Part 3: Enforcement of consumer protection law Miscellaneous Section 178: Substantiation of claims
This section enables the court to require evidence from traders substantiating the factual claims used in their commercial practices with consumers, which are at issue in an application for a consumer protection order involving alleged contravention of Chapter 1 of Part 4 (protection from unfair trading) to this Act (subsections (1) and (2)). This section restates and updates section 218A of the Enterprise Act 2002.
	The effect of this provision is that the burden of proof regarding the accuracy of the claim rests on the trader and any claim (such as claims about products having various positive effects on health) should be based on evidence which can be verified by the court.
	The content and scope of the evidence to be supplied will depend on the specific content of the factual claim and it is for the court to decide if any evidence provided is adequate. If the court considers that it is not, or if no evidence is produced, the court can decide the claim is inaccurate (subsection (3)).