WA’s Commissioner for Consumer Protection is advising travel-buyers to read terms and conditions very carefully and be wary of ‘pay now/book later’ deals when purchasing holidays during the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic. Lanie Chopping said that while regional border restrictions continue to ease in Western Australia, interstate and international travel restrictions are a different story and that...

Heating appliances will soon be emerging from hibernation as cooler weather sets in, particularly with many of us working from home this winter. If you are using a gas heater, our colleagues at Building and Energy have issued a timely warning about the dangers of exposure to carbon monoxide, which can leak from faulty, poorly maintained or misused gas appliances. Carbon monoxide is known as the ‘...

Consumer Protection has received reports from seven victims of scams where COVID-19 was used in the plot to steal a total of about $68,000. Most were the victims of fake websites, social media pages and advertisements in which COVID-19 was used as an excuse for why their online purchases had not been delivered. A Perth-based Chinese student lost $13,800 when scammers called to report her COVID-19...

A Palmyra electrician has been fined $20,000 for a potentially deadly wiring error that caused objects at a Connolly home to become live with dangerous levels of electricity, resulting in $3,700 damage to appliances. Licensed electrical worker Dryden Peter Adams (EW150729) was sentenced on 28 April 2020 at Joondalup Magistrates Court after pleading guilty to breaching WA’s electricity licensing...