helpline.

Small businesses operators can now speak directly to staff highly trained in small business and franchising issues by simply calling 1300 302 021.

"While the ACCC and the Trade Practices Act continues a strong enforcement focus, our ultimate objective is to assist business, especially small business, to understand their responsibilities and rights and, as much as possible, avoid problems associated with trade practices compliance failures", an ACCC Commissioner, Mr John Martin, said today.

"The ACCC is committed to keeping small business operators informed of their rights and responsibilities under the Act and assisting small businesses in resolving their trade practices issues and concerns".

Online trade practices information for small business has now been made more accessible with the inclusion of a small business easy access point on the homepage of the ACCC website.

With one click on the easy access point, small business operators will now be directed to dedicated small business pages with everything they need to know at their fingertips about complying with the TPA and the protection it provides.

"Small businesses can now easily access the latest information about advertising, warranties and refunds, dealing with other businesses, franchising and dispute resolution, product labelling and trade practices compliance programs", he said.

Small businesses can also lodge complaints with the ACCC using an online small business complaints form. The online form is specifically tailored for use by small business and can be accessed on the small business section on the website.

"The ACCC small business helpline and small business webpage are central communication tools for the ACCC to reach small businesses in metropolitan, rural and regional locations and complements the printed publications distributed through the ACCC's stakeholder networks".

By providing better accessibility, the ACCC aims to improve the understanding of the Act and the work of the ACCC.

"We would much rather have businesses understand and comply with the Trade Practices Act than have to take action to try to rectify a breach", Mr Martin said.