ACCC accepts court-enforceable undertakings from Gestalt institute over attempted price fix

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has accepted court-enforceable undertakings from the Northern Rivers Gestalt Institute Incorporated, trading as the Northern Rivers Gestalt Institute, over an attempt to increase the prices charged by Gestalt institutes across Australia for Gestalt counselling training services.

The ACCC alleged that in December 2005 a director of the Northern Rivers Gestalt Institute sent an email to the directors of eight other Gestalt institutes seeking their agreement to collectively raise fees in contravention of section 45 of the Trade Practices Act 1974, which prohibits price fixing.

Although it is not alleged that any agreement was actually reached to raise prices, the attempt alone by the Northern Rivers Gestalt Institute to reach such an agreement with its competitors is a contravention of the Act.

The Northern Rivers Gestalt Institute has co-operated with the ACCC's investigation, admitted the alleged conduct, and offered court-enforceable undertakings to address the ACCC's concerns. The Northern Rivers Gestalt Institute has undertaken that it will:

• not enter into, or attempt to enter into any agreements with its competitors about the prices to be charged for the provision of Gestalt training services
• write to all parties who received the email in which the attempted price fix was communicated to retract its contents, and
• implement a trade practices compliance program in which the director of the Northern Rivers Gestalt Institute who sent the email will attend trade practices compliance training.

"These undertakings demonstrate that all businesses, whether big or small, need to be aware of their obligations under the Act", ACCC Chairman, Mr Graeme Samuel said today. "Businesses need to be aware that, if they seek to fix prices with their competitors, the ACCC will take appropriate action".

Copies of the undertakings will be available from the ACCC's website.