Iconic Aussie retailer under fire for delays

The company behind major fashion brands Noni B and Rivers has been taken to Federal Court by the consumer watch dog for allegedly failing to deliver hundreds of thousands of items on time.

Court proceedings commenced on Monday as the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) alleged the national retailer, Mosaic Brands Ltd, failed to deliver “several hundred thousand” products to customers based on delivery time frames advertised on their website.

“The ACCC has received hundreds of complaints about Mosaic Brands in relation to delivery delays,” ACCC Commissioner Liza Carver said.

“Excessively late deliveries can be incredibly frustrating and inconvenient for consumers, especially if they decided to buy goods for a special occasion, such as Christmas, based on the advertised delivery times which were not met.”

However, a Mosaic Brands spokesperson said the comapny’s fulfilment rates have been “over the Government-mandated benchmark for Australia post” for the last two years.

“Mosaic Brands believes the ACCC claim is flawed, and we will be vigorously defending it in court,” the spokesperson said.

According to the ACCC’s allegations, Mosaic Brands delivery time frames were typically advertised as between two and 17 business days, however the regulator claims more than 26 per cent of items ordered from Mosaic Brands Ltd were dispatched least 20 days after the purchase date, with some cases exceeding 40 days.

The ACCC alleged the company, which includes brands Katies, Rockmans, Millers and Crossroads, made “false or misleading representations to customers” between 23 September 2021 and 31 March 2022.

The consumer watch dog also alleged that the retailer “wrongly accepted payment for goods during the same period, when it failed to deliver orders within the advertised time frames, or within a reasonable time frame, or not at all”.

“If you buy a product or service and discover it is faulty, not of acceptable quality or does not match its description, you are entitled to a free repair and may also be entitled to a refund or replacement. These legal rights are called ‘consumer guarantees’ under the Australian Consumer Law and they don’t have a specific expiry date,” Ms Carver said.

The ACCC is seeking declarations, injunctions and penalties from Mosaic Brands Ltd.

The watch dog is also seeking an order for Mosaic Brands Ltd to implement a consumer law compliance program, as well as other orders and costs.

The proceedings come after the ACCC issued Mosaic Brands with infringement notices in May 2021 and September 2022, which saw the retailer pay $896,400 in penalties.