The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has started reviewing unsolicited selling and lead generation activities, including door-to-door selling and cold calling, following a complaint from the Consumer Law Action Centre.
This is the first designated complaint received by the ACCC under the newly introduced framework. The Commission has concluded that the matters raised by the Consumer Action Law Centre warrants a comprehensive review.
Unsolicited selling refers to situations where a salesperson contacts a customer without prior invitation to sell a good or service. Another example of this is in-person approaches in public spaces like shopping centres. These practices are commonly driven by lead generation such as social media advertising, which aim to identify individuals as potential customers.
“Unsolicited selling and lead generation has the potential to cause significant financial harm to consumers and it can often disproportionately impact consumers experiencing vulnerability or disadvantage,” said Catriona Lowe, ACCC Deputy Chair.
“We consider that a review into these practices is necessary in order to better understand how the practices are used and their impacts across different cohorts of consumers. Gaining a better understanding of these practices will help determine if further action is needed to better protect consumers.”
The ACCC’s review will address several areas outlined in the designated complaint, namely consumer experiences, sales structures and practices, lead generation methods, and potential issues in the application of the Australian Consumer Law, particularly provisions related to unsolicited consumer agreement.
The authority has started consultation and released a paper asking for stakeholder feedback on the pros and cons of unsolicited selling and lead generation. Submissions are open until 31 July 2025.
“We want to hear the views from a broad range of stakeholders, including businesses that use unsolicited selling, industry associations, government, consumers groups and consumers, to help inform our review,” said Lowe.
The ACCC will publish its findings after the review. In the meantime, they will continue to monitor and assess conduct involving unsolicited consumer agreements for possible compliance or enforcement action, including the ones mentioned in the complaint, as part of their Compliance and Enforcement Policy.
The law enforcement agency may respond to a complaint with in-depth investigations, sector reviews, advocacy work, and efforts focused on research, education or engagement.
They may also decide not to act further on a designated complaint if it doesn’t meet the criteria, the issue is already being addressed elsewhere, and if no further action would be appropriate based on the nature of the issue, the harm caused, or the likely impact.