Disclosing the whole price – new ACL provisions to commence 1 July 2027
What’s changing?
The Competition and Consumer Amendment (Unfair Trading Practices) Act 2026 amends the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 (Cth), including the Australian Consumer Law (ACL).
The amendments come into effect on 1 July 2027 and introduce three key changes: a ban on unfair trading practices, stronger drip-pricing rules and new subscription protections.
1. Unfair trading practices
Businesses will be prohibited from engaging in conduct that manipulates consumers or unreasonably distorts their decision-making, where the conduct causes or is likely to cause financial or other detriment. Examples include withholding important information, presenting information in a confusing or overwhelming way, obstructing consumers from exercising their legal rights and using website or app features that pressure consumers or make choices unnecessarily difficult. The new provisions are designed to prevent practices that are sometimes called “dark patterns” from being used online. These include tactics designed to convince consumers to buy something and may include things like false low stock warnings, countdown timers, and shaming consumers for not providing their contact details (eg “I prefer to pay full price”).
The prohibition is not limited to misleading or unconscionable conduct, or to online transactions.
Transport operators who sell tickets directly to consumers should review their advertising material and websites to ensure that important consumer information is presented in a clear and straightforward fashion without using techniques that pressure consumers to make a purchase.
2. Drip pricing
Drip pricing occurs when a business advertises a price but reveals additional charges later in the purchasing process, such as booking fees, weekend surcharges or delivery charges. Under the new rules, these transaction charges must be clearly and prominently disclosed close to the advertised base price. The price disclosure must explain what the charge is, or how it is calculated, and whether it is included in the displayed price.
While the provisions do not include a requirement to disclose surcharges for credit card payments, passing on such surcharges to consumers was banned with effect from 1 October 2026.
The transport sector has previously attracted regulatory scrutiny over pricing transparency. In 2017, Jetstar and Virgin were ordered to pay penalties of $545,000 and $200,000 respectively over the non-disclosure of a per-passenger “Booking and Service Fee” that applied to bookings paid by most credit cards or PayPal (and, for Virgin, debit cards). The Federal Court found that Jetstar’s website and mobile site, and Virgin’s mobile site, made false or misleading representations about airfares by not disclosing the fee until the final payment stage.
Transport operators should ensure that the full price of fares, including booking and service fees, is advertised and displayed prior to booking.
3. Subscription contracts
New subscription rules will introduce additional requirements for covered arrangements, including automatic renewals, introductory offers and cancellation processes. Businesses that offer goods or services under a subscription contract will be required to disclose information regarding the period of the contract, renewal or extension of the contract, how to terminate the contract, and the notice required to terminate the contract. These businesses must also provide a way for the subscriber to end the contract and ensure that the cancellation method is easy to find and straightforward. While unlikely to affect most transport operators, businesses that use a subscription model should carefully review their processes to ensure they comply.
4. Significant penalties
Breaches of the new unfair trading prohibition can attract substantial civil penalties: up to $2.5 million for individuals and, for companies, the greatest of $100 million, three times the benefit obtained or, if the benefit cannot be determined, 30% of adjusted turnover during the breach period. The ACCC can also issue infringement notices.
Breaches of the new drip-pricing and subscription provisions may also attract civil penalties.
What should businesses do now?
Before 1 July 2027, businesses should:
i. Review pricing disclosures to ensure applicable charges are clearly displayed.
ii. Check whether websites and apps make it difficult for consumers to opt out, use pre-ticked boxes or create unnecessary hurdles when people try to exercise their rights.
iii. Ensure that subscription terms are easy to understand, renewals are clearly explained and cancelling a subscription is straightforward.
Businesses will need to pay closer attention to how they display prices, design customer-facing processes and manage subscriptions. Now is a good time to review existing practices and prepare for the new requirements before they come into effect.
Contacts
Keira Nelson
+61 413 198 778
Andrew Dunn
+61 2 9230 9446