The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has accepted court enforceable undertakings from Australian Workplace Services Pty Ltd (AWS) and its director, Mr John O’Halloran, regarding misrepresentations made to small businesses concerning the need for AWS’s products.
The ACCC alleged that since at least October 2009 AWS made false or misleading representations to small businesses through the use of prepared scripts in the course of selling or promoting AWS’s safety products.
“Where a business sells products through the use of a sales script, it needs to give careful consideration to the message that the script may convey,” ACCC Deputy Chairman Dr. Michael Schaper said.
These representations claimed that the relevant state workplace safety laws required businesses to maintain workplace safety charts of the same nature as those supplied or offered for supply by AWS, when in fact there was no such requirement.
“It is inappropriate and unacceptable to misrepresent to small businesses that they are legally obliged to maintain or purchase such items,” Dr. Schaper said.
AWS has admitted that by making these representations concerning the need for AWS’s workplace safety charts, AWS was likely to have breached the Trade Practices Act 1974 and the Australian Consumer Law.
AWS has co-operated with the ACCC’s investigation and taken steps to address its concerns, including giving to the ACCC a court enforceable undertaking that it will:
- not make representations to consumers that they are required by state or territory workplace health and safety laws to maintain information and materials of the same nature as those supplied or offered for supply by AWS, when this is not the case;
- publish a corrective notice on its website; and
- implement a trade practices compliance program.
Director and day to day manager of AWS, Mr John O’Halloran has provided a separate court enforceable undertaking to the ACCC not to make, or be directly or indirectly knowingly concerned in, or party to any corporation making representations to consumers that they are required by state or territory workplace health and safety laws to maintain information and/or materials of the same nature as those supplied or offered for supply by AWS, when this is not the case.