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Copies of the Acts and Codes may be found on the Tasmanian legislation site www.thelaw.tas.gov.au
Associations Incorporation Act 1964
Bills of Sale Act 1900
Boy Scouts Association Act 1954
Business Names Act 1962
Collections for Charities Act 2001
Commissioner for Corporate Affairs Act 1980
Conveyancing Act 2004
Cooperatives Act 1999
Co-operative Schemes (Administrative Actions) Act 2001
Girl Guides' Association Act 1957
Limited Partnerships Act 1908
Security and Investigations Agents Act 2002
Stock, Wool and Crop Mortgages Act 1930
Trade Unions Act 1889
Establishes the Office of Consumer Affairs to advise and assist consumers, to receive and investigate complaints from consumers, and to consult and disseminate information to consumers and business operators. It also establishes the Tasmanian Consumer Advisory Committee to advise the Minister on matters affecting the interests of consumers.
Prohibits misleading or deceptive trading conduct, including unconscionable conduct, false representations, bait advertising, pyramid and referral selling, and unsolicited credit cards. The Act also provides for the implementation of mandatory codes of practice in relation to particular business areas.
Regulates the selling of certain goods in non-retail store situations (eg, in a consumer's home) and provides for the application of a 10 day cooling off period to these transactions.
Requires builders to provide a 'consumer guide' explaining the Act. The Act provides protection to consumers by requiring work to be of a certain quality and standard, performed within the given time frame in written contracts and limits up-front and progress payments.
Unordered Goods and Services Act 1973
Prohibits the demanding of payment for unordered goods or services supplied to an individual or business.
Disposal of Uncollected Goods Act 1968
Provides procedures to be followed in the disposal of goods left with a person for a particular purpose (eg, repair), but which have not be subsequently collected by the owner.
Requires funeral business to provide specific information to consumers prior to entering into a prepaid funeral agreement. The Act requires money to be paid into a funeral trust and specifies how prepaid money is to be managed by funeral businesses.
Other Acts are:
Advertisements (Terms of Purchase) Act (Repeal) Act 1993
Classification (Publications, Films and Computer Games) Enforcement Act 1995
Classification (Publications, Films and Computer Games) Amendment Act 2001 (Electronic version of principle Act incorporates amendments)
Collections for Charities Act 2001
Consumer Credit (Tasmania) Act 1996
Consumer Credit (Miscellaneous Amendments) Act 1995, 1996 (Electronic version of principle Act incorporates amendments)
Landlord and Tenant Act 1935
Residential Tenancy Act 1997
Residential Tenancy Amendment Act 2003 (Electronic version of principle Act incorporates amendments)
Residential Tenancy Amendment (Boarding Premises) Act 2003 (Electronic version of principle Act incorporates amendments)
Sale of Goods Act 1896
Sale of Goods (Vienna Convention) Act 1987
Second-hand Dealers and Pawnbrokers Act 1994
Travel Agents Act 1987
Unauthorized Documents Act 1986
Codes of Practice
Fair Trading (Code of Practice for Motor Vehicle Traders) Regulations 1996
Fair Trading (Code of Practice for Motor Vehicle Traders) Amendment Regulations 1999
Fair Trading (Code of Practice for Motor Vehicle Traders) Amendment Regulations 2000
Fair Trading (Code of Practice for Retail Tenancies) Regulations 1998
Fair Trading (Code of Practice for Retail Tenancies) (Rescission) Regulations 1998
Fair Trading (Code of Practice for Retail Tenancies) Amendment Regulations 1999
Trade Measurement Act 1999
Trade Measurement (Miscellaneous) Regulations 2000
Trade Measurement (Measuring Instruments) Regulations 2000
Trade Measurement (Prepacked Articles) Regulations 2000
Trade Measurement (Weighbridges) Regulations 2000
Trade Measurement (Tasmania) Administration Act 1999
Trade Measurement (Tasmania) Administration Regulations 2000
There are currently three pieces of legislation in Tasmania which deal with product safety related issues:
Sale of Hazardous Goods Act 1977
Flammable Clothing Act 1973
Goods (Trade Descriptions) Act 1971
Sale of Hazardous Goods Act 1977
The Sale of Hazardous Goods Act 1977 provides for the investigation and control of the sale of products found to be hazardous. The Act establishes a Products Safety Committee (PSC), consisting of the Director of Consumer Affairs, the Director of Public Health, and a Ministerial appointee. The Committee is responsible for investigating possible product hazards, either on its own initiative or at the request of the Minister.
The Act refers to the 'sale' of products, but not the 'supply' of products and there is no coverage of services, which could be hazardous to the user. The Act provides powers to prohibit, or place restriction on, the sale of products likely to be hazardous to users. This is in the form of a temporary or permanent ban.
In some cases, rather than to control its supply, it is more appropriate to declare mandatory information or safety standard to require that a product meet certain conditions, eg, household cots.
Wholesalers are also required, under the Act, to notify the PSC of any product in their possession, which is likely to be a source of danger.
Flammable Clothing Act 1973
The Flammable Clothing Act 1973 provides for labelling to appear on prescribed articles of children's clothing specifying its flammability rating. Provision is also made for calling up regulations relating to the degree of flammability, or the effect of heat on, any article of clothing, and the manner in which the article of clothing is to be marked or labelled.New mandatory standards, Australian/New Zealand Standard AS/NZS 1249:1999, Children's Nightwear and limited daywear having reduced fire hazard, was published on 5 April 1999. The standards will ensure that children's nightwear garments conform to design and fabric specifications to reduce their flammability, and the risk of fire injury to children.
Goods (Trade Descriptions) Act 1971
The Goods (Trade Descriptions) Act 1971 provides for various textile and footwear goods to be comprised of specified materials, and labelled as such. The items covered include shoes, slippers and sandals; natural and artificial textiles; yarns, threads and lace; carpets; clothing; and the labelling of woollen and wool blend textiles and garments. Provision is made for the declaration of safety and/or information standards.
Property Agents and Land Transactions Act 2005
Property Agents and Land Transactions Amendment (Code of Conduct) Regulations 2007 (SR 2007 No 11)
Property Agents and Land Transactions Amendment Act 2009 (No 13 of 2009)
Property Agents and Land Transactions Amendment Regulations (No 2) 2008 (SR 2008 No 163)
Property Agents and Land Transactions Amendment Regulations 2007 (SR 2007 No 31)
Property Agents and Land Transactions Amendment Regulations 2008 (SR 2008 No 92)
Property Agents and Land Transactions Regulations 2006 (SR 2006 No 132)
Residential Tenancy Act 1997
Residential Tenancy Amendment Act 2003 (Electronic version of principle Act incorporates amendments)
Residential Tenancy Amendment (Boarding Premises) Act 2003 (Electronic version of principle Act incorporates amendments)
Fair Trading (Code of Practice for Retail Tenancies) Regulations 1998
Fair Trading (Code of Practice for Retail Tenancies) Amendment Regulations 1999
Retirement Villages Act 2004
In early 1987 the National Cooperative Scheme for the Regulation of Travel Agents (the National Scheme) was established to licence and regulate travel agents, and to provide protection for the travel consumer when paid services were not provided by the agent.
The participation of Tasmania in the national scheme is provided for under the Tasmanian Travel Agents Act 1987, and through a Participation Agreement signed by each participating state and territory.
The Travel Agents Act 1987 provides for the compulsory licensing of travel agents and mandatory membership of the Travel Compensation Fund, and sets minimum qualification requirements.
