The ACCC has accepted a court-enforceable undertaking from Target Australia Pty Ltd (Target) in which Target admits it may have breached the Australian Consumer Law by making false or misleading representations in its dealings with customers who purchased faulty Sony PlayStations.

The ACCC was concerned that between at least January 2017 and August 2017, Target’s customer service staff told some consumers who complained about faulty Sony PlayStations that they had to contact Sony directly for a remedy and were not entitled to any remedy from Target because the fault had occurred after 30 days from the date of purchase.

“Target has admitted that it may have misled consumers about rights they had to a refund, replacement or repair under the Consumer Guarantees in the Australian Consumer Law,” ACCC Commissioner Sarah Court said

“Consumers who find they have purchased a faulty product are entitled to a repair, replacement or a full refund in many circumstances from a retailer”.

“A retailer cannot simply send a consumer to the manufacturer and wash their hands of any responsibility,” Ms Court said

“Consumer guarantee rights cannot be excluded or modified by businesses and retailers cannot set an arbitrary time limit on their obligations under the consumer guarantees.”

As part of the undertaking, Target will publish a notice on its website, asking consumers to come forward and contact Target if they believe their previous complaints or concerns to Target about their PlayStation were not addressed properly. 

Target will review the circumstances of customers it is contacted by in light of its obligations under the Australian Consumer Law.

Target has also undertaken to review and improve its Australian Consumer Law compliance program.

A copy of the undertaking can be found at Target Australia Pty Ltd.

Background

This undertaking relates to conduct by Target between January 2017 and August 2017 regarding Sony PlayStation gaming consoles only.

The ACCC encourages any consumer to contact a retailer where they believe a product they have purchased isn’t fit for purpose and to exercise their consumer guarantees in seeking a remedy.

Consumer Guarantees under the Australian Consumer Law provide remedies for consumers if their product experiences a fault. Consumers can choose to have a product replaced, repaired or refunded if there is a major fault. A retailer can choose the remedy for minor faults.

Further information about consumer guarantees can be found on the ACCC’s website.