Seven steps to getting a refund from Ford Australia

WANT to take on Ford Australia over your car? Here’s a step-by-step guide on how you can do it yourself.

There is a way to approach for Australia for a refund on your car.

How to take on Ford yourself

1. Write a one-page complaint letter to the head of the dealership that sold you the car — and Ford Motor Company of Australia Customer Service GM Stephen Kruk, 1735 Sydney Rd, Campbellfield VIC 3061. The ACCC has an excellent template letter here.

2. Use the same arguments being made in the class action that your car is not of acceptable quality within the meaning of section 54(2) of the Australian Consumer Law (ACL) and that you are entitled to a refund under section 243(d).

3. Make sure the letter says what you want and the timeframe for a response (two weeks) as well as what you’ll do if Ford does not agree (commence proceedings in your state consumer tribunal).

4. Send it registered mail, so the recipient has to sign for it.

5. If you are ignored or turned down, this will help you in the consumer tribunal.

6. You don’t require a lawyer to bring action in a consumer tribunal and the cost of filing is not large. In the hearing you won’t need the oratory skills of Malcolm Turnbull, but you need to have evidence of your (mis)treatment and be able to cite relevant law (see above). It is worth thinking about getting an independent mechanic to write a report on your car. The action should be brought against the party in the purchase agreement although experts say you should also file against Ford Motor Company of Australia Ltd ACN 004 116 223.

7. If you bought your car in NSW more than three years ago you may need to take action in the local court, where you have six years to commence proceedings. If you lose in the local court you may have to pay the other side’s costs. That’s not the case in the consumer tribunal. If you are in Victoria you have six years to bring action — against the car yard — in the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (VCAT). If your claim is a breach of consumer guarantees by the manufacturer under the ACL, the deadline is three years.