‘‘Generally, a consumer is someone who has acquired goods or services of a kind ordinarily acquired for personal, domestic or household use…
AUSTRALIAN consumers are provided with protections under the national consumer laws located in Schedule 2 of the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 and titled (quite conveniently) The Australian Consumer Law (Schedule 2 Law)….
The Schedule 2 Law also applies as a law of Queensland thanks to section 16 of our Fair Trading Act 1989 (Qld). It is referred to as The Australian Consumer Law (Queensland); however, for the most part the two laws will be consistent.
I say “for the most part” because section 17 of our Fair Trading Act states we can exclude new provisions of the Schedule 2 Law that were introduced after January 1, 2011.
Whether you are a consumer for the purpose of these laws is determined by reference to an express definition of consumer.
Generally, a consumer is someone who has acquired goods or services of a kind ordinarily acquired for personal, domestic or household use or consumption.
You may also be a consumer if the price paid for the goods or services did not exceed $40,000. Like most laws, there are exceptions.
You should consider your own circumstances when determining whether you were a consumer under the Schedule 2 Law or The Australian Consumer Law (Queensland) when purchasing goods and/or services. These laws provide certain protections to consumers and I am going to be looking at some of those protections over the coming weeks.
Until next week – Keep it Legal!
Katie Caldow
kcaldow@walkerpender.com.au
* The legal information in this article is of a general nature only and not intended to be legal advice to rely upon.