For businesses
When a customer complains or makes a claim
Retailers, car dealers, builders, trades and service businesses: a careful answer early often stops a complaint becoming a VCAT claim or a regulator's enquiry.
In short
- If you sell goods or services to consumers, the consumer guarantees apply to every sale, and you cannot contract out of them.
- When goods or services fail, the customer’s remedy is against you as the seller, even if the fault lies with the manufacturer or your supplier.
- You can refuse a refund for a change of mind, unless your own policy offers one.
- Telling a customer they have no rights, that “only the manufacturer’s warranty applies”, or that a refund is never available can itself breach the law and attract a penalty.
- Cost and next step: $990 for a review and a reply, including GST. Start online or call 1800 776 529.
What the law requires of you
If you sell goods or services to consumers, the consumer guarantees apply to every sale, and you cannot contract out of them.1 When goods or services fail, the customer’s remedy is against you as the seller, even if the fault lies with the manufacturer or your supplier.2 You may in turn be able to recover from the manufacturer, which must indemnify you for some failures; that claim must be made within 3 years.3
What you can refuse
- A refund for a change of mind, unless your own policy offers one.
- A remedy where the customer caused the problem through abnormal use.
- A remedy for a defect you specifically drew to the customer’s attention before the sale (a clear written notice displayed with the goods can do this), or that an examination the customer made should have revealed.4
- A refund where the failure is minor and you offer a repair within a reasonable time.5
What not to say
Telling a customer they have no rights, that “only the manufacturer’s warranty applies”, or that a refund is never available can itself breach the law and attract a penalty.6
Changes coming
- Already in force: higher penalties for unfair contract terms and other breaches since 28 March 2026.7
- From 1 July 2027: a ban on unfair trading practices that manipulate consumers or unreasonably distort their choices, and specific rules on drip pricing and subscription traps.8 Some of the subscription rules protect small businesses too.
- Proposed, not yet law: penalties for failing to provide a consumer guarantee remedy. Consumer affairs ministers agreed to the change in November 2025 and Treasury is preparing the legislation.9
What my $990 covers
I read the customer’s complaint and your records (invoice, terms, service history, photos, messages), tell you honestly whether the claim is likely to succeed and what you must offer, and send a reply on my letterhead that protects your position. If the claim is weak, the reply says why. If it is strong, the reply can resolve it at the lowest cost.
Questions
Have another question? Phone 1800 776 529 or send me a message.
Possibly, but threatening a customer over a review can backfire, and fake or suppressed reviews raise their own risks. Get advice before you respond publicly.
Sometimes. In VCAT each side usually pays its own costs, so a win can still cost more than a fair settlement.10 I give you the numbers so you can decide.
The law
- ACL ss 51 to 63; s 64(1).
- ACL ss 259, 267.
- ACL s 274(1), (2), (4).
- ACL s 54(4), (5) (defects drawn to attention, written notice), (6) (abnormal use), (7) (examination).
- ACL s 259(2).
- ACL s 29(1)(m); s 224.
- Treasury Laws Amendment (Doubling Penalties for ACCC Enforcement) Act 2026 (Cth).
- Competition and Consumer Amendment (Unfair Trading Practices) Act 2026 (Cth), commencing 1 July 2027: new ACL ss 28B, 48A, 48B to 48H.
- Treasury, consumer guarantees Decision Regulation Impact Statement (19 December 2025); consumer affairs ministers’ meeting communiqué (31 July 2026).
- Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal Act 1998 (Vic) s 109(1); settlement offers can change this (s 112).
Last reviewed: November 2026. This page is general information about Victorian and Commonwealth law as at November 2026. It is not legal advice about your circumstances.
Tell me what happened
I reply within one business day.
To send documents, use the Start online form.
Phone: 1800 776 529
Email: info@consumerlawyers.com.au
Hours: Monday to Friday, 9 am to 5:30 pm
Office: 435 Nepean Highway, Frankston VIC 3199 (by appointment)
I act for consumers and for businesses, but never for both sides of the same dispute. Before I start, I check that I have not acted for the other party.