Insight / Consumer Markets Unconscionable conduct in the spotlight Recent news from across the Tasman provides a timely reminder to New Zealand businesses that engaging in unconscionable conduct will not be tolerated by regulators. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has commenced proceedings against Australia’s second largest telco provider, Optus Mobile Pty Ltd (Optus), for allegedly engaging in unconscionable conduct by selling telecommunications goods to vulnerable consumers who did not want or need them. Read more
Insight / Consumer Markets What is statutory management? An explanation of the latest salvo in the Du Val saga On 2 August 2024 interim receivers were appointed to a number of entities in the Du Val group. On 21 August 2024, this was followed by the appointment of statutory managers to various entities in the Du Val group. This is an extraordinary development, and leads to the question – what is statutory management? Read more
Insight / Consumer Markets Checkout check-in: Commerce Commission launches early review of Grocery Supply Code The Commerce Commission has launched a review of the Grocery Supply Code (Code) – the new ‘rule book’ for grocery suppliers – to see if it is operating as intended and helping to fix the power imbalance between New Zealand grocery suppliers and major supermarkets. Read more
Insight / Consumer Markets A swipe at card charges: Commerce Commission consults on potential card fee savings The Commerce Commission has launched a consultation on the retail payment system that could give rise to savings of hundreds of millions of dollars a year for New Zealanders paying for products with Mastercard or Visa Read more
Insight / Consumer Markets ‘Too hard to cancel’ – global spotlight on subscriptions and use of online choice architecture Businesses that offer subscription-based services to their customers, online or via an app, need to ensure that subscriptions are easy for users to cancel. Understanding how website and app design or online choice architecture (OCA) impacts a consumer’s ability to navigate any cancellation options is becoming increasingly relevant. Read more
Insight / Consumer Markets ACCC battles the wave against false ocean plastics claims The Australian competition regulator, ACCC, recently began proceedings against Clorox for making false or misleading representations that the GLAD kitchen and garbage bags were partly created with recycled ocean plastic. Read more
