How do I take a business to NCAT for a refund?
What NCAT can order when a NSW business refuses a refund, the fees from 1 July 2026, the 3-year time limit and where each NSW route stops.
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You apply to NCAT online or on a paper form, and it can order a NSW business to refund you, pay you or fix or replace faulty goods. It hears consumer claims up to $100,000, and you must apply within 3 years of the problem. If you can't agree at conciliation on the day, an NCAT member decides.
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Can NCAT order a business to refund you?
Yes. The NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal (NCAT) hears consumer claims through its Consumer and Commercial Division, and its orders are binding and legally enforceable.
NCAT lists what it can order: payment of money, a refund with the goods returned, repair or replacement of faulty goods, supply of services and delivery of goods. It points to the Fair Trading Act 1987 (NSW) and the Australian Consumer Law (ACL) for the detail. The ACL is the national law that sets out the consumer guarantees every business must meet.
NCAT can decide a consumer claim worth up to $100,000.
You must apply within 3 years of when the problem with the goods or services arose. NCAT also says the goods or services must have been supplied to you within the last 10 years.
The application fee depends on what you claim. These are NCAT's fees from 1 July 2026 for general consumer proceedings:
| Amount you claim | Standard fee | Reduced fee |
|---|---|---|
| Up to $10,000, or no amount | $64 | $16 |
| Over $10,000 to $30,000 | $133 | $33 |
| Over $30,000 | $344 | $86 |
NCAT says the reduced fee is for eligible pensioners and for people with a grant of legal aid or help from a community legal centre. If you and the business live in different states, NCAT says to check whether federal jurisdiction affects your claim before you apply.
What should you do before you apply to NCAT?
If the refusal so far has only been at the counter or over the phone, ask again in writing. A written request gives you a record to attach to an NCAT application.
Step 1: Gather your evidence and the business's legal name
NCAT asks for the invoice or receipt, any warranty or quote, photos and witness statements. You also need the business's correct legal name and an address to serve it. If it's a company or registered business, search ASIC's registers and attach the result, because NCAT warns that wrong details can lead to delays or orders you can't enforce.
Step 2: Put your request to the business in writing
Ajust's recommended channel is whichever one gives you a written record and a reference number, usually the web form or a complaints email.
Subject: Request for refund, [product or service]
Hello,
I paid $[price] for [product or service] on [date]. It [describe what went wrong], and when I raised it on [date] I was told [their response].
I'm asking you to refund the $[amount] I paid.
Please reply in writing by [date, 14 days from today]. If the matter isn't settled by then, I intend to apply to NCAT.
Kind regards,
[Your name and phone number]
Step 3: Hold them to the date
Save a copy of what you sent and diarise the deadline. If they come back with an offer, ask for it in writing and check it covers the full amount before you accept.
Already done all this and still getting nowhere? Here's what happens next.
What if the business still won't pay?
In NSW there are four routes after a refusal. Only NCAT can order a business to pay you, whatever kind of consumer claim it is.
| Where | What it does | Where it stops |
|---|---|---|
| The store manager or head office | Can overturn a refusal made by front-line staff | The business is still judging its own decision |
| NSW Fair Trading complaint | Contacts both sides to try to reach an agreement and aims to resolve most complaints within 30 days | If the two sides can't agree, it gives you options such as a tribunal. Fair Trading says action it takes over a breach of the law aims to prevent future problems "rather than resolving a dispute" |
| Consumer guarantee direction from NSW Fair Trading | After a failed complaint, can direct the business to repair, replace or refund a product. The business must comply within 28 days or another period it sets | Products only, not services. The price must be $25 to $3,000 excluding GST, bought within 6 months before your complaint, and you have 30 days to ask. Cars and second-hand goods are excluded |
| NCAT | Hears the claim, starts with conciliation on the day and can make a binding order | Claims up to $100,000, within 3 years, and you pay the application fee. You prepare and present the case yourself, and a conciliator doesn't give legal advice or decide anything |
| The Local Court | Registers an NCAT money order as a judgment so you can enforce it, for example by a garnishee order on the business's bank account | NCAT doesn't collect the money for you. You ask NCAT for a certified copy, register it and pay the court's filing fee |
NCAT encourages people to run their own case without a lawyer, and in a consumer claim anyone who speaks for you needs NCAT's permission. Legal Aid NSW can fund tribunal cases about goods and services if you pass its means and merit tests and, for example, you've already tried the business's complaint process and an outside one.
Can someone take this on for you?
Yes, before you file.
Our team takes over your claim with the business and puts it to the people who can approve a refund. In NSW, Victoria, Queensland, SA and WA we can also lodge it with Fair Trading or Consumer Affairs for you. If it still isn't resolved, we'll give you guidance for a tribunal claim, so you can lodge it yourself. We don't lodge tribunal claims or represent anyone at a tribunal, and we can't take on a claim a tribunal is already handling.
No win, no fee. We'll tell you straight if we don't think we can win it.
What doesn't work
- Naming the shopfront instead of the legal entity. An order against the wrong name may be one you can't enforce, so attach the ASIC search NCAT asks for.
- Leaving it past 3 years. The clock runs from when the problem arose, not from when the business last replied.
- Skipping the hearing. NCAT says that if you don't attend, the hearing still goes ahead and orders are made in your absence.
- Counting on your costs being paid. NCAT awards costs only in special circumstances, and it says not to expect to recover time off work or travel.
- Agreeing at conciliation to something you think is unfair. NCAT's own advice is to agree only to what you think is fair, and a conciliator won't advise you.
Common questions
Is NCAT the small claims court in NSW?
No. NCAT is a tribunal, not a court. The Small Claims Division belongs to the NSW Local Court and hears claims up to $20,000. For a refused refund on goods or services, NCAT's consumer claims list is the usual route, and it goes up to $100,000.
What happens at NCAT conciliation?
On the hearing day the member asks both sides to try to settle first, in a room or area outside the hearing room. A conciliator can help you list options and write down any agreement, but won't give legal advice or make a decision. If you don't reach agreement, the hearing goes ahead.
Can someone help me prepare without representing me?
Yes. NCAT says anyone can get legal help or advice to apply or prepare for a hearing without its permission. If NCAT doesn't allow a representative, that person can still help you informally as a support person on the day.
NSW Fair Trading couldn't resolve it. What now?
Fair Trading works by getting both sides to agree, so a business that won't move can end it there. If it's a product priced $25 to $3,000 excluding GST and bought within 6 months, you have 30 days to ask Fair Trading for a consumer guarantee direction. Otherwise NCAT is the next step, and your complaint record is useful evidence.
What if the business ignores the NCAT order?
Ask NCAT for a certified copy of the money order by phone or email. There's no fee for it. Register it with the Local Court online or at a registry, pay the filing fee, then apply to enforce it, for example with a garnishee order on the business's bank account.
How long until NCAT decides?
If it isn't resolved at the first hearing, NCAT may list it for a contested hearing on a later date. When a case is more complicated, the member may reserve the decision, and Legal Aid NSW says you'll usually hear within six weeks.
- NCAT: Consumer claims
- NCAT: Fees at NCAT
- NCAT: Conciliation
- NCAT: Representation
- NCAT: Enforce a money order
- NCAT: Legal costs
- NCAT: Hearings FAQs
- NSW Fair Trading: How it handles general complaints
- NSW Fair Trading: Consumer guarantee directions
- Legal Aid NSW: Policy 4.4 Consumer protection
- Legal Aid NSW: After the hearing at NCAT
- Local Court of NSW: Civil jurisdiction
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