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ARTICLE · 24 JANUARY 2020

The perfect storm… for competition law risk

Norton Rose Fulbright Australia
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This roofing case provides a clear illustration of circumstances in which opportunistic conduct can break the law.

AustraliaAntitrust/Competition Law
Claire Forster
Claire Forster
Nick McHugh
Nick McHugh
Martyn Taylor
Martyn Taylor
Andrew Riordan
Andrew Riordan
Belinda Harvey
Belinda Harvey
Author LinkedIn connections
  • Introduction
  • What happened?
  • The allegations
  • First concerted practices action
  • Outcome
  • Communicating with competitors carries risk
  • Opportunistic conduct or anti-competitive behaviour?

Introduction

The first concerted practices enforcement action has resulted from posts on a Facebook roofing industry page. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has accepted enforceable undertakings from two roofing companies and their directors for attempting to price fix and engaging in concerted practices. It illustrates how opportunistic conduct may cross the line into illegal behaviour.

What happened?

After a damaging Sydney hailstorm in December 2018, the directors of the two roofing companies posted the following in a Facebook roofing industry group (usually used to advertise jobs and discuss industry issues).

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