The ACCC issued a notification on 8 July 2025 outlining the ACCC's enforcement and compliance priorities for the 2025-2026 financial year.
The ACCC have made it clear that unfair contract terms in small business contracts, especially focusing on automatic renewals, early termination fee clauses and non-cancellation clauses, will be a focus.
They have identified that an early termination fee clause may be unfair in certain circumstances. For instance, if:
- the fee is higher than the cost of the early termination suffered by the non-terminating party and does not account for any costs saved as a result of the early termination;
- the customer isn't given reasonable notice of an early termination if it is the business who is terminating;
- the early termination fees are high following automatic renewal;
- the term allows one party but not the other to terminate the contract early;
- the clause penalises one party but not the other for breaching or ending the contract.
You will recall that automatic renewal clauses in contracts have previously been found to be unfair contract terms in various cases.
The Franchise & Business Lawyers can assist you in navigating unfair contract term legislation and help you to avoid the extensive penalties that may be incurred for a breach of the unfair contract term legislation.
