Consumers who bought towelling incorrectly labelled as being made in Australia are being offered a refund following Australian Competition and Consumer Commission action.
ACCC Chairman, Professor Allan Fels, said today that the sealed packaging for the soft new towelling (Part No 50038) supplied by Kenco Car Care Pty Ltd said the product was made in Australia, but the towelling itself was labelled as being made in Pakistan.
"The ACCC advised Kenco that it may be breaching the Trade Practices Act through false and misleading representations regarding the country of origin of the towelling," Professor Fels said.
"Kenco has accepted that opinion and has cooperated with the ACCC to resolve the matter by offering a legally enforceable undertaking. Kenco has ensured that remaining stock of the towelling is correctly labelled and will in future ensure that the labels describing the place of origin of the towelling are accurate. Further, it will publish corrective advertising offering refunds to consumers who believe that they were misled by the labelling and will conduct a trade practices education program within the company.
"This matter highlights the need for companies to ensure that all country of origin claims about their products are accurate and, more importantly, give a truthful impression to potential purchasers.
"The ACCC views very seriously misrepresentations involving country of origin claims. Representations that goods are made in Australia when they are not can influence consumers' purchasing decisions and thus have a detrimental effect on competition between brands", Professor Fels warned.
ACCC Chairman, Professor Allan Fels, said today that the sealed packaging for the soft new towelling (Part No 50038) supplied by Kenco Car Care Pty Ltd said the product was made in Australia, but the towelling itself was labelled as being made in Pakistan.
"The ACCC advised Kenco that it may be breaching the Trade Practices Act through false and misleading representations regarding the country of origin of the towelling," Professor Fels said.
"Kenco has accepted that opinion and has cooperated with the ACCC to resolve the matter by offering a legally enforceable undertaking. Kenco has ensured that remaining stock of the towelling is correctly labelled and will in future ensure that the labels describing the place of origin of the towelling are accurate. Further, it will publish corrective advertising offering refunds to consumers who believe that they were misled by the labelling and will conduct a trade practices education program within the company.
"This matter highlights the need for companies to ensure that all country of origin claims about their products are accurate and, more importantly, give a truthful impression to potential purchasers.
"The ACCC views very seriously misrepresentations involving country of origin claims. Representations that goods are made in Australia when they are not can influence consumers' purchasing decisions and thus have a detrimental effect on competition between brands", Professor Fels warned.