Be aware the following information relates to consumer transactions that occurred before 1 Janaury 2011. For information relating to transactions made after 1 January 2011 please refer to the Australian Consumer Law.
Every consumer has the right to receive factual information about goods and services on offer. This allows consumers to make informed choices about the purchases they make. It is illegal for a business to mislead or deceive the consumer. It is even illegal to give information that is likely to mislead or deceive, through oral, written or advertising claims made about goods or services.
It is an offence for a person to do anything which might mislead someone about goods on offer. This includes giving out misleading information about the nature, manufacturing process, characteristics or quantity of the goods as well as information about whether the goods will perform as expected.
It is an offence for a business to advertise part of the price of goods or services without also stating the full cash price. For example, if a business advertises an appliance at $500 or $10 per week, the advertisement must also contain the total price which would be paid if the consumer chose to make weekly payments. It is not sufficient to state how long the payments would continue for or what the interest rate would be, the full price that would be paid under a repayment option must be stated.
If a business person offers gifts or prizes or other free items in order to encourage a consumer to purchase goods or services, they must provide them to the consumer exactly as they were offered. It is an offence to not provide them exactly as they were offered.
If a person is offering employment, it is illegal to mislead prospective employees about details relating to any aspect of the employment. It is an offence to do anything that may mislead an applicant with regards to the availability, nature or terms and conditions of the employment. For example, a person cannot tell a potential employee that they would be paid a set amount per week, when in reality, they would be working on a commission basis.
