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Telecommunications Act 2001

Fibre fixed line access services - Enforcement and miscellaneous provisions

215: Pecuniary penalty for contravening price-quality requirements

You could also call this:

"Paying a penalty for not following price and quality rules for internet services"

Illustration for Telecommunications Act 2001

If you break the rules about prices and quality for fibre fixed line access services, you might have to pay a penalty. The High Court can order you to pay this penalty if you have done something wrong on purpose or by accident. You might have to pay up to $500,000 if you are an individual, or up to $5,000,000 if you are a company. When the court decides how much you have to pay, they think about what you did, how it affected others, and whether you did it on purpose. They also consider if you have broken the rules before. You can only be penalised once for the same mistake. The court can start a case against you up to three years after you broke the rules. If you are a fibre service provider, you cannot be penalised more than once for the same thing.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=LMS132033.

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216: Compensation for contravention of price-quality requirement, or

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Part 6Fibre fixed line access services
Enforcement and miscellaneous provisions

215Pecuniary penalty for contravening price-quality requirements

  1. The High Court may, on application by the Commission, order a person to pay a pecuniary penalty to the Crown if the court is satisfied that the person—

  2. has contravened any price-quality requirement applying to fibre fixed line access services; or
    1. has attempted to contravene any such requirement; or
      1. has aided, abetted, counselled, or procured any other person to contravene any such requirement; or
        1. has induced, or attempted to induce, any other person, whether by threats or promises or otherwise, to contravene any such requirement; or
          1. has been in any way, directly or indirectly, knowingly concerned in, or party to, the contravention by any other person of any such requirement; or
            1. has conspired with any other person to contravene any such requirement.

              1. In subsection (1) and sections 216 to 218, a reference to contravening a price-quality requirement—

              2. refers to a requirement imposed—
                1. by a determination made under section 170 in relation to fibre fixed line services that are subject to price-quality regulation imposed under Part 6; or
                  1. by section 193(1)(b); and
                  2. includes 1 or more of the following:
                    1. failing to comply with a requirement for prices, whether by charging a price for a service that is higher than the maximum price permitted, or by receiving more revenue than is permitted, or in any other way:
                      1. failing to comply with any quality standards required under the price-quality regulation:
                        1. failing to comply with any requirement in sections 198 to 201.

                        2. The amount of pecuniary penalty must not, in respect of each act or omission, exceed $500,000 in the case of an individual, or $5,000,000 in the case of a body corporate.

                        3. In setting the amount of pecuniary penalty, the court must take into account all of the following matters:

                        4. the nature and extent of the contravention:
                          1. the nature and extent of any loss or damage suffered by any person as a result of the contravention:
                            1. the circumstances in which the contravention took place (including whether the contravention was intentional, inadvertent, or caused by negligence):
                              1. whether or not the person has previously been found by the court in proceedings under this Part to have engaged in similar conduct.

                                1. A regulated fibre service provider may not be liable to more than 1 pecuniary penalty in respect of the same conduct.

                                2. Proceedings under this section may be commenced at any time within 3 years after the contravention occurred.

                                Compare
                                Notes
                                • Section 215: inserted, on , by section 24 of the Telecommunications (New Regulatory Framework) Amendment Act 2018 (2018 No 48).