Online Shopping Rights in Australia Under the Consumer Law

The Australian Consumer Law applies to an online purchase from an Australian business in exactly the same way it applies to an in-store purchase, with the same consumer guarantees, but overseas sellers with no Australian presence are harder to hold to it in practice.

This article addresses how the consumer guarantees and other ACL protections apply specifically to online and remote purchases. For the underlying guarantees themselves, see consumer guarantees in Australia.

The same guarantees, a different shopfront

Buying online does not create a separate, weaker set of rights. The consumer guarantees in sections 51 to 62 of the ACL, covering acceptable quality, fitness for purpose, correspondence with description, due care and skill, and the rest, apply to a purchase made through a website, an app or an online marketplace exactly as they apply to a purchase made walking into a shop. A product bought from an online-only Australian retailer carries the same right to a remedy for a major or minor failure, under the same section 259 framework, as one bought in person. See faulty goods and your right to a refund for that framework in detail.

"No returns on sale items" and similar store policies

A website or checkout page that states goods bought online, or goods bought on sale or clearance, cannot be returned, refunded or exchanged under any circumstances is not enforceable to the extent it purports to exclude the consumer guarantees. Section 64 of the ACL makes such a term void where it tries to exclude, restrict or modify a guarantee or a consumer's right to a remedy for its breach. A retailer can still have a genuine change-of-mind policy, which the ACL does not require at all, but it cannot use that policy's wording to remove a consumer's right to a remedy where goods are genuinely faulty, not as described, or otherwise breach a guarantee.

Change of mind is different from a guarantee breach

It is worth separating two distinct situations. Where a consumer simply changes their mind about an online purchase, with no fault in the goods or services, the ACL does not require a business to offer a refund or exchange at all; whether that is available depends entirely on the retailer's own change-of-mind policy, which many online retailers do offer voluntarily. Where the goods or services are faulty, not as described, or otherwise breach one of the statutory guarantees, the ACL's remedy framework applies regardless of any change-of-mind policy, because a guarantee breach and a change of mind are legally different things.

Overseas sellers and cross-border purchases

Where an overseas business actively sells directly to consumers in Australia, for example by operating a website that ships to Australian addresses, accepts Australian currency or actively markets to Australian consumers, it is bound by the ACL including the consumer guarantees, in the same way as a domestic seller. In practice, obtaining a repair, replacement or refund from a business with no presence in Australia can be considerably harder, and the assistance an Australian consumer protection agency can offer is limited once the seller is genuinely based overseas. The ACL does not apply at all where a consumer defeats the "sold into Australia" test themselves, such as by having a product shipped to an overseas address and then separately arranging for someone to forward or bring it into Australia; in that scenario the seller never dealt directly with the Australian market.

Unsolicited goods and services

Separately from the consumer guarantees, sections 39 to 43 of the ACL protect a consumer who receives goods or services they did not ask for. A business generally cannot assert a right to payment for unsolicited goods sent to a consumer, and a recipient of genuinely unsolicited goods generally has no obligation to pay for them or to take special care of them, though the exact obligations depend on the type of good and how it arrived. This is distinct from an online order a consumer placed and later regrets; it applies specifically to goods or services a consumer never requested in the first place.

Digital products and subscriptions

Software, apps, streaming subscriptions and other digital products and services are treated under the ACL the same way any other service is. The due care and skill guarantee in section 60, the fitness for purpose guarantee in section 61 where a particular purpose was disclosed, and the reasonable time guarantee in section 62, all apply to a digital service supplied by an Australian business in trade or commerce. Where a digital subscription materially changes what it delivers during its term, the same major-failure remedy framework under sections 267 to 269 described in consumer rights for services can be engaged.

Delivery delays, damage and lost parcels

Delivery is part of what an online seller has agreed to supply, so a business that arranges shipping remains responsible to the consumer for getting the goods there, even though the actual transport may be carried out by a separate courier or postal service the consumer has no direct contract with. Where goods are lost in transit or arrive damaged because of how they were packaged or handled before dispatch, this is generally a problem with the seller's supply, not a separate issue the consumer must chase with the courier. Section 62's reasonable time guarantee can also apply to a delivery timeframe where a services element is involved, though most straightforward goods purchases are assessed under the goods guarantees rather than section 62 specifically.

Marketplaces and third-party sellers

Online marketplaces that host many independent third-party sellers raise a question consumers often get wrong: who is actually the supplier for ACL purposes. Generally, the consumer guarantees attach to whichever business actually supplied the goods, which on a marketplace platform is usually the third-party seller, not the platform operator itself, unless the platform has taken on the role of supplier in its own right, for example by holding and dispatching its own stock. A consumer dealing with a problem from a marketplace purchase should generally identify the actual selling business first, since that is usually who the consumer guarantee remedy sits against, though the platform's own terms of service and buyer protection programs can sometimes offer an additional, separate avenue.

Cancelling before dispatch

The ACL does not create a general right to cancel an online order simply because a consumer changes their mind before the goods are dispatched; that is governed by the seller's own terms of sale, not the consumer guarantees. Some online sellers voluntarily allow order cancellation up to the point of dispatch, and some payment methods offer their own separate dispute or chargeback processes, but neither of these is required by the ACL itself. Where an order was misleadingly advertised, for example a price or description that did not match what was actually being sold, that raises a separate ACL issue around misleading conduct under section 18, distinct from an ordinary change of mind.

This page provides general legal information about online shopping rights under the Australian Consumer Law, verified 21 July 2026. It is not legal advice about your own purchase or dispute. For advice on your situation, consult a legal practitioner admitted in the relevant Australian state or territory.

For what happens when an online purchase turns out faulty, see faulty goods and your right to a refund. For services bought online, see consumer rights for services. Return to the Australian Consumer Law hub for the full picture.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I have fewer rights buying something online than in a store?

No. The consumer guarantees under the ACL apply the same way to an online purchase from an Australian business as to an in-store purchase. A "no online returns" policy cannot lawfully exclude your guarantee rights, though it can validly limit a separate, voluntary change-of-mind offer.

Can a retailer refuse to refund a faulty item bought on sale online?

Not if the item genuinely breaches a consumer guarantee, such as not being of acceptable quality. Section 64 of the ACL makes a term void where it tries to exclude a consumer guarantee, including for sale or clearance items.

Are overseas online retailers covered by the ACL?

An overseas business that actively sells into the Australian market is bound by the ACL, but practical enforcement can be difficult if the business has no Australian presence. The ACL does not apply where a consumer has goods shipped to an overseas address and then separately arranges to bring them into Australia themselves.

What if I receive goods I never ordered?

Sections 39 to 43 of the ACL protect consumers who receive unsolicited goods or services. A business generally cannot assert a right to payment for goods a consumer did not order, and the recipient is not automatically obliged to pay for or specially care for them.

Do consumer guarantees apply to a streaming subscription or software purchase?

Yes. Digital products and services are covered by the same services guarantees, due care and skill, fitness for a disclosed purpose, and supply within a reasonable time, as any other service supplied by an Australian business.