Customer loyalty schemes, including frequent flyer, supermarket and credit card operators, must ensure they are not misleading consumers according to an ACCC draft report released today for comment.
The ACCC’s Customer Loyalty Schemes draft report highlights a number of concerns:
The ACCC will today begin a safety review of products designed for infants such as bouncers, rockers and inclined sleep products.
The market review will be on inclined baby products used for sleeping, where the baby’s head and back are inclined, and may include a harness or belt to secure the baby into the product.
The United States Consumer Product Safety Commission has reported that at least 74 infant fatalities have occurred in the United States while using bouncers, rockers and recliners.
Australian businesses reported more than 5800 scams with losses exceeding $7.2 million in 2018, a 53 per cent increase compared to 2017, according to the ACCC’s Targeting scams report.
Much of this increase is due to the $3.8 million reported lost to sophisticated ‘business email compromise’ scams. When combined with losses reported to the Australian Cybercrime Online Reporting Network, these scams cost Australian businesses over $60 million.
Chairman Rod Sims has announced the ACCC’s product safety priorities for 2018 at the National Consumer Congress. Mr Sims has reaffirmed the ACCC's support for a general safety provision to be introduced in Australia law to reduce the risk of unsafe goods entering the market, and the nine critical safety issues facing Australian consumers.
When buying tickets for your favourite sporting or entertainment event, make sure you are dealing with an authorised seller and follow our tips for protecting yourself and getting the best seats.
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission is assessing the review policies of sharing economy platforms as part of an international initiative targeting online reviews and endorsements.
This review is part of the International Consumer Protection and Enforcement Network (ICPEN)’s annual internet sweep, involving over 50 consumer protection agencies around the world. This year the focus of the sweep is ‘Online Reviews and Endorsements’ and the ACCC will be focusing on the way in which reviews operate in the sharing economy.
The International Consumer Protection and Enforcement Network (ICPEN) has released a set of guidelines for market participants involved in the collection, moderation and publication of online reviews and endorsements.
Global enforcers have found that online reviews and endorsements are proving useful to consumers when, for example, booking travel accommodation and other travel-related products and services. It is important that consumers can trust the reviews and endorsements they use to help make these buying decisions.
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission recently swept a range of websites and mobile apps for conduct known as ‘drip pricing’, as part of the International Consumer Protection and Enforcement Network (ICPEN)’s annual initiative involving over 50 consumer protection agencies around the world.
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has released consumer and industry guidance on the operation and use of comparator websites.
“The consumer guidance offers tips to help consumers get the best outcomes when using comparator websites. The industry guidance sets out the standards that the ACCC expects comparator websites to meet,” ACCC Deputy Chair Delia Rickard said.