Consumer Affairs and Fair Trading Act 1990

acquire includes:

(a) in relation to goods – acquire by purchase or exchange or by taking on lease, on hire or on hire-purchase; and

application law, for Part 4, see section 25(1).

approved form means a form approved under section 9(5) or 17A(7).

Australian Consumer Law, for Part 4, see section 25(1).

Australian Consumer Law (NT) means the provisions applying because of Part 4 of this Act.

Australian Consumer Law text, for Part 4, see section 25(1).

authorised officer means a person who is, in accordance with section 18, an authorised officer for the purposes of all or any of Parts 4 to 14.

biodiesel, for Part 11, see section 185.

business includes:

code of practice means a code of practice for the time being prescribed pursuant to section 239.

Commissioner means the Commissioner of Consumer Affairs appointed under section 6, and includes any person for the time being acting in, or performing the duties of, the office of Commissioner.

consumer, see section 5.

Deputy Commissioner means the person holding or occupying the office of Deputy Commissioner of Consumer Affairs mentioned in section 9A.

diesel fuel, for Part 11, see section 185.

director, in relation to a body corporate, includes any person occupying or acting in the position of director of the body corporate, by whatever name called and whether or not validly appointed to occupy, or duly authorised to act in, the position.

Director means the person holding or occupying the office of Director mentioned in section 13.

discounted fuel price, for Part 11, see section 185.

document includes any record of information, whether or not the information is available only after the record is subjected to electronic or other process.

enactment includes regulations made under an Act.

fuel retailer, for Part 11, see section 185.

goods includes:

(c) minerals, trees and crops, whether on, under or attached to land or not; and

instrument, for Part 4, see section 25(1).

Intergovernmental Agreement, for Part 4, see section 25(1).

jurisdiction, for Part 4, see section 25(1).

law, for Part 4, see section 25(1).

liquefied petroleum gas, for Part 11, see section 185.

modifications, for Part 4, see section 25(1).

month, for Part 4, see section 25(1).

normal fuel price, for Part 11, see section 185.

officer, in relation to a body corporate, see section 9 of the Corporations Act 2001.

participating jurisdiction, for Part 4, see section 25(1).

petrol, for Part 11, see section 185.

prescribed fuel, for Part 11, see section 185.

price includes a charge of any description.

price board, for Part 11, see section 185.

send includes deliver.

service station, for Part 11, see section 185.

services includes any rights (including rights in relation to, and interests in, real or personal property), benefits, privileges or facilities that are, or are to be, provided, granted or conferred in trade or commerce, and without limiting the generality of the foregoing, includes the rights, benefits, privileges or facilities that are, or are to be, provided, granted or conferred under:

(i) the performance of work (including work of a professional nature), whether with or without the supply of goods; or

(ii) the provision of, or the use or enjoyment of facilities for, amusement, entertainment, recreation or instruction; or

(iii) the conferring of rights, benefits or privileges for which remuneration is payable in the form of a royalty, tribute, levy or similar exaction; or

(c) a contract between a banker and a customer of the banker entered into in the course of the carrying on by the banker of the business of banking; or

but does not include rights or benefits consisting in the supply of goods or the performance of work under a contract of service.

State, for Part 4, see section 25(1).

state of mind, of a person, includes a reference to:

(a) the knowledge, intention, opinion, belief or purpose of the person; and

(b) the person's reasons for the person's intention, opinion, belief or purpose.

supplier means a person who, in the course of a business, supplies goods or services.

supply includes:

(a) in relation to goods – supply (including re-supply) by way of sale, exchange, lease, hire or hire-purchase; and

(b) in relation to services – provide, grant or confer for valuable consideration.

Territory, for Part 4, see section 25(1).

this jurisdiction, for Part 4, see section 25(1).

trade or commerce includes any business or professional activity.

Note for section 4(1)

The Interpretation Act 1978 contains definitions and other provisions that may be relevant to this Act.

(a) a reference to the acquisition of goods includes a reference to the acquisition of property in, or rights in relation to, goods in consequence of a supply of the goods; and

(b) a reference to the supply or acquisition of goods or services includes a reference to agreeing to supply or acquire goods or services; and

(c) a reference to the supply or acquisition of goods includes a reference to the supply or acquisition of goods together with other property or services, or both; and

(d) a reference to the supply or acquisition of services includes a reference to the supply or acquisition of services together with property or other services, or both; and

(e) a reference to the re-supply of goods acquired from a person includes a reference to:

(i) a supply of the goods to another person in an altered form or condition; and

(ii) a supply to another person of goods in which the first‑mentioned goods have been incorporated.

(a) the obtaining of credit by a person in connection with the acquisition of goods or services by the person is an acquisition by the person of services; and

(b) any amount by which the price of goods or services is increased because credit was obtained is the price of the services represented by the obtaining of credit.

