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Text Box: Consumer Repair Notice for the repair of your new or used goods As from the 01/07/2011 and in accordance with the ACCC and the ACL regulation, a repair notice must be given to customers before accepting goods in for repair. Stated below are the terms and conditions set out with regards to repairs. 1) “The repair of your product may result in the loss of any user-generated data E.g. Recordings left on your hard disk drive, tapes left in your vcr, channels tuned on your TV, music left on your media player etc, please ensure that you have made a copy of any data saved on or in your goods to be repaired.” 2) “Under warranty goods presented for repair may be replaced by refurbished goods of the same type by the manufacturer rather than being repaired, refurbished parts may be used in the repair of your goods if new parts are not available.” Where possible we will let you know if any or all of your data will be lost prior to commencement of repair to your equipment, we try and use new genuine parts supplied by the manufacturers of your equipment, but from time to time these parts may not be available, so generic or refurbished parts may have to be used in the successful repair of your product. For more information go to the Australian consumer law website www.consumerlaw.gov.au which contains information on all areas of the ACL, including these new regulations imposed on the 01 July 2011

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Text Box: Repair notices that relate to the new consumer laws.

The Australian Consumer Law (ACL) provides all consumers with a number of protections and sets out a number of rules that businesses need to adhere to when providing goods or services. These rules range from the way goods or services can be advertised or sold to what a business is required to do when something goes wrong, and includes requirements relating to the repair of goods. The ACL is supported by the Competition and Consumer Regulations 2010 (the Regulations). The Regulations contain some additional requirements that businesses must follow to comply with the ACL, including requirements relating to the repair of consumer goods. Consumers often take their goods to have them repaired and do not realise that the goods may contain stored data that could be lost in the repair process. This is most likely to happen with items such as mobile phones, computers, portable music players and other similar electronic goods.

 

The Regulations require that from 1 July 2011 repair notices must be provided by a repairer to a consumer before they accept goods for repair, where:

the goods being repaired are capable of retaining user-generated data; or

it is the repairer’s practice to supply refurbished goods rather than repair a defective good, or to use refurbished parts in the repair of defective goods.

 

Who must provide a repair notice?

 

Any business that repairs goods is a repairer and is required to provide a repair notice to a consumer before accepting goods for repair. In some cases, a business that sells or manufactures goods will accept goods for repair on behalf of a repairer. In such circumstances, that business is required to provide a repair notice on behalf of the repairer.

 

Text Box: Example: A consumer purchases a laptop computer and the hard drive becomes faulty. If the consumer: returns the laptop to the business they purchased it from and they accept it for repair (on behalf of the repairer) – then the business must provide the consumer with a repair notice on behalf of the repairer returns the laptop directly to the manufacturer who accepts it for repair as the repairer – then the manufacturer must provide the consumer with a repair notice delivers the laptop to a general repair business that repairs the goods, this business must provide the consumer with a repair notice.

What is user-generated data?

 

User-generated data is any data stored on goods, such as: files stored on a computer hard drive, telephone numbers stored on a mobile telephone, songs stored on a portable media player, games saved on a games console, files stored on a USB memory stick.

 

Who must the repair notice be provided to?

 

The repair notice must be provided to the consumer who acquired the goods before the repairer accepts the goods for repair. It does not matter whether the consumer was the original consumer or a representative of the consumer.

 

How must the repair notice be provided?

 

Where goods are accepted for repair in person, the consumer must be provided with a written repair notice. It is not sufficient to refer consumers to a sign at your business premises, the consumer must be given a copy of the repair notice.

Where there is no face-to-face contact, for example, where a consumer sends the goods to the repairer, they must be provided with a written copy of the notice. In this case, the repair notice may be provided by email, mail or facsimile, before the business starts the repairs.

When the repair notice is provided by mail, the repairer would be required to allow a reasonable time for the consumer to receive the notice before accepting the goods for repair. What is reasonable will depend upon the circumstances.

In light of the notice being sent, repairers may also wish to seek the consumer’s consent to the repair before accepting the goods and commencing any repairs.

 

When must I provide a repair notice?

 

A repair notice must be provided to a consumer before goods are accepted for repair.

 

What information should be in the repair notice for user-generated data?

 

A notice relating to the repair of goods that are capable of retaining user-generated data must state that the repair of goods may result in the loss of the data. For example, the repair notice could say:

 

Text Box: The repair of your goods may result in the loss of any user-generated data, please ensure that you have made a copy of any data saved on your goods. or During the process of repair, some or all of your stored data may be lost. Please ensure that you have saved this data elsewhere prior to repair.

Repair notice for refurbished goods or parts

 

If a repairer sometimes uses refurbished parts to fix a good (rather than new parts), or sometimes replaces a defective good with a refurbished version, they must also give the consumer a repair notice prior to accepting goods for repair. Unlike the notice for goods capable of storing user-generated data, these repairers must include a specific form of words required by the ACL.

 

These words are:

 

Goods presented for repair may be replaced by refurbished goods of the same type rather than being repaired. Refurbished parts may be used to repair the goods.

 

A repairer must provide this repair notice regardless of whether or not they know prior to inspecting the goods that they will use refurbished parts in a particular repair or supply refurbished goods as an alternative to repair.

 

What is a refurbished good/part?

 

A refurbished good or part is likely to be considered as a used good/part that has been reconditioned or restored to an acceptable working order.

 

What if I repair goods that contain user-generated data and it is also my practice to use refurbished parts when providing repairs?

 

If both repair notices are relevant to your business, you should ensure that both notices are included, whether they are provided as a single document or two separate documents.

 

What if I don’t provide a repair notice?

 

If a business does not meet any of the conditions above, they may face penalties of up to a maximum of $50,000 for corporations and $10,000 for individuals.

 

Where can I get more information?

 

For further information on the ACL visit the website www.consumerlaw.gov.au which contains information on all areas of the ACL, including the Regulations, and links to a number of publications.

 

You can also call the ACCC’s Small Business Helpline on 1300 302 021.

The form below is an example of what we use here.

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