Posted on June 27, 2023
On Mothers’ Day this year, I like many others, placed an order with Bloomex Australia Pty Ltd (Bloomex) for flowers to be sent to my mother to celebrate the occasion. Despite a number of emails from Bloomex confirming that my order was ‘in transit’, the flowers did not arrive at my mother’s home that day, or even the next. Rather 5 days after Mothers’ Day, the flowers finally arrived, dead, to a local school.
Below is a picture of the flowers ordered, and underneath it, the flowers received:
I contacted Bloomex for an explanation and was advised that a refund would not be provided because the Australian Consumer Law “did not apply” to them. It was only when I revealed my profession as a partner of a law firm, that a refund was granted.
I soon discovered that my story was not unique, and that rather Bloomex had engaged in similar behaviour with a number of other consumers. Unfortunately, the power of a legal letterhead is not a privilege afforded to many of the other Bloomex consumers and industry professionals who were unsuccessful in their attempts to resolve their grievances with Bloomex. It is also likely that if any of these consumers sought the assistance of a lawyer, they would be advised that the cost benefit is not there – that the costs of obtaining legal advice would outweigh any refund monies received.
Facebook pages with thousands of followers surfaced, pages dedicated to people sharing their own negative experiences with Bloomex. Our firm put the word out that we intended to assist customers in exercising their rights under Australian Consumer Law and obtaining their refunds.
Stories of flowers intended for delivery at funerals, to friends who had lost a baby in a miscarriage and to dying family members in hospital were shared. Flowers were delivered old, damaged and dead, not matching the product advertised or incorrect. Fruit baskets contained bruised and rotten fruit and generic fruits being delivered despite their advertisement as ‘gourmet’. In many of these stories, the customer’s concerns were met with rude or delayed responses, or no response at all. Often, credit notes or replacement products were promised, and sometimes these were received, but in each case the low quality remained.
A Current Affair reported on Bloomex in April this year. NSW Fair Trading issued a public notice to consumers regarding an undertaking given by Bloomex in 2020, and has restated its concerns this year on its website. The ACCC has initiated proceedings against Bloomex for misleading or deceptive conduct in relation to its online star ratings and price representations.
And yet, Bloomex continues to engage in this conduct.
If you or anyone you know has purchased from Bloomex and have a similar experience to that described, please do not hesitate to contact Sharelle Staff of our office on (03) 9853 0311. We would be happy to assist you in exploring your rights under the Australian Consumer Law.
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