Receipts and warranties – information for businesses

Learn about what warranties, promises and consumer guarantees you must honour to consumers.

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Your responsibilities as a business

You must honour:

any warranty or promise made to the consumer
all consumer guarantees.

This means you must fix a problem when goods fail to meet a consumer guarantee, even if the:

consumer does not have a warranty or extended warranty, or
goods are out of warranty.

A consumer can also ask a supplier to meet a consumer guarantee, even if the goods are covered by a manufacturer’s warranty.

Warranties against defects and consumer guarantees

Manufacturers often provide a written warranty that promises consumers:

goods or services will be free from defects for a set amount of time
defects will entitle the consumer to repair, replacement, refund or other compensation.

It usually lists the defects covered and the period of the warranty.

Express warranties and consumer guarantees

Suppliers and manufacturers often make extra promises - sometimes called 'express warranties' - about the quality, state, condition, performance or characteristics of goods.

Example: if a supplier tells the consumer that a bed will last for 10 years and the bed only lasts for 6 years, they are entitled to a solution. An express warranty may not be in writing and is a promise usually made to persuade the consumer to buy the goods.

Mandatory text on warranty documents

A warranty document must include mandatory text to ensure consumers are aware that any warranty against defects operates in addition to consumer rights under the Australian Consumer Law (ACL).

Proof of transaction

Proof of transaction is a document that states the:

supplier of the goods or services
supplier’s ABN or ACN
date of the supply
goods or services supplied to the consumer, and
price of the goods or services.

Examples of proof of transaction are:

GST tax invoice
cash register receipt
credit card or debit card statement
digital receipt
handwritten receipt
lay-by agreement, or
confirmation or receipt number provided for a telephone or internet transaction.

A business has an obligation to provide proof of transaction to consumers for goods or services valued at $75 (excluding GST) or more. Businesses are also required to provide a receipt for any transaction under $75 within 7 days if the consumer asks for one.

Itemised bill

You must provide an itemised bill if a consumer asks for one. They may request it within 30 days of whichever occurs later:

the services are supplied, or
they receive their bill.

They may request that the itemised bill shows:

how the price was calculated
the number of labour hours and the hourly rate (if relevant), and
a list of materials used, and the amount charged for them (if relevant).

As a supplier, you must provide it:

without charge
within 7 days of the request
in plain language, legible and clear.

A monetary penalty may be imposed for failing to provide a consumer with an itemised bill or proof of transaction within the required time.

The maximum civil penalties for failing to provide consumers with a proof of transaction, or not providing it within the required time, is:

$15,000 for a body corporate
$3,000 for an individual.

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