KEY POINTS:
Trade Me and other online auctions should have to become licensed auctioneers so they can be held responsible for sales on their sites, the Auctioneers Association says.
Goods purchased in auctions are not guaranteed under the Consumer Guarantees Act, whether they are purchased in a live auction or online.
The Consumers Institute does not think Trade Me should be licensed auctioneers but would like to see the Consumer Guarantees Act extended to include organisations like Trade Me.
Chief executive Sue Chetwin believes there is a difference between auctions and Trade Me. "Trade Me is more like classified ads, just using a different media."
Some online transactions are already covered by the Consumers Guarantees Act. For example people were covered if they bought a car on Trade Me from a registered motor dealer for a set price, she said.
Auctioneers Association chief executive officer John Ward said licensed auctioneers were controlled under "dozens" of laws, including the Auctioneers Act 1928.
"Try and go to Trade Me with a problem and no one wants to know about it. You have to go to the seller. There's no right of dispute. Good business practice is all that's needed."
Mr Ward said the public was not aware goods purchased on online sites were not guaranteed. "The public is ignorant of the law and they get led astray. There needs to be a greater awareness."
"Why should people be able to avoid consumer protection?"
Becoming a licensed auctioneer required an application at a district court, advertising the application and paying a $300 fee.
"There are no qualifications required to become an auctioneer. You just have to be able to stand on a box," Mr Ward said.
"Let's make it a level playing field. No one can make Trade Me responsible. They are providing the conduit from the seller to the buyer and receiving a fee for it at both ends, that's what an auctioneer does."
Trade Me business manager Mike O'Donnell has rebuffed Mr Ward's claims.
"If I had a dying business that's not moving with the times, I'd say that as well."
Trade Me was not technically an auction, he said. "We provide a venue for buyers and sellers to meet. The Auctioneers Act doesn't apply to us."
Professional traders on Trade Me were subject to the Sales of Goods Act and negative feedback can be given on personal traders when a deal goes bad, Mr O'Donnell said.
"Ninety nine point nine per cent of traders take it (negative feedback) very seriously. If they're not one of that 99.9 per cent buyers have access to the Disputes Tribunal.
"The Disputes Tribunal have shown a willingness to move with the times. Our system empowers individuals."
Trade Me liaised with over 20 government organisations, including the Department of Conservation, police and customs, to ensure it complied with all laws, he said.
- NZPA
