Consumer guarantees for services

When you pay a plumber, a painter, a mechanic or a cleaner, you're buying a service, and the Australian Consumer Law (ACL) gives you a set of automatic rights called consumer guarantees. They apply whether or not the business mentions them, and whatever the contract or warranty says. This guide explains the guarantees that apply to services, what they mean in everyday terms and what you can do when a job falls short.

It's general information, based on guidance from the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC). It isn't legal advice. Your state's consumer protection agency can tell you how the rules apply to your situation.

The three guarantees for services

According to the ACCC, when a business provides a service to a consumer, it guarantees that the service will be:

1. Provided with due care and skill.
2. Fit for any specified purpose, and deliver any result you both agreed on.
3. Supplied within a reasonable time, where no time was agreed.

Due care and skill

The ACCC describes this as providing the service at least as well as a competent provider with average skills and knowledge would. The business must also take all necessary steps to avoid loss or damage while providing the service.

In practice, this means work should be done competently and carefully. A painter who leaves drips across your floor, an electrician whose wiring is faulty or a mechanic who damages another part of your car while doing a repair may not have met this guarantee.

Due care and skill doesn't mean perfection. It means the standard you'd expect from a reasonably competent professional in that field.

Fit for a specified purpose

If you told the business what you needed the service to achieve, or the business told you what it would achieve, the service must be fit for that purpose. For example, if you tell a builder you need a deck that will hold a spa, and the builder agrees, the deck should be built to handle that load.

This is one reason to write a clear brief and keep records of what you asked for. See getting quotes.

Supplied within a reasonable time

If you didn't agree on a completion date, the service must be supplied within a reasonable time. What's reasonable depends on the type of service and the circumstances. A tap washer replacement that drags on for weeks would usually not be reasonable; a complex renovation naturally takes longer.

It's far better to agree on a timeframe in the contract. Our guide to contracts and deposits covers what to include.

Goods supplied with a service

Many services involve goods too, such as the tiles in a bathroom renovation or the parts in a car service. The consumer guarantees for goods apply to those items, including that they are of acceptable quality and match any description or sample.

Major and minor problems

What you can ask for depends on whether the problem is major or minor.

A problem is generally major when, for example, you wouldn't have bought the service if you had known about the problem, the service is substantially unfit for its purpose and can't easily be fixed, or the service has created an unsafe situation. For a major problem, the ACCC says you can choose to cancel the service and get a refund for the unused portion, or seek compensation for the drop in value.

A minor problem is one that can be fixed within a reasonable time. For a minor problem, the business can choose how to fix it. If it refuses or takes too long, you may be able to get someone else to fix it and ask the business to pay reasonable costs, or cancel and get a refund.

You may also be entitled to compensation for reasonably foreseeable loss or damage caused by the problem.

Warranties and the guarantees

Many businesses offer a warranty on their work. That's welcome, but the ACCC is clear that warranties are extra promises on top of the consumer guarantees. They can't replace, change or take away your rights under the ACL. Your rights can continue for a reasonable time even after a warranty has expired.

If a business says "sorry, your warranty has run out", you can explain that you are relying on your consumer guarantee rights, not the warranty.

When the guarantees may not apply

The guarantees protect consumers. Whether you're a consumer depends on things such as the type of service and the price. The ACCC's guidance sets out these tests, and they include price thresholds that are updated from time to time, so check the current ACCC guidance if you're buying a service for a business or a very expensive service.

What to do when a service falls short

1. Contact the business promptly. The ACCC says the first step is to contact the business, explain the problem and say what outcome you want. Often a phone call or visit is enough.
2. Put it in writing if a call doesn't fix it. Describe the problem, include key dates, say what you want and ask for a response within a reasonable time. The ACCC has a complaint letter tool that can help.
3. Keep records. Photos, the quote, contract, invoices and messages all help.
4. Get help if needed. Your state or territory consumer protection agency can explain your rights and may help negotiate. See resolving disputes.

For businesses

If you run a business, the consumer guarantees apply to you automatically. You can't contract out of them, and it's misleading to tell customers they have no rights or that they only have the rights in your warranty. Clear quotes, careful work and prompt responses to problems are the best way to avoid disputes.

Some everyday examples

To make the guarantees more concrete, here are a few situations of the kind people often ask about. They are illustrations only; the outcome in any real case depends on the facts.

• A tap still leaks after a plumber's repair. If the repair wasn't done with due care and skill, you can ask the plumber to come back and fix it. If the problem can be fixed quickly, it's likely to be a minor problem, and the business can choose how to fix it.
• A painter uses the wrong colour. If you specified the colour and it was clearly recorded, the service didn't deliver the result you agreed. Ask the business to put it right.
• A cleaner damages a benchtop. Taking all necessary steps to avoid loss or damage is part of due care and skill. You may be entitled to compensation for the damage.
• A small job drags on for months with no agreed date. If no completion date was agreed, the service must still be supplied within a reasonable time.

In each case, start by talking to the business, keep records and put your complaint in writing if a conversation doesn't work.

Key points

• Consumer guarantees apply automatically to services bought by consumers.
• Services must be provided with due care and skill, be fit for any stated purpose and be supplied within a reasonable time.
• Remedies depend on whether the problem is major or minor.
• Warranties add to the guarantees but can't take them away.
• Start by contacting the business, then put it in writing and get help if needed.