# CHOICE Announces 2024 Shonky Awards for Deceptive Consumer Practices Major brands face scrutiny over misleading energy ratings, dynamic pricing, and restrictive policies. - **Source:** [Sydney Morning Herald - Business](https://www.smh.com.au/rss/business.xml) - **Published:** 2026-11-03 - **Topic:** [Business](https://brifing.si/c/business) - **Original article:** - **On Brifing:** https://brifing.si/s/bc5d1be7-8e80-48d5-bd33-d7ba83fc848c ## The Shonky Awards Overview The 21st annual Shonky Awards, organized by consumer advocate CHOICE, highlight businesses engaging in practices detrimental to customers. This year, the list includes major entities like Virgin Australia, Ticketek, Ticketmaster, Sony, and Hisense. These awards serve as a public critique of corporate strategies that prioritize revenue over fair consumer treatment. ## Hisense Appliance Energy Controversy Hisense received a Shonky for its Series 8i washer-dryer, which boasts high energy efficiency ratings only achievable through a specific Eco mode. Running this cycle takes over 25 hours, rendering it impractical for daily household use. CHOICE argues this exploits a system allowing manufacturers to nominate their own testing programs. ## Dynamic Pricing and Ticket Tactics Ticketek and Ticketmaster were cited for using dynamic pricing, which inflates costs based on demand. Fans reported prices reaching $1650 for tribute concerts, while NRL supporters faced significant markups for adjacent seats. The companies defend these tactics as necessary measures to reduce scalping and manage market value for high-demand events. ## Virgin Australia Credit Expiry Virgin Australia faced criticism for retaining $75 million in expired flight credits from the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite several extensions, customers who failed to book by June 30, 2026, or travel by May 27, 2027, lost their funds. The airline maintains that it communicated these deadlines clearly to all affected passengers. ## Sony Digital Licensing Risks Sony was awarded for phasing out physical PlayStation games by January 2028, forcing users into digital-only ownership. CHOICE warns that digital purchases are merely revocable licenses rather than permanent property. This concern follows a previous incident where 500 films were removed from European libraries after a licensing agreement with StudioCanal expired. ## Petcover Insurance Policy Issues Petcover earned a spot on the list for a policy that reclassifies previously treated conditions as pre-existing every year. This broad definition excludes coverage for recurring issues, effectively reducing protection with every claim filed. The policy structure creates a cycle where long-term customers lose coverage for conditions they previously managed. ## Quest Nutrition Pricing Disparity Quest Nutrition was highlighted for the extreme pricing of its Protein Chips. CHOICE found these products were 886 percent more expensive than comparable non-protein chips, costing over $20 per 100g. This significant price gap serves as an example of premium branding strategies that do not align with standard market value expectations. ## Impact of Corporate Accountability The Shonky Awards emphasize the growing tension between corporate profit-seeking and consumer welfare. By exposing specific mechanisms like dynamic pricing and restrictive licensing, CHOICE aims to pressure companies toward transparency. These awards function as a necessary check on industries where consumers often lack the leverage to challenge unfair institutional policies. ## Sources covering this story - https://www.smh.com.au/business/consumer-affairs/from-fleecing-fans-to-25-hour-washer-dryer-cycle-shonky-s-top-awards-named-20261104-p61avy.html?ref=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_source=rss_business — --- _Summary written by Brifing from the original reporting. Copyright in the original article belongs to its publisher; read the full piece at the link above._