Western Grocer Serving the industry since 1916
The Manitoba government has introduced an amendment to the Business Practices Act that would ban retailers from using consumers’ personal data to increase the price of goods for a specific consumer, Public Service Delivery Minister Mintu Sandhu has announced.
“Protecting Manitobans from unfair pricing practices is essential to keeping life affordable,” said Sandhu. “These are first of their kind amendments and take aim at the misuse of personal data to inflate prices and ensure consumers are treated fairly whether they shop at the grocery store or other retailers. By strengthening these protections, the Manitoba government is reinforcing its broader commitment to lowering everyday costs for families.”
Whether in-store or online, the proposed bill would make it an unfair business practice for suppliers to charge higher prices to certain consumers based on personalized or algorithmically determined information.
The proposed amendment would also make clear that the Business Practices Act applies to online retailers and online distributors. By adding the use of personal data to increase prices as an unfair business practice, the proposed bill responds to concerns that companies may be using a consumer’s data to charge them more for goods, including groceries.
Bill 49 aligns with the Manitoba government’s commitment to lowering grocery prices for Manitobans including other actions such as:
- removing property controls on grocery store locations;
- freezing the price of milk;
- freezing hydro rates;
- cutting the gas tax permanently;
- ensuring every student gets a meal; and
- increasing the property tax credit and the pre-natal benefit to ensure families have more money for groceries.
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