Consumer law enforcement and administration
Consumer law enforcement and administration
Draft report
You were invited to examine the draft report and to make written submissions by 23 January 2017.
Please note: This draft report is for research purposes only. For final outcomes of this study refer to the final report.
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Consumer law enforcement and administration - Draft report (PDF - 1877 Kb)
Consumer law enforcement and administration - Draft report (Word/Zip - 963 Kb)
Infographic: Consumer protection can be enhanced
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Consumer protection can be enhanced (Text version of infographic)
What happens when things go wrong?
Generally consumers get to where they need to go... but we need higher penalties for consumer law breaches.
Profit vs. Penalty
Read more recommendations and findings in our draft report
- Despite the adoption of a single Australian Consumer Law (ACL) in 2011, Australia's consumer protection framework remains complex:
- Two Commonwealth and eight State and Territory regulators administer and enforce the generic ACL.
- Numerous specialist safety regulatory regimes complement the ACL.
- Redress is provided via ombudsmen, tribunals and courts, as well as most ACL regulators.
- The multiple-regulator model for the ACL appears to be operating reasonably effectively given the intrinsic challenges in having 10 regulators administer and enforce one law.
- The ACL regulators communicate, coordinate and collaborate with each other through well-developed governance arrangements.
- Some regulators have been criticised for undertaking insufficient enforcement. Limited resources may partly explain this.
- However, the limited evidence available on regulators' resources and performance makes definitive assessments difficult.
- There is scope to strengthen the ACL's administration and enforcement. Matters to be addressed include:
- developing a national database of consumer complaints and incidents
- providing all State and Territory ACL regulators with the full suite of enforcement tools
- increasing maximum financial penalties for breaches of the ACL
- exempting interim product bans from Commonwealth regulatory impact assessments
- centralising powers for interim product bans and compulsory recalls in the ACCC
- improving the transparency of the resourcing and performance of the ACL regulators.
- The ACL regulators and specialist safety regulators generally understand the delineation of their remits and interact effectively, notwithstanding a handful of problematic cases. Consumers and suppliers are not always clear about which regulator to contact but they are typically redirected to the right regulator in a timely manner.
- Interactions between ACL and specialist safety regulators could be enhanced through:
- greater information sharing between ACL and specialist regulators
- addressing deficiencies in the tools and remedies available to specialist regulators
- regular national forums of building and construction regulators
- greater national consistency in the laws underpinning electrical goods safety.
- Governments should revisit previous Productivity Commission recommendations on industry- specific consumer regulation, consumer dispute resolution, consumer research and advocacy, and access to justice.
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Printed copies of this report can be purchased from Canprint Communications.
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Printed copies of this report can be purchased from Canprint Communications.
Printed copies
Printed copies of this report can be purchased from Canprint Communications.
Printed copies
Printed copies of this report can be purchased from Canprint Communications.
Printed copies
Printed copies of this report can be purchased from Canprint Communications.
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Printed copies of this report can be purchased from Canprint Communications.
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Printed copies of this report can be purchased from Canprint Communications.
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Printed copies of this report can be purchased from Canprint Communications.
Publications feedback
We value your comments about this publication and encourage you to provide feedback.
Printed copies
Printed copies of this report can be purchased from Canprint Communications.