In November last year, the Federal Government changed the UCT regime by expanding the small business threshold and introducing financial penalties for contravening the UCT regime. The penalties are significant, with the maximum penalties being the greater of $50 million, 30% of adjusted revenue or 3x the value of the benefit of the UCT (if it can be determined) for a body corporate and $2.5 million for individuals. 

 

While the changes to the UCT regime only come into effect on 9 November 2023, it’s important to start reviewing your standard form consumer and business contracts now for UCTs. 

 

 

From 9 November 2023, the UCT protections will apply to a small business contract if one party is a business that: 

 

 

 

 

The definition of an unfair contract term remains unchanged. As a reminder, a contract term will be ‘unfair’ if it:

 

Further, this may include terms that enable one party (and not the other) to:

 

 

Australian Consumer Law (ACL) does not specifically define ‘standard form’. However, it does provide a framework of factors for courts to consider when determining whether a standard form contract exists. These factors include where: 

 

Additionally, some recognisable examples of standard form contracts include:

 

 

 

Alexandra Perry
Practice Leader
LegalVision.com.au