ACCC reveals further carbon tax rorts, flags focus on unconscionable conduct

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission says alcohol stores and taxi drivers are not the only businesses that have come to its attention trying to use the carbon tax as an excuse for price hikes, as its chairman Rod Sims reveals an alcohol store has been warned for trying to blame a 20% price rise for beer on the tax.

Sims said yesterday that a customer had gone into a liquor store and been told that a carton of beer now cost $60, instead of $49.95, due to the carbon tax – which has not yet passed the Senate.

The unnamed business was given a warning, Sims said.

“You shouldn’t be paying higher prices now for the carbon price,” Sims is quoted saying.

“It does take a little bit of electricity to make a beer, but not a lot. And besides which, the carbon tax hasn’t started yet. It’s just way over the top.”

A couple of weeks ago Sims said the regulator has had “a few potential cases of people saying things that are just silly, and reports of taxi drivers adding a ‘carbon levy’.”

The ACCC this morning said the alcohol store and taxi cases were not the only examples of companies caught attempting to blame the tax on price hikes over the past month.

Carbon tax guidelines for businesses and consumers will be released next month.

The ACCC has been allocated $12.8 million to police price gouging under the tax, with penalties for gouging as high as $1.1 million per breach.

In a speech yesterday, Sims also flagged that the ACCC intended to actively pursue cases regarding the misuse of market power and unconscionable conduct – which allows the courts to step in when an individual is dealing with a more powerful party who is treating them unfairly.

“The unconscionable conduct provisions are an important part of both the consumer protection and fair trading provisions of the Australian Consumer Law,” ACCC chairman Rod Sims said.

“I am interested in exploring their potential application to a broader range of circumstances than may have previously been the case; for example, in areas such as door-to-door energy selling, and perhaps even the dealings of major supermarkets with their suppliers.”