The consumer watchdog and Optus have agreed the telco should pay a $100 million penalty, after it admitted signing up vulnerable Australians to mobile phone plans that they didn’t need and in some instances couldn’t even use. The fine is one of the biggest ever secured by the ACCC, which took this action against Optus after also investigating Telstra over similar allegations. Optus admitted that its sales staff acted unconscionably when they sold products and services to more than 400 consumers at 16 different stores across Australia between August 2019 and July 2023. Optus chief executive Stephen Rue apologised to customers and described the conduct as "inexcusable and unacceptable". The ACCC and Optus will jointly ask the Federal Court to impose a total penalty of $100 million on the telco for breaching the Australian Consumer Law. The regulator said it was a matter for the Court to decide whether the penalty was appropriate and to make other orders. The misconduct included pressuring customers into purchasing large numbers of products, including expensive phones and accessories, that they did not want or need, could not use or could not afford. Sales staff also failed to explain relevant terms and conditions, did not consider whether customers had Optus coverage where they lived, and misled people into thinking goods were free or part of a bundle at no additional cost. Some customers were pursued by debt collectors. In addition to the penalty, Optus has signed an undertaking to compensate affected customers and improve its systems. ACCC deputy chair Catriona Lowe described the conduct as "simply unacceptable".
In 2021, the Federal Court ordered Telstra to pay a penalty of $50 million plus costs for its treatment of Indigenous customers in rural and remote parts of Australia. Telstra admitted it had acted unconscionably towards 108 customers at five Telstra-branded stores, by selling phone plans people could not afford and did not understand, following an ACCC investigation.
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