Australia’s National Consumer Protection Law Comes Into Effect
By: Ainsley Brown
Talk about kicking off the New Year with a bang: it is official as of January 1, 2011 Australia now has its first national Consumer Law.
The new law ushers in a comprehensive national consumer protection regime that mandates quick remedies – repair, replace, refund – to customer complaints. It replaces a patchwork of 20 national, State and Territorial laws and allows for seamless enforcement across Australia’s internal boarders.
With this new law the Australian government is attempting to kill two birds with one stone by simplifying and harmonizing the fair trade laws across the country it hopes to both lower the cost of doing business and create a comprehensive consumer protection regime. The law brings under one umbrella such wide ranging things as product safety, door to door selling, unfair terms in standard from contracts, and the rules governing lay-by agreements.
Happy New Year!
