Making false or misleading representations is an offence.
The maximum civil pecuniary and criminal penalties for bodies corporate are the greater of:
- $10 million, or
- three times the value of the benefit obtained from the offence, or act or omission, by the body corporate and any related bodies corporate if the benefit obtained can be determined by the court, or
- if the court cannot determine the value of the benefit, 10 per cent of the annual turnover of the body corporate.
The maximum penalty for a person is $500,000.
In addition to the criminal or civil penalties, consumer protection agencies can:
- require a business to provide information that will support claims or representations made about goods or services through a substantiation notice
- accept court-enforceable undertakings
- issue public warning notices.