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Elias Visontay

Elias Visontay

Elias Visontay is a National Consumer Affairs Reporter at The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age.

Real estate agent reviews graphic Elias story

Legal threats, backend hacks: How real estate agents can block honest reviews

Real estate agents who give the least accurate price guides also have near-perfect star ratings and scant negative reviews, sparking concerns buyers are being duped.

  • Elias Visontay

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One of the magnetic games that have been voluntarily recalled by the supplier for non-compliance with the permanent ban.

Amazon, eBay, Kogan ordered to halt sales of potentially deadly toys

Australia’s consumer watchdog has ordered online retailers to halt sales of a range of toys and games products - including chess sets - marketed for children that contain potentially deadly magnets if swallowed.

  • Elias Visontay
Uber’s complaints handling processes have been blasted by the Fair Work Commission.

Uber forced to reinstate driver accused of speeding, sexual comments

The ride-share giant has again been scolded by the Fair Work Commission over its failure to gather further evidence from complainants and its “nonsensical” chatbot.

  • Elias Visontay
Brad Banducci has announced his abrupt resignation from Ticketek after a little more than a year in the job.

Former Woolworths boss abruptly steps down from Ticketek

Brad Banducci led the ticketing company for a little over a year, during which it lost major venues in Sydney and Melbourne.

  • Elias Visontay
Australian lawyer Samuel Monkivitch has become infamous on Hong Kong social media.

Australian lawyer’s dine-and-dash spree goes viral in Hong Kong

Samuel Monkivitch’s exploits have become social media fodder in the city, where police have accused him of repeatedly fleeing Chinese restaurants without paying.

  • Lisa Visentin, Elias Visontay and Selina Cheng
Coles made a number of concessions to the ACCC about its discounting decisions.

The messy task of calculating the harm Coles caused shoppers

A diabolical legal process is set to play out as huge teams of lawyers attempt to quantify damages that Coles may have to pay after its loss in court this week.

  • Elias Visontay
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Coles “Down Down” program misled millions of customers into thinking discounts were genuine.

Coles to face fines ‘in the hundreds of millions’ after discounts ruled a sham

In a landmark decision, Justice Michael O’Bryan found the discounts were based on previous prices that were offered for too short a period to be considered real.

  • Elias Visontay, Isabel McMillan and Jack Gramenz
Ladbrokes is a major sponsor of sporting events around the country.

Ladbrokes warns customers: gamble, or have accounts depleted

The gaming regulator is examining emails that don’t tell users they have a legal right to withdraw their balance instead of paying fees after 18 months.

  • Elias Visontay
Xero founder Rod Drury in 2018. He has retired from the company’s board, but remains an adviser.

Founder of $14b tech firm denies sexual misconduct, but returns ‘NZer of the Year’ award

Sir Rod Drury, the founder of ASX-listed software company Xero, has handed back the gong.

  • Elias Visontay
Melbourne Cup hopeful Buckaroo, left, runs a narrow second in the Cox Plate.

$6b betting giant had 500 problem-gambling breaches, but the regulator took too long to fine it

The lack of fines for the company behind Ladbrokes and Neds has sparked claims that current gaming laws are “useless” and the regulator is hamstrung.

  • Elias Visontay