The Community Network — aka Multimedia International Services — at it again

PUBLIC Defender has obtained a significant refund for this man — who owns a first-aid training business — from column regular The Community Network, aka Multimedia International Services.

Professional First Aid owner Matthew Fraser of Burnie, Tasmania, who has received a refund from The Community Network. Picture: Casey Lane

PUBLIC Defender has obtained a refund of more than $2000 for this man from column regular The Community Network — aka Multimedia International Services.

Today is the fifth time TCN has appeared in the Public Defender column since March last year but the first since the Federal Court ordered it to pay $230,000 for breaches of the Australian Consumer Law.

March 2015: The Community Network under ACCC investigation

October 2015: More refunds for customers of The Community Network

December 2015: ACCC takes The Community Network to the Federal Court

Matthew Fraser, who owns a first-aid training business in Burnie, Tasmania bought an advertising package from TCN in February 2013. He thought it would end in 2015.

TCN is notorious for the automatic renewal clause in its contracts. The ACCC took it to the Federal Court after businesses complained they were misled over the clause.

Mr Fraser said he told the TCN sales representative at the time of purchase that he did not want to be auto-renewed. But he was anyway. When he stopped paying he was threatened with legal action so he gave TCN the money it was demanding.

After Public Defender’s intervention, Multimedia International Services’ UK management agreed to refund all payments beyond the initial two-year advertising term — $2037.

“Multimedia International Services Pty Ltd on a commercial basis and without admission of liability, is prepared to refund Mathew Fraser trading as Professional First Aid, his payments in excess of the initial two-year term,” an MIS representative told Public Defender.

“It was never MIS’s intention to enforce the rollover, and it has not done so as per the undertaking that was given to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission. It was merely MIS’s intention to be paid for the advertising in the final year that the services have been provided to the customer.”

Mr Fraser said: “Thank you so much.”