Have you had problems with Hewitt Parkard equipment?

[T1 Terry]

This is from the HP website http://www.hp.com.au

PUBLIC DISCLOSURE

PUBLISHED BY ORDER OF THE

FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA



FALSE AND MISLEADING CONDUCT

BY HEWLETT PACKARD AUSTRALIA PTY LTD

IN RELATION TO THE SALE OF

COMPUTER PRODUCTS


Following legal action by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, the Federal Court of Australia has declared that Hewlett-Packard Australia Pty Ltd (HPA) made false, misleading or deceptive representations in breach of sections 18 and 29(1)(m) of the Australian Consumer Law (ACL).

The Court declared that HPA, in trade or commerce, in connection with the supply or possible supply of goods, made representations:
•to consumers that the remedies available to consumers in respect of HPA branded desktop computers, notebook computers, laptops and printers (HPA Computer Products) not of merchantable or acceptable quality were limited to remedies provided by HPA at its discretion;
•to consumers that HPA Computer Products not of merchantable or acceptable quality must be repaired multiple times by HPA before consumers were entitled to receive a replacement HPA Computer Product;
•to consumers that the warranty period for HPA Computer Products was limited to a specified warranty period;
•to consumers that after the expiry of a specified express warranty period, HPA would repair HPA Computer Products not of merchantable or acceptable quality, on condition that consumers pay for such repairs;
•to consumers via its online store that HPA Computer Products not of acceptable quality purchased from the online store could not be returned or exchanged unless otherwise agreed by HPA at its sole discretion;
•to retail suppliers of HPA Computer Products that HPA was not liable to indemnify retail suppliers, in relation to HPA Computer Products not of merchantable or acceptable quality if, without HPA's prior authorisation, retail suppliers provided consumers with a refund or replacement.
Further, the Court imposed penalties against HPA, granted injunctions restraining it from engaging in similar conduct in the future and required it to implement an upgraded ACL compliance program.

HPA informs consumers that:
•for purchases before 1 January 2011, the warranties, conditions or guarantees implied into consumer contracts under Division 2 of Part V of the Trade Practices Act 1974 (TPA) (and relevant State based Fair Trading legislation); and
•for purchases after 1 January 2011, the consumer guarantees provided under division 1 of Part 3-2 of the ACL; and
•the remedies available to consumers if those warranties and conditions or consumer guarantees are breached cannot be excluded or, in many cases, limited.
Owners of goods have rights and remedies, under the TPA for goods purchased prior to 1 January 2011 or under the ACL for goods purchased from 1 January 2011, available against suppliers of HPA goods that cannot be excluded or limited. Certain other rights are available directly against manufacturers that cannot be excluded or limited.

If you believe that you have been denied a statutory right or remedy by HP in the past in relation to a HPA Computer Product, or did not pursue a warranty claim because of representations made by HP, please contact HP by email at consumerclaimsau@hp.com, by phone on 1800 625 236 or 02 8934 4357, on the web at http://www.hp.com.au/redressprogram, or by post to PO Box 3752 Rhodes NSW 2138 and your claim will be assessed by HP.

Should you require any further information, please contact the ACCC's Infocentre on 1300 302 502 or visit the ACCC's website on http://www.accc.gov.au.



This public disclosure has been paid for by Hewlett-Packard Australia Pty Ltd.