Ozsale fined $500,000 by ACCC

Internet Retailing

30th Aug 2016

Online marketplace, Ozsale, has been fined $500,000 for supplying children’s nightwear which did not comply with the Australian mandatory safety standard.

The ACCC said Ozsale sold over 200 non-compliant garments to Australian consumers and had over 11,000 non-compliant garments available for supply to Australian consumers. The company admitted in joint submissions to the Federal Court that it supplied five styles of nightwear on various dates between February 2014 and October 2015 that failed to meet the mandatory safety standard for children’s nightwear.

Ozsale is a membership-based online retailer predominantly selling clothing which is sourced by purchasing excess inventory from mostly overseas suppliers.

“The ACCC brought these proceedings because Ozsale placed children at increased risk of injury by supplying non-compliant garments,” said Delia Rickard, deputy chair, ACCC.

“The Orange Superhero Pajamas were particularly concerning, as the fabric and the length of the cape presented a very real risk of injury, as it could easily brush against a heat source and very quickly catch fire.

“The mandatory safety standard for children’s nightwear exists to ensure that consumers have accurate information about flammability. In this case, one garment was so unsafe that it should not have been supplied in Australia at all.”

Ozsale also recently paid a $10,800 penalty for alleged misleading representations in relation to consumer guarantees, following the issue of an infringement notice by the ACCC.

This story first appeared on sister site Inside Retail Australia.