Non compliant electrical goods
Hi all, looking for some advice, I am a registered electrician and a client of mine purchased some LED exterior lights from a trade me seller for her new home, unfortunately for her I could not install these lights as they are non compliant, she has contacted the seller who is totally oblivious to the fact they need to be as they are LED and low voltage, but these LEDs like most have a primary side which is 240v so needs to be compliant to New Zealand Australian standards, the purchaser could be left with no insurance if one failed or in the worst case be injured or electrocuted, Its up to electricians to make sure all electrical equipment is compliant, unfortunately a home owner is allowed to install these fittings themselves totally unaware of what risk they may be putting their homes and lives in so how do we stop it and can my client return the goods for a full refund on the basis they are not fit for the purpose intended ?
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Callum Community SuperuserTrade Me in general is all over this. The seller needs to prove compliance in their listings, and be able to provide SDoC on request. Firstly I would report the sellers other items to TradeMe (If they have more listed) and especially if they are "in-trade"
You can also make a complaint to both Trade Me and worksafe regarding the item already sold. Or at least threaten it if the seller starts saying they won't refund. Your client can open a dispute for this item on Trade Me from their "Items I won" page.
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Lots to un-package here my friend, unfortunately Trade Me is awash with non compliant electrical goods.
Your client should be asking for a refund, it depends on how they were advertised in the first place, but if there were parts of the original advert that would lead a 'reasonable' person to believe that the item is fit for purpose, then they would be covered by the consumer guarantees act, and would be entitled to a refund.
It also depends a bit on if the Seller is "In Trade" as the rules differ a bit for these sellers as opposed to "mum and Pop" casual sellers. "In Trade" Sellers are expected to comply with the NZAS standards, where casual sellers can kinda do what ever they like.
You did the right thing not installing them.
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HamishTrade Me staff - Community team
Hi everyone, Simon is spot on about the 'In-trade' vs casual sellers, if the seller was set up as a business they would be expected to refund. To add to this, we do take electrical compliance very seriously and many listings are removed each day - if you spot any that look like they may not be compliant listed on-site, alert the team by reporting the listing
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