Article from tvnz
Published: 11:44AM Friday March 09, 2012 Source: ONE News
A consumer watchdog group says some retailers are misleading consumers about their legal rights with extended warranties.
Consumer NZ's deputy chief executive David Naulls said selling extended warranties for home appliances is a lucrative sideline for retailers.
"If you're buying goods for personal use, you don't usually need one. You already have strong after-sales rights under the Consumer Guarantees Act", he said.
Bond & Bond, Harvey Norman and Noel Leeming stores in Wellington all sold extended warranties with misleading advice about shoppers' legal rights when they were mystery shopped.
"Sales staff told us that if we did not buy an extended warranty - which can cost several hundred dollars - then we would have to go back to the manufacturer if the product failed," said Naulls.
Naulls said this advice is wrong.
"The Consumer Guarantees Act obliges retailers to guarantee the products they sell are of an acceptable quality. If a new product fails, and you haven't caused the fault, you go back to the retailer to get the problem fixed. You don't have to battle it out with the manufacturer," he said.
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