Here is something we are hearing from small business owners when we talk about the reforms to the Australian Consumer Law relating to unfair conduct law which were passed in Federal parliament in early July.
“That’s a big-business thing. Big tech, big retail. It won’t really impact my small business and how I run things.”
And here is the problem with that assumption … it depends entirely on which part of the reform you’re talking about, and most small business owners haven’t yet had the chance to work out which parts actually apply to them.
The Competition and Consumer Amendment (Unfair Trading Practices) Bill 2026 passed federal parliament on 2 July 2026. It amends the Australian Consumer Law to introduce new prohibitions on unfair conduct that causes, or is likely to cause, consumer detriment.
While the new laws don’t commence until 1 July 2027, they do introduce a genuinely new legal standard, one that goes further than the rules most small businesses are used to. In a time when small business margins are already thin and insolvency numbers are climbing, another layer of legal and regulatory compliance for small business owners is a daunting prospect. That is why it’s worth understanding these new laws properly and early on in the piece, not skimming past the headlines and waiting until they commence to deal with them.
What is actually changing?
Right now, the Australian Consumer Law already stops businesses from being misleading or deceptive, or from engaging in unconscionable conduct in their dealings with consumers. Most business owners have at least a rough sense of the essence of those rules: don’t lie, don’t trick people, don’t take advantage of someone in a genuinely vulnerable position. These new laws add something different. They introduce a general prohibition on conduct that is unfair: conduct that manipulates a consumer, or unreasonably distorts the environment in which they make a decision, where that conduct is likely to cause them some kind of detriment, financial or otherwise. Conduct that may contravene the general prohibition includes, but is not limited to:- Making it hard for a customer to actually use rights they already have, like a refund, a cooling-off period, or making a complaint.
- Leaving out something important the customer would genuinely need to know before deciding whether to buy or sign up.
- Technically giving the customer information, but in such a way that they couldn’t reasonably be expected to actually take it in (for example, buried in fine print, confusing wording, dumped on them too late, or drowned in too much information at once).
- Using design tricks, especially in apps or on websites, that push a customer toward a decision or make it harder for them to stop, slow down, or say no such as countdown timers and messages about limited stock.
The part that doesn’t make headlines
Policy announcements about this reform have understandably focused on the win for consumers: an end to hidden fees, an end to subscription traps, a fairer deal when people are already under cost-of-living pressure. All of that is genuine, and worth acknowledging. What gets talked about far less is the flip side. Meeting a new, broader standard is itself a business cost, and it’s a cost that lands on every business dealing with consumers, not just the large ones the reform was clearly aimed at. A small operator charging a callout fee, taking a deposit, or running a straightforward online store now has to think about a legal standard that isn’t fully defined yet. The legislation doesn’t spell out exactly what counts as “manipulation” or “unreasonable distortion.” That’s likely to become clearer over time, through regulator guidance and eventually through cases that work their way through the courts. But for now, small business owners are being asked to comply with new laws that haven’t yet been tested in the courts. That gap between a policy’s good intentions and its day-to-day reality for a small business owner is exactly where legal literacy plays an important role.Why this is worth your attention now, not in July 2027
It’s tempting to file this away as a 2027 problem. But, there’s genuine value in doing the opposite. For one thing, the reform doesn’t only create a new regulator risk. Because the unfair trading practices provisions sit within the existing Australian Consumer Law framework, individuals, not just the ACCC, can bring their own claims. That means a single customer who feels they weren’t told clearly enough about a callout fee, a deposit, or a cancellation condition has a new legal avenue open to them, regardless of whether the business genuinely believed its terms were reasonable. For another, this reform isn’t landing in isolation. Insolvency numbers among small businesses have been climbing, and small business owners are already carrying real financial pressure from other directions entirely unrelated to this law. Layering a new compliance standard on top of that isn’t necessarily wrong as policy, but it is a real, practical cost for the small business owner living it, one that’s easy to underestimate if you only ever read the headline version of the reform. Being proactive and considering how these laws might affect your business can save you time, money and stress in the long run.Food for thought …
We’re not here to tell you exactly what to change about your contracts, your pricing, or your cancellation process. Every business is different, and what is a genuine, well-managed practice for one operator might be a real risk for another, depending on the detail of how it’s actually presented to customers. That’s exactly the kind of judgment call a lawyer makes by looking at your specific situation, not something a general blog post can safely answer for you. What we can do is set out some of the questions this reform raises, so you can work out for yourself whether it’s something you’re comfortable thinking through on your own, or whether it’s worth a proper conversation with a lawyer to look at your specific circumstances.- When does a customer first find out about an extra fee, a deposit or a call out fee? Is it before they commit to buy, or only after?
- If you read your own terms and conditions the way a customer would, would you actually understand them without help?
- Is a cancellation or deposit amount tied to something real and specific (for example, your reasonable costs or reasonable losses you might incur if cancellation occurs), or is it more of a general deterrent?
- Given the legal standard here isn’t fully settled yet, are you comfortable relying on your own interpretation of what is “reasonable”? Or is this an area where professional legal advice on your specific contracts would give you more comfort?
