WA Car Damaged by Freight Company - Australian Consumer Law Recourse?

[m2316]

My vehicle was transported by a freight company from Gold Coast to Perth. On arrival, the car showed damage to the front bumper and the truck driver who was a sub contractor to the freight company pointed it out to me and recorded the damage on the delivery docket.

I have contacted the freight company and they have asked me to email them a description and any photo evidence I have. I issued them photos of the car taken the morning when the car was picked up and photos of the car when it was delivered. I have had no response from the freight company in 2 weeks.

I may be overreacting, but should they fail to contact me or dispute my claim, is there an ombudsman or fair trading body under Australian Consumer Law that I contact for assistance?

Before photo, the car received a new front bumper as part of a repair work prior to transport to Perth.

After photo when the car arrived in Perth showing the damage and missing tow hook cap. You can imagine I was quite upset as I had bought the car damaged, had it professionally repaired and discovered this on arrival.

Thank you for your help and guidance,

Regards

 

[Sophea]

Hi m2316,

When it comes to transport and freight, the terms of carriage and what the carrier is and is not liable for will be spelled out in your contract or receipt - whatever paper work you signed or agreed to before or at the time of payment.

If reading through that doesn't help, or if they try to avoid liability you can rely on the Australian Consumer Law which covers goods and services < $40,000 or > $40,000 if they are acquired for normal domestic use. This law dictates that any services covered by it, must be provided with acceptable care and skill or technical knowledge and taking all necessary steps to avoid loss and damage.

I would send a follow up letter to the carrier demanding payment of the cost of repair for the damage attaching a quote, outlining your rights under the Australian Consumer Law. If you don't hear back from them, contact your state Fair Trading Dept or the ACCC.

 

[m2316]

Hi m2316,

When it comes to transport and freight, the terms of carriage and what the carrier is and is not liable for will be spelled out in your contract or receipt - whatever paper work you signed or agreed to before or at the time of payment.

If reading through that doesn't help, or if they try to avoid liability you can rely on the Australian Consumer Law which covers goods and services < $40,000 or > $40,000 if they are acquired for normal domestic use. This law dictates that any services covered by it, must be provided with acceptable care and skill or technical knowledge and taking all necessary steps to avoid loss and damage.

I would send a follow up letter to the carrier demanding payment of the cost of repair for the damage attaching a quote, outlining your rights under the Australian Consumer Law. If you don't hear back from them, contact your state Fair Trading Dept or the ACCC.

Thanks Sophea,

The offer from the transport company did not include any exclusions for liability should there be any damage. I'll organise a quote as soon as possible with a follow up letter quoting Australian Consumer Law.

Thank you again.

 

[m2316]

There has been some development on the above, but firstly to touch on how the series of events unfolded. I received the quote for the transport freight on the 11th of February and agreed to the amount with a response email. The car was then picked up on the 19th of February. I then received the invoice for the agreed amount on the 25th of February which I paid in full. They have now told me that on that invoice, there was a small line item stating "standard terms and conditions apply and can be provided on request." The terms apparently include "that the customer must pay $800 excess for any damages in transport."

At the time of receiving the invoice with the clause, the offer had already been accepted and the car was already in transport. The terms could not have been used as a means of accessing whether to accept or reject the offer. Can this term be enforced if the invoice including the terms and conditions clause was issued after the car was picked up and written offer and acceptance already communicated?

Your thoughts are appreciated. Thank you again