Optus has been fined $100million after it was found to have pressured 400 ‘vulnerable’ customers to buy products they didn’t need and couldn’t afford.
The beleaguered telco giant was described as ‘predatory’ and ‘appalling’ in its conduct as the penalty was handed down in the Federal Court on Wednesday.
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) launched the legal action last year, alleging 429 Optus customers were sold phones and accessories they didn’t ‘want or need’ or could afford during a two-year period up to June 2023.
Many of those impacted were First Nations people from regional and remote areas and customers living with mental disabilities or in disadvantage.
Financial Counselling Australia director of First Nations policy, Lynda Edwards, has said the fine was ‘not a lot of money’ to big companies like Optus.
‘What is it going to take for these companies to actually look after vulnerable people in our communities?’ she told ABC News.
‘You know, our telcos in Australia, they’re given free reign on how they self regulate their business.’
The ruling comes as the beleaguered telco faces further scrutiny following a 13-hour triple-0 blackout on Thursday.
Optus has been fined $100million after it was found to have pressured 400 ‘vulnerable’ customers to buy products they didn’t need and couldn’t afford (pictured, a store in Sydney)
It’s understood that a botched firewall update blocked hundreds of calls to triple-0 in South Australia, Western Australia, the Northern Territory and NSW.
The telco giant was unaware of the catastrophic systemic failure until hours later, which wasn’t publicly addressed until late the next day.
More to come.
