Consumer Protection WA has given its seal of approval to 270 Perth Royal Showbags after product safety inspectors checked about 1500 toys and novelty items that will be sold at the Claremont Showground.
Commissioner for Consumer Protection David Hillyard says the majority of toys and novelty items have been ticked off as safe for kids to have bags of fun with.
Two people behind a concrete business have been fined $6,000 each by the Perth Magistrates Court and ordered to pay $7,215 in compensation to three consumers who paid deposits but did not receive any concrete supplies.
With Commissioner for Consumer Protection Penny Lipscombe
Buying a pet is not like your average purchase. The product, which might be a puppy, dog, kitten, cat, horse or rabbit is likely to become a loved member of your family and with you for its whole life.
Consumer Protection has been unable to secure refunds for more than 200 complainants who have paid over $200,000 between them for cheap flights or holiday deals from a Facebook travel agency. Affected consumers either could not get plane tickets for their desired dates or were asked to pay extra money and some flew to their destination but found they were not booked on return flights as expected.
Promoters of a fraudulent tax scheme are targeting residents in Kimberley communities with the promise of a large tax return, prompting a warning by Consumer Protection and the Australian Taxation Office (ATO).
Reports from Derby, Fitzroy Crossing and surrounding areas have revealed that some taxpayers have been approached by promoters offering to help submit their tax returns with a guarantee of a substantial payment. In some cases, the promoters have offered to pay to obtain the taxpayers’ myGov login details.
With Commissioner for Consumer Protection Penny Lipscombe
Gift cards are big money in Australia, both for their convenience and flexibility. Unfortunately an estimated $70 million is lost each year due to uncertainty about expiry dates.
Consumer Protection Western Australia received 116 gift card related complaints in the last year (September 2018–September 2019) with 26% of complaints about inability to redeem a gift card and 14% of complaints regarding issues with the expiry date.
A real estate sales agent who was showing a prospective tenant a rental property in Beeliar recently was surprised to discover that someone had changed the locks and had already moved in without the authority of the owner.
The tenant moved in after responding to a rental accommodation advertisement on Gumtree which ended up being fake. He paid $2,000 to the scammers via a money transfer service as a deposit for the tenancy which was advertised at $340 per week, $30 cheaper than the real asking price.
A Perth-based online business that took money from consumers for Jeep parts and accessories and either failed to supply them or took a very long, unreasonable amount of time, has been fined $16,000 in a case brought by the Commissioner for Consumer Protection.
Consumer Protection is warning WA consumers about a business that has taken orders for Land Rover parts but has failed to deliver.
Gordon German, trading as Green Oval Experience formerly operating as an auto parts store in Canning Vale, owes at least 15 customers a total of almost $50,000 in payments accepted for motor vehicle parts that have yet to be supplied.
Removing the requirement to have a licence to be an auctioneer in WA is being proposed following a review of the Auction Sales Act.
However, protections will be boosted with extra conduct standards and power for the Commissioner for Consumer Protection to take action to prevent unfit persons from working in the auction industry which covers the auctioning of all types of goods, including the sale of real estate, motor vehicles, art, antiques, collectables and livestock.
