The complaints received by the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) on insulation companies have related to a range of matters including:
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door-to-door trading
false and misleading representations
contractual disputes about the quality or completeness of work or service provided
discrepancy on quoted costs and actual costs charged
fraud against the Commonwealth
electrical safety and safety practices, and
workplace/employment issues.
Depending upon the nature and seriousness of identified offences under fair trading legislation, the Office of Fair Trading has a range of enforcement options available to it. While no court prosecutions have been commenced, appropriate enforcement action has been taken against insulation companies including:
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One enforceable undertaking obtained due to a company claiming to be established for longer than it actually had been
Six infringement notices issued to four companies for non-compliance with door-to-door trading provisions and business names breaches, and
Three warnings issued to three companies for asserting right to payment, making misleading representations that goods are of a particular composition, and falsely representing the rebate amount in advertising when the rebate changed from $1600 to $1200.
Where it is clear the complaint falls outside the OFT’s jurisdiction, OFT promptly refers the matter to the relevant agency. However, on some occasions it may be necessary for OFT to investigate the complaint in order to identify the agency responsible before referring the matter accordingly.
