The consumer watchdog has warned service stations that the end of the fuel excise discount on September 29 is not an excuse to immediately jack up prices at the bowser, and petrol retailers face penalties of up to $10m if they are found guilty of working together to unfairly slug motorists.
The warning comes as the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission in a new report revealed unleaded petrol averaged $1.88 a litre through the three months to June, marking the most expensive quarter in 14 years, after accounting for inflation.
Prices were 6.1 cents a litre more expensive on average than in the March quarter, the report showed, underlining how higher fuel costs have contributed to cost-of-living pressures, despite the temporary relief provided to motorists from March 30.
A day after Jim Chalmers said he had directed the regulator to “make sure Australian motorists get a fair deal at the bowser”, chairwoman Gina Cass-Gottlieb said “in the lead-up to, and after, September 29, the ACCC will be closely monitoring fuel pricing”.
Ms Cass-Gottlieb said she would be “writing shortly to retailers saying we don’t expect to see any abnormal or uncharacteristic price rise in advance of the 29th, or post the 29th … The retailers will have purchased at the wholesale price with the excise reduction still in place, so we do not expect to see any price increase on the basis of fuel excise change prior to the 29th.
“The earliest we would expect to see (a price rise) would be after the stocks of fuel at the lower price have been exhausted.
“If we see any anti-competitive or misleading conduct in relation to petrol pricing, we will take action.
“If we see evidence that there is a misleading explanation as to pricing, then we can take legal proceedings – under the Australian consumer law the maximum penalty is currently $10m per contravention.”
The ACCC chairwoman said that an egregious example of misbehaviour would be if a couple of service stations got together to decide when they should increase their prices in response to the end of the fuel excise.
Exchanging information to help determine a “glide path” towards a higher price would also result in the regulator taking action.
The Treasurer has remained steadfast since the May election that the six-month, 22.1c-a-litre excise cut would end as planned, insisting that the near $3bn price tag was too high in the context of the massive debt and deficits incurred in response to the Covid-19 pandemic.
The expiry of the tax discount, however, could push the price back towards $2 a litre.
Prices have followed international crude oil prices and retreated in recent weeks, with website MotorMouth suggesting prices of about $1.70 a litre or below in the major cities.
The reinstatement of the full fuel excise from September 29 will add 25.3c in petrol taxes – which includes the original 22.1c discount, plus an additional 0.9 cents to account for the automatic excise indexation in August, and the associated GST.
Ms Cass-Gottlieb said the ACCC would be “reporting weekly to motorists so motorists can see what is happening to the price, and also when it is cheapest to buy”.
Extracted from The Australian