In 2016, the Federal Government legislated to extend existing unfair contract term (UCT) protections to include small business contracts. This was essentially about protecting small businesses when they deal with larger businesses and have to accept standard form contracts with no real ability to negotiate a change to any terms, even if they unfairly impact the small business.
In 2018, the Government commenced a review of how the new legislation is actually working to protect small businesses and is now seeking feedback from businesses on potential changes including making UCTs illegal and introducing financial penalties for breaches to strengthen deterrence. The Government is also seeking further feedback on what businesses should be covered by the UCT protections for small businesses, presently restricted to one contract party having less than 20 employees and the upfront price payable under the contract not exceeding $300,000 or, if the contract is for a duration of more than 12 months, the upfront price payable not exceeding $1 million. The South Australian Business Chamber is seeking any feedback from members to inform our submission to this review.
To help us help you, please contact Estha Van Der Linden, Senior Policy Adviser, on (08) 8300 0000 or esthav@business-sa.com. All responses from members are handled with confidence.
