Online retailer Neptune Blanket pays penalties for allegedly misleading statements about consumer guarantees

Online retailer Dysck Pty Ltd, trading as Neptune Blanket, has paid $59,400 in penalties after the ACCC issued it with three infringement notices for making allegedly misleading statements to two consumers about their rights, and not including mandatory wording in its warranty against defects.  

Neptune Blanket sells a variety of products on its website, including sensory mats, blankets and pillows.

Statements made to consumers were allegedly false or misleading

The ACCC issued two infringement notices in relation to emails Neptune Blanket sent to two consumers who raised concerns about products they had bought. One of the consumers sought a refund for a mat they claimed did not lie flat, creating a tripping hazard, while the other sought a refund for a mat they claimed was shorter than described on the website.

The ACCC alleges that in its emails to the two consumers, Neptune Blanket made statements implying that:

Under the Australian Consumer Law (ACL), goods and services supplied to consumers automatically come with basic rights called consumer guarantees. These include that goods must be of acceptable quality and fit for purpose, and match any description provided.

If goods supplied by a business fail to meet one or more of the consumer guarantees, a consumer is entitled to a remedy. This may be a refund, repair or replacement, depending on the circumstances.

“The ACCC was concerned that making allegedly misleading statements in these emails may have discouraged those consumers from seeking remedies they might have been entitled to under the Australian Consumer Law,” ACCC Commissioner Dr Philip Williams said.