Compensation and refunds under Australian Consumer Law

I have a case of a cooktop that failed during the warranty period. It has been declared unrepairable and the model is no longer produced so it isn’t replaceable. I have been offered a “store credit” for its cost price. I have some questions.

  1. I thought I was entitled to a refund under these circumstances, my understanding is a store credit is only useable at that store and is not a refund.

  2. The whole process took six weeks after I claimed, half of which I could not use the cooktop at all and had to make do with other appliances as take away food is not possible.

  3. To avoid the cost of a new kitchen bench I am looking for a physical drop in replacement that requires minimal or no adjustment of the bench. Also I would like one that was as powerful as the failed model - hopefully longer lived. In addition the replacement needs to work with the previous wiring or it will be another $500 or more to rewire. Consequently the choice of replacement candidates are rather limited and so far look to be much more expensive, approximately double the price ie $3,000 instead of $1,500. Plus there is the cost of the electrician to do the swap over even if the current wiring is OK.

Am I entitled to any relief or compensation due to items 2) or any part of 3) in addition to the refund? How would I go about obtaining such?

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7 posts were merged into an existing topic: Consumer Rights & the Australian Consumer Law