It seems it’s a bad day for the vacuum cleaner industry as another company in that space has copped the wrath of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) this morning.
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Just having taken Godfrey’s to the cleaners for misrepresentations on one of its products, the ACCC has found undertakings from Hoover Floorcare overstated the power output of two of its vacuum cleaners. And for its part, Hoover has acknowledged that the power ratings of both vacuum cleaners was potentially misleading under the consumer protection provisions of the Trade Practices Act 1974 and has offered to compensate consumers affected by its conduct.
Between 2004 and 2007, Hoover claimed that:
* its Powerforce H5003 Vacuum cleaner had a maximum power output of 2200 watts, whereas it was only able to achieve 2000 watts. The cleaner is able to achieve a 2200 watt output with the addition of a Powerbrush attachment, and
* its Hoover Handivac JVC 2026 hand held vacuum cleaner had a power output of 12 volts or nine volts whereas the cleaner contained a six volt battery.
The ACCC has ordered that Hoover from now on that will:
* only represent the power output of the vacuum cleaner as supplied
* prominently indicate any requirement to purchase additional attachments to achieve any represented maximum output
* discontinue promotional material that misrepresents the power output of its products
* write to its retailers outlining the conduct and request the retailers display a notice in their stores offering compensation to affected consumers
* publish a notice in the Weekend Australian newspaper and on Hoover’s website at http://www.hooverfloorcare.com.au offering compensation to affected consumers, and
* establish and implement a trade practices law compliance program.
