Uber to add tipping feature in Australia … Say goodbye to Microsoft Paint … Lululemon pays $32,000 to the ACCC

Uber fringe benefits tax exemption

EMPLOYEE UBER RIDES NOW CLAIMABLE UNDER FRINGE BENEFITS TAX EXEMPTION.

In an unusual move, Australian Uber riders will soon have the option to tip their drivers, as the company looks to roll out the features announced in the US earlier this month to the Australian market.

News.com.au reports the company will roll out the feature to Australian users by the end of the year, as part of its 180-day plan to improve things for both drivers and riders. But questions have been raised around if customers will use the feature, considering the lack of a tipping culture Down Under.

In a statement to news.com.au, a spokesperson for Uber said “Riders have up to seven days after the trip to add a tip and they can’t add one until they receive a rating card in the app, which happens after the trip is complete”.

Microsoft will cease support for Paint

Born 32 years ago, simple photo editing and graphics creation program Microsoft Paint has forever been the saviour of those looking to throw together a scrappy diagram or quickly resize an image.

But the harsh realities of the fast-moving world of tech have finally caught up to the humble photo-editing program, with Microsoft announcing it will kill off the program in its upcoming Creators Update for Windows 10.

The Guardian reports the tech giant will deprecate the program, along with Outlook Express and the Reader app, replacing Paint with the new Paint 3D.

While Paint 3D might be the “new and improved” Paint in Microsoft’s eyes, to fans of the original program it only masquerades as a replacement, focusing more on rudimentary 3D drawing functionalities rather than bare bones image editing.

Paint fans will have until Spring to say their goodbyes before Microsoft ceases support and deprecates the app, saying it is “not in active development and might be removed in future releases”.

Lululemon pays $32,000 in infringement notices

Fashion retailer Lululemon has paid $32,400 in infringement notices to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) over “alleged false or misleading representations about consumer guarantee rights” in regards to sale items advertised online.

The retailer advertised a number of sale items online in May under the headline “We Made Too Much”, saying: “Help yourself. It’s yours for keeps so no returns and no exchanges”. Additionally, the websites return policy listed “We Made Too Much” gear was “yours for keeps”.

The ACCC alleged the language used by the retailer “represented that consumers were not entitled to a remedy for these products under any circumstances”.

“The ACCC alleges that Lululemon made representations to customers that they were not entitled to a refund or replacement for products under any circumstances, when that was not the case,” ACCC commissioner Sarah Court said in a statement.

“If a product or service fails to meet a consumer guarantee, people are automatically entitled to a remedy under the Australian Consumer Law. If products develop a fault which constitutes a major failure, customers are entitled to a refund, even if the product was purchased on sale.”

In a statement to SmartCompany, a spokesperson for Lululemon said the company has “updated our language in-store and online to ensure consistency and clarity for our guests across all of our channels”.

“We have collaborated with the ACCC to resolve all alleged contraventions and to ensure that our commitment to consumer rights is clear and in accordance with the Australian Consumer Law,” the spokesperson said.

“We stand by our quality promise, which states ‘if our product doesn’t perform for you, we’ll take it back.’ This, along with our existing return policies, are in place to protect our guests’ consumer rights.”

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