(a) a reference to conduct is a reference to the doing of any act, or the refusing to do any act, including an act that constitutes (or would but for the refusal constitute) making or giving effect to a provision of a contract or arrangement, arriving at or giving effect to a provision of an understanding, or requiring or entering into a covenant; and

(c) a reference to a person offering to do an act, or to do an act on a particular condition, includes a reference to the person making it known that the person will accept applications, offers or proposals for the person to do that act or to do that act on that condition, as the case may be.

(a) a reference to loss or damage, other than a reference to the amount of any loss or damage, includes a reference to injury; and

(b) a reference to the amount of any loss or damage includes a reference to damages in respect of an injury.

(1) A consumer is a person who acquires goods or services from a supplier.

(2) In subsection (1), goods does not include goods which are acquired, or are held out as being acquired:

(b) for the purpose of using them up or transforming them, in the course of a business, in or in connection with a process of manufacture or production.

(a) to promote the interests of consumers, and to assist consumers to a greater awareness in relation to their assessment and use of goods and services; and

(b) without prejudice to the generality of paragraph (a), to promote the maintenance of fair trading practices and of product safety; and

(c) to receive complaints from consumers concerning matters touching their interests as consumers, to investigate those complaints, and to take such action in respect thereof as seems proper to the Commissioner; and

(d) to receive complaints of fraudulent, misleading, deceptive or unfair practices in relation to matters which affect, or are likely to affect, the interests of consumers or of traders, and to take such action as seems proper to the Commissioner; and

(e) to advise and assist consumers who seek from the Commissioner information or guidance on matters affecting their interests as consumers; and

(f) to collect, collate and disseminate information in respect of matters affecting the interests of consumers; and

(g) to encourage and undertake the dissemination of information concerning consumer affairs (and in particular, the maintenance of fair trading practices and of product safety) to producers, manufacturers, traders and suppliers of goods or services; and

(k) to perform such other functions as are conferred on the Commissioner by or under this or any other Act.

(a) keep under critical examination, and from time to time report to the Minister on, the laws in force relating to the interests of consumers; and

(b) keep under review market-place trends and other matters affecting the interests of consumers and, where that appears desirable, make recommendations to the Minister with respect to responses thereto; and

(c) report to the Minister on any matter that is referred to the Commissioner by the Minister as relating to the interests of consumers;

and, for those purposes, may conduct research and make investigations.

(5) Nothing in this section is to be construed as requiring the Commissioner, or any person under the Commissioner's direction or control, to give, or to hold him or herself out as ready or competent to give, advice to a consumer concerning the consumer's rights and liabilities in law in respect of any matter.

(1) The Commissioner may, for the purpose of, or in connection with, the performance of any function conferred on the Commissioner by or under this or any other Act, require any person to furnish the Commissioner with such information as the Commissioner requires or to answer any question put by the Commissioner.

(2) The Commissioner may under subsection (1) require that information be given, or a question answered:

and, in a case falling within paragraph (a), may further require that the information or question be furnished or answered on oath.

(3) A person is not excused from furnishing any information or answering any question pursuant to a requirement under subsection (1) on the ground that the information or answer might tend to incriminate the person, or to make the person liable to a penalty, but information so furnished or an answer so given is not admissible against the person in any criminal proceedings other than proceedings for an offence against this Act.

(a) fails to furnish information, or to answer a question, pursuant to a requirement under subsection (1); or

(b) pursuant to such a requirement, furnishes information or gives an answer which is false or misleading in any material particular;

is (subject, in a case falling within paragraph (a), to subsection (5)) guilty of an offence.

Maximum penalty: If the offender is a natural person –400 penalty units or imprisonment for 2 years.

If the offender is a body corporate –2 000 penalty units.

(5) A person is not guilty of an offence by reason of a failure mentioned in subsection (4)(a) unless, before the failure, the Commissioner warned the person that it is an offence not to comply with a requirement under subsection (1).

(6) Where a person is found guilty of an offence falling within subsection (4)(a), the court may order that person to furnish the information or answer the question which was the subject of the offence.

(1) The Commissioner may, with the approval of the Minister and on terms and conditions approved by the Commissioner for Public Employment, arrange with a department or statutory corporation, or a council constituted under the Local Government Act 2019, for the use of the services of any staff, or the use of any facilities, of the department, corporation or council.

(2) With the approval of the Minister, and on such terms and conditions as the Minister thinks fit, the Commissioner may, for a particular purpose and otherwise than under a contract of service, appoint and employ any person, body or organisation considered to be capable of providing information, services or advice that would assist in the performance of the Commissioner's functions.

(3) The Commissioner may, at the Commissioner's sole discretion, institute and defend proceedings in a court of competent jurisdiction for or on behalf of a consumer or class of consumers.

(4) Where a dispute arises concerning a consumer, the Commissioner may:

(a) if the dispute is governed by an arbitration agreement which appoints the Commissioner as arbitrator or empowers the Commissioner to appoint an arbitrator – act as arbitrator or, as the case may be, appoint an arbitrator; and

(b) in the absence of an arbitration agreement, with the consent in writing of all the parties to the dispute – act as arbitrator in the dispute or nominate a person to act as arbitrator.