Fair Trading Legislation Amendment (Reform) Act 2018

A supplier must, before supplying a consumer with goods or services, take reasonable steps to ensure the consumer is aware of the substance and effect of any term or condition relating to the supply of the goods or services that may substantially prejudice the interests of the consumer.

Without limiting subsection (1), a term or condition relating to the supply of goods or services to a consumer may substantially prejudice the interests of the consumer if—

the term excludes the liability of the supplier, or

the term provides that the consumer is liable for damage to goods that are delivered, or

the term permits the supplier to provide data about the consumer, or data provided by the consumer, to a third party in a form that may enable the third party to identify the consumer, or

the term requires the consumer to pay an exit fee, a balloon payment or other similar payment.

The regulations may provide for—

what may or may not constitute reasonable steps taken by suppliers to ensure consumers are aware of the substance and effect of terms or conditions relating to the supply of goods or services, and

the type of terms, or classes of terms, that may substantially prejudice the interests of consumers, and

the type of terms, or classes of terms, that do not substantially prejudice the interests of consumers, and

any other requirements in relation to the way in which consumers must be made aware of terms and conditions relating to the supply or goods that may substantially prejudice the interests of consumers, and

exemptions from the requirements of this section.

An intermediary must, before acting under an arrangement that provides for the intermediary to receive a financial incentive, take reasonable steps to ensure the consumer who will be supplied with the goods or services to which the financial incentive relates is aware of the existence of the arrangement.

The regulations may provide for—

what may or may not constitute reasonable steps taken by intermediaries to ensure consumers are aware of the existence of arrangements that provide for intermediaries to receive financial incentives, and

any other requirements in relation to the way in which intermediaries must make consumers aware of the existence of arrangements under which intermediaries receive financial incentives.

In this section—

a commission or referral fee, or

another kind of payment prescribed by the regulations.

means a person—

who, under an arrangement that provides for a financial incentive, arranges contracts for the supply of goods or services as an agent or refers consumers to another supplier of goods or services, or

who is prescribed by, or who belongs to a class of persons prescribed by, the regulations, but

does not include a person, or class of persons, excluded by the regulations.

The regulations may prescribe information standards for the supply of goods and services.

A prescribed information standard may contain any of the following—

requirements for certain information to be communicated to a person to whom the goods or services are to be supplied,

requirements with respect to the type and form of information to be so communicated and the manner of communication.

This section does not limit section 134 (Making information standards for goods and services) of the ACL.

In this section, supply includes proposed and prospective supply and offer to supply.

A person who supplies goods or services that are intended to be used, or are of a kind likely to be used, by a consumer and in relation to which there is an information standard must comply with the standard in relation to the goods or services concerned.

If—

a person supplies goods or services in contravention of subsection (1), and

another person suffers loss or damage by not having particular information relating to the goods or services but would not have suffered the loss or damage if the information standard had been complied with in relation to the goods or services,