topic Dangerous Product in Buying

Dangerous Product

troppolad — Fri, 10 May 2024 15:04:40 GMT

I recently (4 april) bought a heated throw rug, at first it seemed fine, good quality stitching, the plastic control pad was nicely made, tight tolerances and buttons with a nice solid feel to them. In a day or so the buttons started to malfunction so i contacted the seller and they would do nothing with a video of it happening. I figured i could put up with it and forgot about. Now the control pad has got so hot the buttons have deformed. This product is a fire danger. So other than the seller who do i contact?

Sorry about the ramble

Troppo

Re: Dangerous Product

sandypebbles — Fri, 10 May 2024 15:28:49 GMT

I do not understand why you would still continue to use the thing when you know it had a fault

Or why you did not open an item not as described dispute the minute you knew it had one

Was the seller registered in Australia?

Is it a brand name product?

If so, you could contact the company who make it and alert them

Or contact somewhere like Product safety Australia

Re: Dangerous Product

countessalmirena — Fri, 10 May 2024 17:17:47 GMT

Check the listing in your purchase history; you should still be able to see the item number. You can’t post the seller details but you can post the item number.

If more than 30 business days have passed since receiving the item have passed, you are no longer covered by eBay’s Money Back Guarantee.

If you paid by PayPal, though, you have PayPal’s Buyer Protection for 180 days dating from the time of the transaction (not from the delivery date).

As a last resort if you paid by credit/debit card and are not covered by PayPal, you should have protection in cases of a fraudulent or not as described item for between a month and six months (depending on your card issuer’s T&Cs) by being able to ask your bank to initiate a chargeback - best left, as I’ve said, only as a last resort because if you try to do a chargeback and it fails, you won’t be able to try PayPal Buyer Protection or (even if the timeframe of 30 business days after delivery hasn’t yet lapsed) eBay MBG.

If however the item was sold to you by an Australian business registered to sell such items, Australian Consumer Legislation should apply.

Do you know where your seller is registered?

And yes - I echo what sandypebbles has said. Don’t keep using a faulty electrical product! It’s risking injury or death or a conflagration destroying your property. You also need to act quickly under the MBG - not letting it time out if you want to be covered for the easiest resolution to such issues.

Re: Dangerous Product

vensan79 — Mon, 13 May 2024 11:54:42 GMT

May be contact fairtrade? If its a branded product they could do a recall. Sounds scary.

Re: Dangerous Product

digital*ghost — Tue, 14 May 2024 00:18:19 GMT

Report an unsafe product via Product Safety Australia, here:

https://www.productsafety.gov.au/contact-us/for-consumers/report-an-unsafe-product

In case it applies, there might not be much they can do if the seller isn't located in Australia. (AFAIK product safety - when an item is imported - is always the responsibility of the importer, eg. if a business imports 1000 charging cables, they're responsible for ensuring they meet Australian standards / getting them tested for safety etc before putting them on the market. If a consumer imports one charging cable for personal use, the responsibility is theirs).

Re: Dangerous Product

vensan79 — Thu, 16 May 2024 00:25:31 GMT

Yes Product safety website can be used too. Fairtrade can also be used, as I've mentioned in the above message.

According to fairtrade "If you become aware of an unsafe situation or item, whether or not anyone has been injured, you should alert the supplier about the issue. You can also report it by lodging a complaint on our website or via the Product Safety Australia website."

Although I'm not sure if they both are handled by same team or which one is better.

The fairtrade complaint form is here
https://www.cas.fairtrading.nsw.gov.au/icmspublicweb/forms/GeneralForm.html

Cheers