ACCC v Tel.Pacific Limited

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) initiated proceedings against Tel.Pacific Limited in the Federal Court of Australia for contraventions of sections 52, 53(aa), 53(c) and 55A of the Trade Practices Act 1974, which prohibit false, misleading and deceptive conduct. Tel.Pacific had distributed advertising material for various pre-paid phone cards, including hello India, hello China, hello Middle East, UTSAV and Voice Thailand, which contained misleading representations. The court was required to decide on the appropriate declarations, injunctions, and other orders to address Tel.Pacific’s contraventions.

The court found that Tel.Pacific's advertising material contained representations that no fees other than timed call charges would apply to the use of pre-paid phone cards, that a stipulated number of minutes was available for calls using the cards, and that "up to" a stipulated number of minutes was available for calls using the cards. These representations were misleading and deceptive as they failed to disclose service fees, disconnection fees, surcharges, and that calls were charged in incremental periods. The court concluded that it was appropriate to make declarations in accordance with paragraphs 1, 2 and 3 of the proposed consent orders. The injunction restrained Tel.Pacific from disseminating misleading advertising material for a period of two years. Other orders included the removal of the advertising material from retailers, the publication of a corrective notice, the printing of a disclaimer on pre-paid phone cards, the establishment of a compliance program, and the payment of the ACCC's costs.

The court made orders restraining Tel.Pacific from engaging in similar conduct for a period of 2 years, required it to publish a corrective notice, implement a trade practices compliance program, and pay the ACCC's costs of the proceeding. The compliance program included the appointment of a Compliance Officer, a risk assessment, the establishment of a Compliance Policy, a complaints handling system, training for employees, and annual external reviews. Tel.Pacific was also required to supply documents to the ACCC evidencing compliance with the Court’s Order. A copy of the decision and the detailed orders can be found at www.fedcourt.gov.au.