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What the ACCC does

We take reports about suppliers imposing minimum prices.
We investigate and take court action against suppliers that try to impose minimum resale prices.

What the ACCC can't do

We don’t intervene directly in disputes between businesses.

What suppliers must not do

It's illegal for suppliers to impose minimum prices for the resale of their goods or services.

For example, suppliers must not:

set minimum prices in formal policies or agreements
offer retailers a discount if they sell at or above a minimum price
refuse to supply retailers that sell below a minimum price
punish retailers for selling below a set price, for example, by taking away a discount or sending a warning.

This is known as resale price maintenance.

Resale price maintenance is illegal because it stops retailers competing on price, increasing what consumers pay.

It's also illegal for resellers to ask suppliers to stop competitors selling below a minimum price.

Example of resale price maintenance

Scenario

A jewellery wholesaler gives retailers a list of recommended prices.

It offers a 10% discount to retailers who pay their accounts on time, but the discount isn't available if the retailer sells the jewellery for less than the recommended prices.

Relevant factors

The discount is taken away from the retailer if they sell the jewellery for less than the price recommended by the wholesaler. This is resale price maintenance and is illegal.

What suppliers are allowed to do

Suppliers canrecommend appropriate prices, for example, by providing a recommended resale price (RRP) list.

Suppliers can set amaximumretail price.

Suppliers can refuse to supply resellers that engage in loss leader selling.

Seeking an exemption

A supplier wanting to engage in resale price maintenance can seek an exemption from the ACCC by:

applying for anauthorisation, or
lodging anotification.

Theseexemption processes give protection from legal action. The supplier needs to show that the behaviour is in the public interest.

If lodging a notification, read our Resale price maintenance notification guidelines for more information.

Register of resale price maintenance notifications

Notifications of resale price maintenance submitted to the ACCC are listed on theresale price maintenance notifications register.

Each entry includes the status and outcome.

Report resale price maintenance

If you are a business and have a problem with a supplier engaging in resale price maintenance, report it to the ACCC.

Make a report to the ACCC