Section 48 — Competition and Consumer Act 2010: Single price to be specified in certain circumstances

(1) A person must not, in trade or commerce, in connection with: (a) the supply, or possible supply, to another person of goods or services of a kind ordinarily acquired for personal, domestic or household use or consumption; or (b) the promotion by any means of the supply to another person, or of the use by another person, of goods or services of a kind ordinarily acquired for personal, domestic or household use or consumption; make a representation with respect to an amount that, if paid, would constitute a part of the consideration for the supply of the goods or services unless the person also specifies, in a prominent way and as a single figure, the single price for the goods or services. Note: A pecuniary penalty may be imposed for a contravention of this subsection. (2) A person is not required to include, in the single price for goods, a charge that is payable in relation to sending the goods from the supplier to the other person. (3) However, if: (a) the person does not include in the single price a charge that is payable in relation to sending the goods from the supplier to the other person; and (b) the person knows, at the time of the representation, the minimum amount of a charge in relation to sending the goods from the supplier to the other person that must be paid by the other person; the person must not make the representation referred to in subsection (1) unless the person also specifies that minimum amount. Note: A pecuniary penalty may be imposed for a contravention of this subsection. (4) Subsection (1) does not apply if the representation is made exclusively to a body corporate. (4A) Subsection (1) does not apply if: (a) the representation is in a class of representations prescribed by the regulations; and (b) the conditions (if any) prescribed by the regulations in relation to representations in that class have been complied with. Note: If the representation is in a class prescribed for paragraph (a) of this subsection and subsection (1) is complied with in relation to the representation, there is no need to also comply with any conditions prescribed for paragraph (b) of this subsection. (5) For the purposes of subsection (1), the person is taken not to have specified a single price for the goods or services in a prominent way unless the single price is at least as prominent as the most prominent of the parts of the consideration for the supply. (6) Subsection (5) does not apply in relation to services to be supplied under a contract if: (a) the contract provides for the supply of the services for the term of the contract; and (b) the contract provides for periodic payments for the services to be made during the term of the contract; and (c) if the contract also provides for the supply of goods—the goods are directly related to the supply of the services. (7) The single price is the minimum quantifiable consideration for the supply of the goods or services at the time of the representation, including each of the following amounts (if any) that is quantifiable at that time: (a) a charge of any description payable to the person making the representation by another person unless: (i) the charge is payable at the option of the other person; and (ii) at or before the time of the representation, the other person has either deselected the charge or not expressly requested that the charge be applied; (b) the amount which reflects any tax, duty, fee, levy or charge imposed on the person making the representation in relation to the supply; (c) any amount paid or payable by the person making the representation in relation to the supply with respect to any tax, duty, fee, levy or charge if: (i) the amount is paid or payable under an agreement or arrangement made under a law of the Commonwealth, a State or a Territory; and (ii) the tax, duty, fee, levy or charge would have otherwise been payable by another person in relation to the supply. Example 1: An airline advertises a flight for sale. Persons have the option of paying for a carbon offset. If the carbon offset is preselected on the airline’s online booking system, the single price for the flight must include the carbon offset charge. This is because the person has not, at or before the time of the representation, deselected the charge on the online booking site. If the person deselects the optional carbon offset charge later in the online booking process, the single price does not need to include the carbon offset charge after the charge is deselected because of the exception provided by paragraphs (a)(i) and (ii). Example 2: The GST may be an example of an amount covered by paragraph (b). Example 3: The passenger movement charge imposed under the Passenger Movement Charge Act 1978 may be an example of an amount covered by paragraph (c). Under an arrangement under section 10 of the Passenger Movement Charge Collection Act 1978, airlines may pay an amount equal to the charge that would otherwise be payable by passengers departing Australia.