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Like natural gas, hydrogen can be used to heat buildings and power vehicles. Unlike natural gas or petrol, when hydrogen is burned there are no CO2 emissions. The only by-products are water vapour and heat. Hydrogen is the most abundant element in the universe, not freely available as a gas on Earth but bound into…
Read More Hydrogen – A fuel for the 21st century
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Consumer group CHOICE says it’s time for real world emissions testing to ensure consumers aren’t misled by car makers CHOICE is renewing its call for real world testing of vehicle fuel efficiency following new research that found Volkswagen’s recalled and “fixed” cars are using more fuel and emitting more noxious emissions than allowed under Australian…
Read More Volkswagen emissions con continues
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Consumer group CHOICE says car companies’ ongoing failure to protect the public from unsafe airbags reaffirms the need to tighten Australian Consumer Law. CHOICE has welcomed the compulsory recall of millions of potentially lethal Takata airbags, and is calling on the Federal Government to beef up Australian Consumer Law to make it explicitly clear that…
Read More CHOICE welcomes action on deadly airbags
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From 31 January 2018, petrol stations will not be able to display conditionally discounted prices of fuel on the price board. All fuel retailers must show only the full price of fuel available to all motorists, instead of displaying potentially misleading or confusing prices. The regulation also requires fuel retailers to change the price displayed…
Read More Changes to discounted prices on fuel price boards
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The Turnbull Government is directing the ACCC to investigate petrol companies and companies involved in all aspects of the petrol supply chain to ensure Australian families are getting a fair deal. The Government has issued a new direction to the ACCC giving them the power to monitor the prices, costs and profits relating to the…
Read More Consumer Watchdog to put petrol companies on notice
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The ACCC last week released the final report from its market study into Australia’s new car retailing industry following 18 months of extensive research, investigations and consultation with industry and consumer groups. “The ACCC recommends several reforms to improve the new car retailing industry, which should lead to better outcomes for consumers. Some will require industry led…
Read More Better dispute resolution for cars needed, say ACCC and Consumer Action
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In the race to adopt electric vehicles, Australia is sputtering along in the slow lane. Rather than growing, Australian sales of electric cars are actually in decline. In 2016 they represented just 0.02% of new car sales – even lower than in 2013. Contrast that with Norway, the country with the highest levels of electric…
Read More Why is Australia slow in adopting electric cars?
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One year ago today, the Access to Justice review was released by the Victorian Government. The review proposed a sensible fix for the thousands of Victorians who buy lemon cars each year. To mark the date, Consumer Action Law Centre (Consumer Action) is launching a new campaign, “Fix my car”, to drive home the need to implement this…
Read More Fix my car! One-year wait for proper dispute resolution for cars
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A CHOICE investigation into the largest automotive recall in Australian history has found Toyota, Mazda, BMW, Lexus and Subaru have been refitting vehicles with potentially faulty airbags and have failed to inform consumers of the ongoing risk of death or injury. “With 2.3 million vehicles in Australia requiring their potentially lethal Takata airbags to be replaced, it’s…
Read More Car Companies Caught Refitting Lethal Airbags – CHOICECar buyers are being advised to exercise caution before agreeing to purchase ‘after sale add-ons’ and to get multiple quotes before accepting any finance offered by motor vehicle dealers. The advice follows a recent increase in complaints to Consumer Protection about the ‘extras’ sold at the point of sale of a vehicle which can include…
Read More Doubts about the value of car sale add-onsReport says add-on insurance products for cars provide little value for consumers
Read More Junk merchants fleecing millions from unknowing AustraliansReport finds that fine print in many warranties means it’s very unlikely to get a claim paid out
Read More “Almost completely worthless” Used car warranties catching out countless Australians