Motor vehicle sales and repairs

Motor vehicle sales and repairs

An industry guide to the Australian Consumer Law

This guide was developed by: ? Access Canberra, Australian Capital Territory ? Australian Competition and Consumer Commission ? Australian Securities and Investments Commission ? Consumer Affairs Victoria ? Consumer, Building and Occupational Services Tasmania ? New South Wales Fair Trading ? Northern Territory Consumer Affairs ? Queensland Office of Fair Trading ? South Australia Consumer and Business Services ? Western Australia Department of Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety,

(Consumer Protection)

Copyright Commonwealth of Australia 2018 ISBN 978-0-642-74919-2

This publication is available for your use under a Creative Commons By Attribution 4.0 Australia licence, with the exception of the Australian Consumer Law logo, photographs, images, signatures and where otherwise stated. The full licence terms are available from the Attribution 4.0 Unreported licence page on the Creative Commons website. Use of Commonwealth material under a Creative Commons By Attribution 4.0 Australia licence requires you to attribute the work (but not in any way that suggests that the Commonwealth endorses you or your use of the work). Material used `as supplied' Provided you have not modified or transformed the material in any way, then the Commonwealth prefers the following attribution: ? Source: Commonwealth of Australia Derivative material If you have modified or transformed the material, or derived new material in any way, then the Commonwealth prefers the following attribution: ? Based on the Commonwealth of Australia material Inquiries regarding this licence and any other use of this document are welcome at: Manager Communications The Treasury Langton Crescent Parkes ACT 2600 Email: medialiaison@.au

CONTENTS

Introduction

4

Consumer guarantees on vehicles

7

Consumer guarantees on services

25

Common issues

28

Businesses as consumers

36

Consumer protection agencies

37

INTRODUCTION

The Australian Consumer Law (ACL) is Australia's national consumer law, replacing previous consumer protection laws in the Commonwealth, states and territories. The ACL applies at the Commonwealth level and in each state and territory.

This guide provides information on the ACL for the motor vehicle (vehicle) sales and repair industries-- including motorcycles.

It covers issues about which industry bodies have requested more detailed guidance and which consumers have frequently reported to national, state and territory consumer protection agencies.

This information will be relevant to:

? authorised vehicle dealers (including of vehicles and motorcycles)

? mechanics and vehicle servicers and repairers

? vehicle manufacturers, distributors and importers.

The guide's main focus is on consumer issues related to defects and failures (both one-off and repeated) in new and used vehicles.

In particular, it provides guidance on the legal rights and obligations created by consumer guarantees provided by the ACL. Remedies are available when there is a:

? major failure to comply with a consumer guarantee

? minor failure to comply with a consumer guarantee that cannot be fixed within a reasonable time, or

? minor failure to comply with a consumer guarantee that can be fixed (whether or not it is capable of being fixed within a reasonable time).

What is not in this guide

This guide gives general information and examples--not legal advice or a definitive list of situations where the ACL applies. You should not rely on this guide for complete information on all your obligations under the ACL.

In addition, this guide does not cover your obligations under state and territory vehicle trader licensing laws; e.g. the Motor Dealers and Repairers Act 2013 (NSW).

4

Other ACL guides and information

This guide supplements the ACL guides for business and legal practitioners, available from the Australian Consumer Law website: ? Consumer guarantees ? Sales practices ? Avoiding unfair business practices ? A guide to unfair contract terms law ? Compliance and enforcement: how

regulators enforce the Australian Consumer Law ? Product safety.

For more information, visit:

Australian Consumer Law website

Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) website.

State and territory consumer protection agencies

Australian Capital Territory: Access Canberra website

New South Wales: Fair Trading website

Northern Territory: Consumer Affairs website

Queensland: Office of Fair Trading website

South Australia: Consumer and Business Services website

Tasmania: Consumer, Building and Occupational Services website

Victoria: Consumer Affairs Victoria website

Western Australia: Department of Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety (Consumer Protection) website

Terminology

For the purposes of this guide:

A manufacturer is a business that makes or puts products together or has its name on the products. It includes the importer, if the maker does not have an office in Australia, and/or any agent (including a distributor) which holds itself out to the public as the manufacturer or official importer of the vehicles. Examples of manufacturers include Ford, Holden, Hyundai, etc.

A dealer is any business that supplies vehicles to consumers, including:

? new vehicle dealers that are authorised by manufacturers, usually via a franchise agreement (often referred to as a dealer agreement), to be the primary seller of the manufacturer's vehicles and replacement parts produced by, or for, an original equipment manufacturer, and also a provider of authorised repair and servicing for new and used vehicles, within a defined geographic area

? used vehicle dealers that supply used vehicles to consumers, and also repair and service new and used vehicles, generally with no official endorsement by or affiliation with the manufacturer.

An independent repairer is a business that repairs and services vehicles, but is not officially endorsed by or affiliated with the manufacturer or dealer. Examples of independent repairers include smaller owner-operator workshops and larger conglomerates (e.g. Kmart Tyre & Auto Service, Midas Australia, Ultra Tune, etc.).

A guide to Australian consumer law --Motor vehicle sales and repairs 5

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In order to avoid copyright disputes, this page is only a partial summary.

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