Legal Australian consumer laws PDF

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Australian consumer law summaries...

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ACL – Consumer guarantees against supplier: 1. In trade or commerce? 2. Consumer under s3 ACL (try to prove consumer contract because if we do then we get consumer guarantees/ protection) 3. -

Which consumer guarantees have been breached? S54- Acceptable quality S55- Fit for disclosed purpose 56- If goods are sold by description they must correspond to that description S57- Correspond with sample, demonstration model etc. S60 Service must be rendered with due care and skill S61 services must be fit for any disclosed purpose S62 Services must be performed with reasonable time

4. Was the breach of the consumer guarantees a major failure? S260 ACL - goods S268 ACL – services Is the breach a major failure? S260 and s268 Services- s268 will be a major failure if one of the following applies: - Service would not have been acquired by reasonable consumer fully acquainted with nature and extent of failure - Service substantially unfit for normal purpose or any disclosed purpose and cannot be made fit in reasonable time - The supply of service creates an unsafe situation Goods- s260 will be a major failure if one of the following applies - Goods would not have been acquired by a reasonable consumer who was aware of the nature and extent of the failure - Goods depart significantly from the description, sample or model by which they were sold - Goods substantially unfit for either their normal purpose or any disclosed purpose and cannot be made fit for purpose in a reasonable time - Goods are not of acceptable quality because they are unsafe 5. Any exclusion clause would be void under s64 if it existed

6. Remedies available – affected by whether breach is a major failure or whether exluction clause if affective

If breach of guarantees is a major failure, then we can reject the good/ service and claim a refund

If no a breach of major failure cannot reject but ask for repair/ replacement. If there is an exclusion clause, then void no remedies.

ACL – Consumer claims against manufacturer: 1. An affected person may also sue the manufacturer for damages for breach of s56 of the ACL – s271 (1) 2. Exclusion clauses are ineffective to protect manufacturers s276 ACL

Remedies against the manufacturer – defective product (action against manucturer) The manufacturer is also responsible for injuries and damages resulting from goods with a safety defect Manufacturer- s7 ACL defined a manufacturer as anyone who produces the goods or holds themselves out in the public as the manufacturer of the goods. It also includes the importer if the actual manufacturer has no place of business in Australia. Can be; a. Grows, extracts, produces, processes or assembles goods b. Holds himself out to the public as the manufacturer of goods c. Applies their name or trademark to goods supplied by them d. Permits another person holds them out to the public as the manufacturer of the goods/ services e. Imports goods into Australia if the actual manufacturer of the goods does not have a place of business in Australia The ACL imposes strict liability on the manufacturers of defective goods to compensate for any injury or loss suffered as a loss suffered as a result of their products. Consumers must show that a. Manufacturer supplied the good in trade or commerce b. Goods had a safety defect- s9 ACL a good has a safety defect if it is not as the consumer would reasonably expect c. Affected person suffered injury because of the safety defect S138- Anyone injured because of the defect

S139- Person other than affect person suffers loss because of the defect S140- Damages to personal property S141- Damage to real property – fixtures, land etc d. S150 ACL exclusion clauses by the manufacturer - void...