Australian Seller not honouring warranty

[mr_millenium]

I bought a pole chainsaw knowing that come spring, it will be needed to trim some branches that grow quickly high up around my house. It came with a 12-month warranty. The first time I tried to use it was 5 months after purchase. (yes I probably should have tested it straight away but had no need to use it until recently). I have contacted them explaining how it is not working and they said they would ask their supplier for advice. I have waited a while and had no reply. I sent a follow-up email asking why if they were giving the warranty they had to ask their supplier. I have downloaded the warranty and they have the parent companies name on the warranty. Looking that up, they have a physical address in Hawthorn.  As the machine is unfit for purpose (i.e. doesn't work) how can I go through consumer complaints? Do I use Victoria or NSW as I am in NSW?

[digital*ghost]

I wasn't trying to point out the difference between big box retailers and online sellers, I was trying to do the opposite, hence showing it's the same for me as a small online seller as it is for a large retailer, and I was also trying to point out the difference between manufacturer warranties and retailer warranties - manufacturer warranties can be void via an unathorised supply chain, retailer warranties are not, because they are provided at the point of sale by the person selling the goods, there is no other link in the supply chain, and it doesn't matter if the sale is made on eBay or in a B&M store. 

There absolutely is grounds to legally enforce a seller to honour a warranty they offered - no business can advertise something and then not honour it without a reasonable exception. You don't have to be a fully registered business in order to have to comply with ACL - you just have to be carrying on a business. eBay will not protect sellers from breaching consumer laws - they are not going to give a single hoot if an authorative body needs to request contact info for a seller on here. 

[jellybirddesigns]

Apologies if I misunderstood.

Ebay is unlikely to give out seller info as mentioned without legal intervention, so the whole point is moot.

In almost 20 years on this platform and many years on these boards, I have not seen much evidence of sellers being forced to honour anything they claim in their listings. 

[digital*ghost]

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@jellybirddesigns wrote:

In almost 20 years on this platform and many years on these boards, I have not seen much evidence of sellers being forced to honour anything they claim in their listings. 

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Could that not be because there is so much misinformation on the boards, though? If people are constantly told all warranties on eBay are meaningless and they won't be able to get a rememdy through any official channels, it probably deters a lot of people from actually pursuing the remedy they have full rights to. 

[jellybirddesigns]

If people really want to test their rights, there's nothing stopping them approaching the relevant governing bodies for clarification, regardless of what is written on the boards, (which hopefully nobody takes as a legal guideline).

Many do say that they have lodged a complaint to the ACCC for example, but never come back to say that they have ever been successful, probably because they weren't.

The OP wanted to lodge a consumer complaint - so everyone on the forums would want to know the follow up response they get from whichever governing body they approach, as well as what actions the governing body takes on behalf of the OP. After all, anyone can lodge a complaint, but the real value is if there is any action taken as well as any enforcement enacted.

Also, the ACCC website states that they are unable to assist with any item bought in an auction setting. So if the OP or anyone bids on an item instead of BIN, they're even more out of luck.

[jellybirddesigns]

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Also, the ACCC website states that they are unable to assist with any item bought in an auction setting. So if the OP or anyone bids on an item instead of BIN, they're even more out of luck.

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I retract this last part of my message after re-reading the ACCC guideline as it seems to apply in CERTAIN auction settings. The rest of my post still stands.

[digital*ghost]

"If you’re a supplier or manufacturer and provide such a warranty, under the ACL you must comply with that warranty. If you fail to comply with a warranty, consumers have rights against you under the consumer guarantees."
https://business.gov.au/products-and-services/fair-trading/australian-consumer-law

https://www.accc.gov.au/business/treating-customers-fairly/offering-warranties

https://www.accc.gov.au/consumers/consumer-rights-guarantees/warranties

"What can’t we do?
The ACCC cannot:
1) Become involved in private contractual disputes
on behalf of consumers (including those
concerning warranty claims).
If goods or services do not meet one of the
statutory conditions or statutory warranties, it is
up to a consumer to pursue their own remedy
or, if necessary, take action to resolve a dispute,
such as writing a complaint letter or contacting
their state fair trading office (who may be able to
negotiate on their behalf).
This guide provides information on what
consumers can do in these circumstances."

https://www.accc.gov.au/system/files/Warranties%20and%20refunds%20-%20a%20guide%20for%20consumers%20...

[jellybirddesigns]

Well, I think that a lot of these agencies are fairly toothless for the most part when it comes to buying on Ebay.

We can discuss all day about consumer rights, but until people start coming back to these forums with cases resolved in their favour via a governing body, then most of us will continue to claim that warranties/guarantees etc are useless on Ebay, no matter what the law states.

On a final note, even if the seller was found and brought in front of a tribunal, they could easily argue that they had no way of knowing how the item was stored or used before it failed. In the OP's case, for all we know, he could have stored the item in a damp shed and it buggered the electrics. He only used it after 5 months so the seller could probably make this type of argument stick.

Below, an example of Fair Trading "usefulness".

[digital*ghost]

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@jellybirddesigns wrote:

Well, I think that a lot of these agencies are fairly toothless for the most part when it comes to buying on Ebay.

We can discuss all day about consumer rights, but until people start coming back to these forums with cases resolved in their favour via a governing body, then most of us will continue to claim that warranties/guarantees etc are useless on Ebay, no matter what the law states.

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Shonky sellers who advertise warranties with no intention of honouring them will thank anyone who does so - why not at least point out that buyers have rights and an avenue to to pursue them, even if you don't think their chances of being successful is high?

If there continues to be pressure in the right places, avenues for redress will get more important and stronger in the long run.

[deidre131]

That's a lot of help.So a 10 year warrinty on e bay is not worth a pinch of you know what.well that's a lot of help.regards mike.

[sandypebbles]

Yes it IS a lot of help

It is a factual response

If a buyer chooses to buy from a seller who is not an authorised seller/re-seller of the brand there is no warranty . It does not matter what 'the ad said'

There is even a section to tick 'authorised seller'

What  would really be no help would be for other member's to pretend it's not the case, or the buyer has an avenue of complaint 

If you want a warranty, buy from an authorised seller

End of story