The Australia wide roll-out of the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) commenced on 1 July 2016.

To coincide with this, new information guides have been released for consumers with disabilities about their rights and businesses with useful information about their obligations under the Australian Consumer Law (ACL).

The ACL provides protection when you buy goods like food, electrical items or clothing through to services such as those carried out by tradespeople at your property.  It also extends to things that help manage a disability such as internet plans, cooking services or meal supplies, physical therapy and vehicle or home modifications.

It makes no difference whether you paid for the good or service yourself, or as a NDIS participant, or through your disability support system—your consumer rights still apply.

Your consumer rights also apply regardless of whether you buy something in-store, online, over the telephone or even from a door-to-door salesperson.

When you buy products, the business must guarantee that products are safe, work correctly and meet promises made about the condition, performance and quality.

It’s similar when you pay for services like those which are provided in-house.

The business must guarantee they will provide their services with acceptable care and skill and give the results as agreed.

They must also carry out the service within a reasonable time even if it requires specialised equipment to install or supply it.

If you pay for something and it doesn’t meet one of these consumer guarantees, you have the right to ask for a repair, replacement or refund.

If you have a problem with a product or service you should first contact the business you bought it from.

If they do not help, contact us at Consumer Protection on 1300 304 054 or email consumer@commerce.wa.gov.au

The new guides include:

• Your consumer rights – a guide for consumers with disability
• Easy English Guide – designed for people who have difficulty reading and understanding written information.
• A guide to competition and consumer law
• Factsheet – including a snapshot on legal rights

For a copy visit  www.accc.gov.au/disabilityresources  or see www.commerce.wa.gov.au/consumer-protection/consumer-rights-people-disabi... for general information for consumers with disabilities.

If you are an NDIS participant, an NDIS representative can help you through the process of buying products and services with your NDIS funding.

Contact the NDIS on 1800 800 110 or visit www.ndis.gov.au for more information.

David Hillyard, Acting Commissioner