Fair Trading Act 1987

The powers conferred by this section may be exercised for the purposes of this Act and any other legislation administered by the Minister but may not be exercised for any other purpose.

The power to enter a place or land conferred by this section does not include a power to enter a place that is a dwelling-house or other residential premises unless—

the occupier consents, or

some manufacture, business or trade is carried on there.

An investigator may, at a reasonable time, enter any place that he or she believes on reasonable grounds to be a place where goods are manufactured, prepared, stored or supplied or a place where services are supplied or arranged and—

inspect any goods or partly manufactured goods and make such other inspections as he or she considers to be necessary,

take any goods, or partly manufactured goods, for which he or she pays a fair price,

take a sample of anything from which goods are manufactured or produced in that place,

seize, detain or remove any consumer goods in that place that—

the investigator believes, on reasonable grounds, do not comply with a safety standard (within the meaning of section 2 (1) of the ACL), or

are the subject of an interim or permanent ban, or

are the subject of a recall notice, or

the investigator believes, on reasonable grounds, are or are likely to become unsafe,

make inquiries of any person employed or engaged in that place, or

film, photograph or otherwise record a still or moving image of any thing (other than a document) for the purpose of the investigation of any matter relating to consumer goods or product related services.

If an investigator believes on reasonable grounds that there are on any premises documents evidencing—

conduct in contravention of this Act or any other legislation administered by the Minister, or

the inclusion of an unfair term in a consumer contract or small business contract that is a standard form contract (as referred to in Part 2-3 of the ACL),

inspect any document,

make a copy of, or take an extract from, any document,

seize any document, if the investigator believes on reasonable grounds that it is necessary to prevent it being interfered with or to prevent its concealment, loss, deterioration or destruction.

An investigator may—

at a reasonable time—

enter any place that he or she believes on reasonable grounds to be a place where transactions involving the disposal of interests in land are effected, or

enter any land if he or she believes on reasonable grounds that an interest in the land is being, or is proposed to be, disposed of,

inspect any documents that are in the place and relate to an interest in land or are on the land and relate to the disposal of an interest in the land, and

make inquiries of any person employed or engaged in the place or on the land.

An investigator who seizes, detains or removes any goods, or partly manufactured goods, under this section must provide a receipt for the goods.