Consumers ripped off with short measures or inaccurate labelling
December 27, 2015 1:00am
DARYL PASSMOREThe Sunday Mail (Qld)


A SHOCKING four in 10 businesses checked by the weights and measures police have been found to be ripping off buyers.

Even more startling, after receiving a warning from inspectors the first time, seven in 10 of the rogue businesses were found on follow-up visits, to be still not up to scratch.   

DUDDED: Goods up to 50pc underweight

ANGRY BUYERS: Firewood ‘rip-off’

Consumer advocates say spot checks of more than 8000 businesses by officers from the National Measurement Institute shows that consumers should not take for granted that they are getting what they pay for.   

Half the breaches related to short measures or labelling problems with prepacked goods and a quarter were about advertising, signage or incorrect operation of scales or other measuring instruments.   


Overall, 7 per cent of packaged goods were not properly labelled, with seafood and bakery items the worst. A third of complaints about prepacked articles were found to be justified, along with 40 per cent of those about meat and 14 per cent about fruit and vegetables.

The Queensland Consumers Association’s Ian Jarratt said it strengthened the argument against watering down labelling rules.

The Federal Government is now reviewing labelling rules.
Queensland Consumers Association’s Ian Jarrett from the Queensland Consumers Association is concerned about the lack of emphasis on unit pricing in supermarkets. Pic by Luke Marsden.

The Australian Food and Grocery Council and the National Retail Association want the regulations that require information to be on the front of packets and in a certain size, to be scrapped.

Industry chiefs say the rules are unnecessarily restrictive and push up prices. Imported products with information on other parts of packaging often have to be relabelled to comply. Relaxing the regulations could see more products imported, giving greater choice, they argue.

But the consumer lobby has branded it a “packet racket’’ that will make it easier for companies to shrink products but charge the same price.   

Mr Jarratt said it would be harder for shoppers to hold producers and retailers to account if content details were hard to see on the packet.

The National Measurement Institute issued 3962 non-compliance notices last year, 13 per cent more than 2013-14, and imposed 98 fines totalling $92,650, with 51 per cent of them for short measures.

The Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions secured four convictions, including a $3300 fine for Woolworths for underweight birthday cakes and a $3000 penalty for Coles for shortfalls in prepacked lamb chops and weighing instrument problems.   

I wonder do we have enough of these Weights and measures people, out their checking these things?.   

Quote:


....maybe we can withdraw compulsory penalty rates to pay for some more thumb twiddlers?

Swagman wrote on Dec 27^th, 2015 at 1:31pm:






Quote:


they're not there to prosecute, they're there to make sure consumers aren't getting ripped off.

innocentbystander. wrote on Dec 27^th, 2015 at 8:46pm:


Perhaps we could take our own scales shopping. 

Setanta wrote on Dec 27^th, 2015 at 9:00pm:



Scales are already provided in the shops as per the law 

I feel sorry for you poor bastards, you just wouldn't be able to get by in life without big government holding your little hand 

innocentbystander. wrote on Dec 28^th, 2015 at 9:55am:


Yes - I have four breath testing machines and nobody to calibrate them for me...

"That'll be $1000 and loss of licence for six months, sir.... or you could contribute to the Police Orphan's Fund and take a warning......"

Drinking slowly is the way to go... I had three beers in around 4 hours and read 0.03.....