Everyday Australians and the ACCC
Click on the numbers in the picture to see what we do
- Move your mouse over a number on the image at left.
Who's on the phone?
The ACCC served 112 556 phone inquiries and responded to 18 842 emails in 2011-12. 72 299 scam reports were received, with reported losses of $85.6m. The ACCC conducted the 'Slam Scams' campaign and Fraud Week. The SCAMwatch website received 20.5 million hits and 19 000 subscribers to its alerts.
Safe products
Keeping Baby Safe is one of the ACCC'S most popular products. 20l1-12 saw permanent bans on babies' dummies and dummy chains with decorations introduced; 2357 product safety reports were received; and 420 recalls managed.
Carbon pricing
The ACCC protects consumers and educates businesses about misleading price claims on the impact of the carbon prices.
Helping Australians online
The ACCC is establishing access arrangements for the NBN that maximise the opportunities for effective retail competition. The ACCC accepted undertakings fom Telstra that implement structural reform of markets for fixed line communications. The undertakings promote competition and safeguard consumers in the transition to the new industry structure.
What's on TV?
The ACCC protects consumers against misleading and deceptive representations, succesding in cases against Apple, Harvey Norman and Singtel Optus among others in 2011-12, with more than $10 million in penalties imposed. It also ensured competition in subscription television by imposing conditions on the FOXTEL/Austar merger to maintain competition in content and emerging TV platforms.
Overseeing monopoly postal services
The ACCC scrutinises Australia Post's accounts to assess whether its monopoly services, such as its basic mail services, are cross-subsidising Australia Post's competitive services like its parcel services. The ACCC also regulates price increases for Australia Post's basic mail services. In 2011-12, it found there was no cross-subsidy from Australia Post's monopoly services to its competitive ones.
Door to door sales
The ACCC educates consumers and businesses on their rights and obligations concerning door to door sales-a key part of the Australian Consumer Law
Petrol
The ACCC analyses the prices, costs and profits of the petrol industry in Australia and reports its fndings. In 2010-11 Australia had the fourth lowest petrol prices in the OECD. Net profit for all petrol products in 2010-11 was around 2.2 cents per litre.
Regulating energy markets
The AER regulates monopoly electricity and gas transmission and distribution businesses by determining the revenue they receive. The AER set revenue for Powerlink (Qld), and Aurora (Tas), to 2017, and metering charges payable by Victorian consumers to 2015.
Airlines and airports
The ACCC took action to ensure passengers enjoyed their consumer rights when Tiger Airways and Qantas were grounded. Air cargo cartel action has resulted in $58 million in penalties being imposed on eight airlines so far. Six cases remain before the courts. The ACCC monitors prices, costs and profits of services at airports and assesses price increases from Airservices Auslralia.