Retail giant Harvey Norman to face class action over illegally sold junk extended warranties

19 September 2024

Maurice Blackburn Lawyers has lodged a class action against Harvey Norman alleging it sold extended warranties to its customers which had no real value. The class action follows a similar case commenced late last year by the law firm against JB Hi-Fi, one of Harvey Norman’s main competitors.

The extended warranties, called ‘Product Care’, were sold by Harvey Norman and its related stores Domayne and Joyce Mayne and are still being pushed onto consumers today when they buy goods such as smart phones, computers, home appliances and home entertainment products.

Maurice Blackburn Principal Jarrah Ekstein said:

“Under the Australian Consumer Law, customers automatically have the right to a replacement or refund for faulty goods if the goods stop working within a reasonable timeframe after purchase. Harvey Norman’s Product Care extended warranties added nothing substantial to those protections.”

“Harvey Norman engaged in misleading and deceptive conduct by getting their customers to pay for protections which they already have for free under the Australian Consumer Law. We also allege that Product Care was sold illegally as Harvey Norman did not hold the required Australian Financial Services Licence to offer financial products.” 

“Harvey Norman, Domayne and Joyce Mayne failed to give customers important information about their rights under the Australian Consumer Law, which they needed to make a properly informed decision about whether to buy Product Care.”

“The class action will allege that if Harvey Norman’s customers knew that Product Care was offering remedies that they already had for free under the Australian Consumer Law, they would not have bought it. Those customers should be compensated for being misled into buying a warranty which had no real value to them.”

Lead plaintiff Peter Singh said he was duped into buying Product Care to cover a smart phone and some security cameras he purchased from the retailer.

“Product Care was sold to me as adding extra protections. But it was just a waste of money,” Mr Singh said.

Consumer advocate Choice has long warned that extended warranties are not worth purchasing and have many of the same qualities as junk insurance, but in a 2023 survey found 32 percent of consumers had bought them in the previous two years.

The class action was lodged with the Supreme Court of Victoria on Thursday and seeks compensation for consumers who bought Product Care from Harvey Norman, Domayne and Joyce Mayne between 20 September 2018 and 19 September 2024. Consumers who purchased Product Care are strongly recommended to register for the class action at Maurice Blackburn’s website to receive case updates and information about anything they need to do to claim compensation.

Media enquires:
Paddy Murphy, Maurice Blackburn, 0490 297 391