Have you ever been deterred or prevented from using a site or property for your business as a result of a land agreement? If so, what did it say and what was the nature of the land agreement?
What features did you require for the site, for example, access to foot traffic?
What impact did this have on your business, for example, did you find another suitable site?
Is there a sector you consider is more likely to be impacted by difficulty accessing a suitable site?
What features of the sector makes you think this and how is this problematic?
Has your ability to compete been impacted by the terms of a land agreement which required you not to do something? If so, please describe what the land agreements required, and the impact on your subsequent choices.
Your ability to compete could include: starting a new business, expanding an existing business, offering lower prices, creating or supplying new products or services, or supplying a new customer group.
Has your ability to compete been impacted by the terms of a land agreement which required you to do something? If so, please describe the requirement, and the impact on your subsequent choices.
If you have been party to a land agreement, was this in place when you decided to occupy the site or property, or did you agree to it afterwards?
In this document we mostly talk about the impact land agreements have as a result of restricting access to suitable sites.
Are there other impacts land agreements can have on competing businesses, for example restricting your choices around goods or services by preventing you using a certain supplier?
Are there other features that you consider could be a ‘risk factor’, where a land agreement may be more likely to impact competition?
We have identified 3 broad rationales for businesses using land agreements: to recoup an initial investment, to protect ongoing operations, or to protect them from future dispute.
Do you agree with these categories?
Are there any other rationales for using land agreements that we have not covered here?
Are you party to an agreement that benefits your business, either by requiring another party to do something, or by requiring them not to do something?
If so, please provide details of the agreement (the type of agreement, the purpose of the agreement and its duration). If you have multiple land agreements, please provide the most recent example.
Did the agreement achieve this aim?
Have you ever used a land agreement to protect your place in the market? If so, how?
If you benefit from a land agreement, did you consider any alternative options to the land agreement? If so, what were these and why did you choose the land agreement?
Are you aware of any competition impacts from the alternatives we suggest? If so, what are these?
If you are party to a land agreement, did you record this agreement with LINZ?
What type of agreement is it?
Were you aware of the prohibitions around anti-competitive covenants and other agreements in the Commerce Act, prior to reading this document?
If not, what would have been the best way for this to have been communicated to you?
Have you used a template to create a land agreement?
If so, what type of agreement was it?
If so, did it contain restrictive clauses, and did you include these in your agreement?
Have you removed, or attempted to remove, a registered land agreement? If so, what type of agreement was this?
Were you successful in doing so?
Do you consider interventions should target: Existing agreements / Future agreements / Both / Neither
Do you consider the focus of interventions should be on (please select all that apply): Prevention / Detection / Compliance / Enforcement
Do you consider the options outlined to prevent new anti-competitive agreements would achieve this aim:
Increase awareness and understanding of existing rules - Yes / No / Somewhat / Don’t know
Introduce checkpoints in the registration process - Yes / No / Somewhat / Don’t know
Do you consider the options outlined to detect new anti-competitive agreements would achieve this aim:
Introduce a requirement for new agreements to provide a description of their purpose when they are recorded on the Land Titles Register - Yes / No / Somewhat / Don’t know
Introduce a requirement for certain types of agreements to be reviewed after a period of time - Yes / No / Somewhat / Don’t know
Do you consider the option outlined to detect existing anti-competitive agreements would achieve this aim:
Introduce a requirement for some businesses to disclose information on agreements - Yes / No / Somewhat / Don’t know
Do you consider the options outlined to better enable businesses to voluntarily comply would achieve this aim:
Introduce a sunset clause whereby agreements become unenforceable after a certain time - Yes / No / Somewhat / Don’t know
Make it easier for businesses to voluntarily remove covenants - Yes / No / Somewhat / Don’t know
Do you consider that changing sections 27 and 28 would be more effective at deterring or prohibiting anti-competitive land agreements? Yes / No / Somewhat / Don’t know
Do you have any other suggestions for changes we could make to help better prevent anti-competitive land agreements being created and/or recorded on the Land Titles Register?
If we were to introduce a requirement for certain agreements to be reviewed, which businesses, sectors or types of agreements do you consider it would be best directed towards?
How long do you consider a review period should be?
Do you have any other suggestions for changes we could make to make monitoring and identifying new land agreements easier?
Are there particular businesses or types of agreements that you consider the information disclosure requirement should apply to? If so, what are these?
Do you have any other suggestions for changes we could make to make monitoring and identifying existing land agreements easier?
If we were to introduce a sunset clause for certain types of agreement, do you have a view as to which businesses or sectors, or types of agreements, it should apply to?
Do you consider that there should be a presumption of unenforceability for certain land agreements? If so, which agreements should these be?
Do you consider there should be an automatic removal on application for certain land agreements, if no objection is filed? If so, which agreements should these be?
Do you consider some land agreements should be automatically time bound? If so, which agreements should this apply to?
Are there any other options that you consider would help promote voluntary compliance?
Do you consider changes to sections 27 and 28 of the Commerce Act are needed?
Do you have any other suggestions for how to make the enforcement of the prohibitions in sections 27 and 28 of the Commerce Act more practical and efficient?
Are there any other risks or potential unintended consequences you would like us to be aware of?
Do you consider existing provisions in the Commerce Act have the potential to ‘over-capture’ land agreements, by prohibiting land agreements you consider to have necessary purpose? Please provide examples.
Do you consider the ability of the Commerce Commission to provide ‘authorisation’ sufficient to mitigate the risk that the Commerce Act could over-capture land agreements?
If not, why not?
Do you have a view on how we can identify when land agreements are beneficial, and how this can be weighed up against their impact on competition?
Do you have an example of when an exemption to sections 27, 28 or 30 could be used, and the authorisation process would not be appropriate?
Do you consider criteria or a test would be most suited for this type of exemption?
Do you have a view on what criteria would be appropriate for an exemption?
Can you provide examples of agreements that you consider would meet these criteria?
https://www.mbie.govt.nz/business-and-employment/business/competition-regulation-and-policy/market-studies/market-study-into-residential-building-supplies/review-of-anti-competitive-land-agreements-discussion-document/summary-of-questions Please note: This content will change over time and can go out of date.
