legal studies lgo2009t1

internal assessment activity

Unit Standard 8555 (Version 5)

Describe the objectives and application of consumer law
Level 2, internally assessed
3 credits

student instructions
Overview
This assessment activity will assess your ability to:
•• describe the objectives of consumer law (Outcome 1)
•• describe the application of consumer law (Outcome 2).

Conditions
•• You are expected to complete module LGO2009 before you attempt this standard.
•• This is an open book assessment and you may refer to LGO2009 or any other relevant
reference material such as those on the internet, in a library, or in the media.
•• This is an individual activity and all answers and responses must be your own work, in your
own words, and with no assistance from any other person.
•• There is no time limit for the assessment but you should expect to spend at least two hours to
complete the questions.
•• The assessment consists of a number of parts. All parts must be completed.
•• Plagiarism detection software may be used to check this is your own work.

Supervisor requirements
•• Supervision is not required for this assessment.
•• Upload your assessment to the LGO2009T1 assessment dropbox when you have completed it.

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assessment criteria
Unit Standard 8555 (Version 5)
Describe the objectives and application of consumer law

Outcomes Evidence requirements Range

Describe the Consumer laws are

objectives of 1.1 described in terms of
consumer law. their purpose.
1
Range …
Consumer Guarantees Consumer laws are
Act 1993, Fair Trading Three protections from
1.2 described in terms of
Act 1986 each Act.
protections provided.

Consumer problems
may include problems
with – supply of goods,
Consumer laws
supply of services,
are described in
Describe the redress, unfair conduct,
terms of rights and
application of 2.1 misleading information,
responsibilities in
consumer law. consumer transactions.
relation to consumer
2 problems.
Range … Two different consumer
Consumer Guarantees problems relevant to
Act 1993, Fair Trading each Act.
Act 1986. Consumer laws are
evaluated in terms
One limitation for each
2.2 of their limitations to
law.

source: nzqa
protect the rights of the
parties involved.

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assessment activity

instructions
•• Read the questions carefully.
•• Present all your answers on an electronic document or paper.
•• Put your name and student ID on all documents.
•• Use the same headings and numbering system as in this document.
•• If you have any questions about the assessment, talk to your teacher.

task 1
1. What is the main purpose of the following Acts?
a. The Consumer Guarantees Act 1993.
b. The Fair Trading Act 1986.
1.1 

2. Give three examples of consumer protection that each of these Acts provide.

1.2 

Task 2
1. Your concrete drive starts to crack two weeks after the builder finished the job.
a. Which consumer Act covers this situation?
b. Give one right you have in this situation.
c. Give one responsibility you have in this situation.
d. If the builder refuses to fix your driveway where can you go to have the problem resolved?

2. You have just bought a new coffee table which was advertised as ‘Solid rimu – hand crafted
in New Zealand’. When you get it home you discover a small label which says ‘A Rubberwood
product proudly made in Thailand’.
a. Which consumer Act covers this situation?
b. Give one right this Act gives you in relation to product information.
c. Give one responsibility you have in this situation.
d. What can be done about retailers who do this sort of thing?

3. You see a bike shop promotion which offers ‘Buy one, get one free’. The adverts stated that
with every mountain bike purchased, customers would get one free. However, you discover
that to qualify for the second ‘free’ bike you have to buy a bike that costs at least $599 and
the free bike was one particular bike only, and a lower quality one at that.
You speak to some friends who also thought that the advertisement meant they could buy
any bike in the shop and get another one the same free.
a. Which consumer Act covers this situation?
b. Give one right you have in this situation.

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assessment activity

c. Give one responsibility you have.

d. What can be done about retailers who do this sort of thing?

4. You go to the hairdressers to have your hair dyed blonde, but it turns out green instead!
a. Which consumer Act covers this situation?
b. Give one right you have in this situation.
c. What responsibility do you have in this situation?
2.1 

Task 3
1.

Garage Blues
Trudy and Wayne Taylor employed a builder, Joe Phillips, to build a new garage on their
property. A week after the final payment there was some heavy overnight rain and the next
morning the property owners, the Taylors, found that the floor of the garage was flooded
with water.
The Taylors called their builder, Joe Phillips, who didn’t really want to talk about it. He said
they had a problem but that it wasn’t anything to do with his work and he wasn’t doing
anything for them. He had followed their architect’s plans.
Trudy and Wayne Taylor then called another builder, Mike Trellis, who inspected the garage
and the flooding and said that it had been caused by rainwater running off the property and
through the garage door onto the floor. His view was that the plans should have taken the
drainage aspects into account.
Mike Trellis, the second builder, suggested that the Taylors employ a landscaping firm to
pave and drain the area near the garage door so that rainwater was collected up and would
run off into the council drain system.
The Taylors had the work done and then made a claim against the first builder, Joe Phillips,
to recover the costs of this extra work, $1,500. They lodged a claim in the Disputes Tribunal
and had a hearing three weeks later.
At the Disputes Tribunal hearing the Taylors presented their side of the case and also had
two witnesses, the second builder, Mike Trellis, and the manager of the landscaping firm,
Anne Summers.
Joe Phillips also presented his side of the case. He, too, had a witness, the Taylors’ architect,
Karen Mason, who agreed that Joe had followed her plans.
The Tribunal referee, Susan Treebone, asked the parties if they could reach an agreement.
They both said no. She then summed up the case and made a decision, which was that the
costs of the extra work would be shared by both parties paying $750 each.

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 assessment activity

a. Which Act of Parliament applies to this problem?

b. Why do you think the referee made both parties share the cost of the extra work?
c. Do you think the law solved the Taylors’ problem? Explain your answer.

2.

Fourth furniture retailer fined in three months

Commerce Commission action against misleading claims by furniture retailers continued
with the Auckland District Court ordering Panmure Furniture City to pay an $8,000 fine plus
$2,000 solicitor’s costs.
The Commission alleged that Panmure Furniture City breached the Fair Trading Act by
offering free gifts – mountain bikes and cordless phones – with the intention of not providing
them as offered.
This is the fourth Fair Trading Act conviction of a furniture dealer in three months. It was part
of a crackdown on what the Commission believes are widespread problems among furniture
retailers.

The other convictions have been:

• Hazelwoods Home Traders, $15,000 fine for not providing all the items advertised in a
‘fantastic start up package deal’ and for describing pine furniture as ‘solid rimu’
• Furniture Now, $8,000 fine for describing pine furniture as ‘solid rimu’
• Waitemata Backcare Beds, $3,500 fine for describing an offer as ‘interest free’ when it
was not genuinely interest free.

a. What rights are the furniture retailers breaching?

b. Do you think the Fair Trading Act is effective in protecting those rights in this situation?
Explain your answer.
c. Give two suggestions on what could be done to make the Act more effective in the case of
furniture retailers.
2.2 

Reminder: Upload your completed assessment to the LGO2009T1 Assessment dropbox.

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