Fee Fighters: Paper bill charges may be banned

After charging customers up to $2.75 per printed statement, big business could be about to be hit with a paper bill of its own — for nearly $100 million.

After charging customers up to $2.75 per printed statement, big business could be about to be hit with a paper bill of its own — for nearly $100 million.

The federal Consumer Affairs Minister Stuart Robert and his state and territory counterparts have warned companies a ban will be imposed in a year’s time unless they rapidly increase the proportion of customers who get an exemption to 30 per cent.

If charging for paper bills was prohibited it would cost the 16 companies with the largest customer bases as much as $93 million, according to Treasury calculations.

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Consumer Affairs Minister Stuart Robert has warned companies paper bill ban could be imposed in a year’s time.

“I’ve given everyone 12 months to demonstrate how they are showing grace otherwise we will move to ban,” Mr Robert told News Corp Australia.

“We’ve made that very clear.”

A ban is supported by the Consumer Action Law Centre, which says low-income households and the elderly are more likely to be unable to receive electronic bills.

CALC has therefore argued that the charges fall disproportionately on those least able to afford them.

However, the body that represents phone companies, the Communications Alliance, has described a ban as “a drastic suggestion for a problem which has not been clearly identified”.

It says there will be “broad reaching and negative impacts”.

Originally published as Fee Fighters: Paper bill charges may be banned