Trying to get a refund on a faulty product can be a headache for many customers, especially if they are chasing their money from online retailers.
In a sweep of more than 2000 Aussie retail websites, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission found many businesses are falling short of being up front with consumers, with unwieldy terms and conditions.
The commission noted the jargon-filled text sometimes is in breach of Australian Consumer Law.
"Our sweep has found numerous examples of practices that could potentially mislead or deceive consumers regarding their rights to exchange, refund or return a product," ACCC Deputy Chair Catriona Lowe said.
"Under the Australian Consumer Law consumers have basic rights when buying products and services, known as consumer guarantees.
"These rights are separate from any warranties offered by a business and cannot be taken away by anything a business says or does."
The wideranging audit of online retailers identified several potentially misleading statements in the terms and conditions including imposing time-limits for returning a faulty product and a blanket 'no refund' policy on sales or specialised items;
Some of these problematic statements are familiar to consumers such as "items that have been opened and used cannot be exchanged or refunded" or "sale items cannot be returned, exchanged or refunded".
The watchdog sent warning letters to businesses in breach resulting in them removing the misleading statements from their websites.
In February 2024, the competition observer claimed one of its biggest scalps when the Federal Court ordered car manufacturer Mazda to pay $11.5 million in penalties for engaging in nearly 50 misleading or false representations to nine customers about their consumer guarantee rights.
