Eleven Harvey Norman franchisees have been accused of misrepresenting consumer rights, and the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has started legal proceedings against them in the Federal Court of Sydney.

The ACCC alleges that the franchisees engaged in misleading or deceptive conduct by making false or misleading respresentations to consumers about their rights under the consumer guarantee provisions of the Australian Consumer Law.

ACCC chairman Rod Sims said “The Australian Consumer Law provides consumers with rights to certain remedies from retailers and manufacturers when goods fail to comply with the consumer guarantee provisions, including that goods are of acceptable quality and fit for the purpose for which they were sold.

“These rights cannot be excluded, restricted or modified. For example, if an item purchased breaks down within a short time of being puchased, the consumer may be entitled to a refund or a replacement item.”

The ACCC alleges that consumers were misled by franchisees on a number of issues including:

• that the franchisee had no obligation to provide remedies for damaged goods unless notified within a specific period of time such as 24 hours or 14 days
• that the franchisee had no obligation to provide remedies for goods still covered by the manufacturer’s warranty
• that the franchisee had no obligation to provide refunds or replacements for particular items such as large appliances or items priced below a certain amount, and
• that consumers must pay a fee for the repair and return of faulty products.

The 11 franchisees in the legal proceedings are:

• Avitalb Pty Ltd, located in Albany, WA
• Bunavit Pty Ltd, located in Bundall, Queensland
• Camavit Pty Ltd, located in Campbelltown, NSW
• Gordon Superstore Pty Ltd, located in Gordon, NSW
• HP Superstore Pty Ltd, located in Hoppers Crossing, Victoria
• Ipavit Pty Ltd, located in Ipswich, Queensland
• Launceston Superstore Pty Ltd, located in Launceston, Tasmania
• Mandurvit Pty Ltd, located in Mandurah, WA
• Moonah Superstore Pty Ltd, located in Moonah, Tasmania
• Oxteha Pty Ltd, located in Oxley, Queensland, and
• Salecomp Pty Ltd, located in Sale, Victoria.

The ACCC alleges that the misrepresentations occurred between April 2011 to mid 2012; that in all 11 cases the misrepresentations to customers were verbal and made by employees of the relevant Harvey Norman franchisee; and that in one case there was also a misrepresentation on the customer’s receipt.

The ACCC is seeking court orders for penalties, declarations, injunctions and costs and the first hearing is set for 19 December 2012.

Images: smh.com.au/heraldsun.com.au