Am I entitled to a refund from our mechanic?

I know I was well informed of the law and direction of Air Con in Oz and Europe at each course I have been too. Last Course's taken by Grant Hand. He's based in Oz. As mentioned earlier, there are a few cowboys that just don't care over there and here. Much the worst for the customer.

no kidding thanks for pointing that out.
You are obviously missing what I am trying to say.

Ha1 summer, in days beforeR12 banned wewere regassing cars n side of the roadwhile on holiday i n Brisbane. $60 carjust topped themup , made $2000 + in a weekend

lol were having a few beers and talking of doing that in central otago over christmas

hmm well hang on then a mo
TO QUOTE YOU
Anyway do I have grounds to lay a complaint with consumer affairs under our fair trading act here in Melbourne! Any advice would be appreciated.

YOUR POINT SEEMS PRETTY CLEAR TO ME.
Oh wait you aren't hearing what you want to hear.
Ohh yes indeedy you can make a claim and I'm certain it will be upheldbased on my vast personal experience of AUSTRALIANconsumer laws.
There you go You heard what you wanted to hear
or do you want to hear--"ohh you poor dear thing you"Thats utterly outragous and he should be severely punished.!

I'm with Kaz on this one. geographical differences have zero to do with this.
There are massive geographic differences between Hastings and Queenstown but they fall under the same law due to being in the same country.

Different country = different laws, regardless of how similar/different the geography is.
Granted, the laws are going to be similar BUT I'm not going to ask anyone in Australia for legal advice for an issue I have locally.

received this email from VASA
Hi
Air conditioning technicians must hold a national refrigerant handling license and whether they work for themselves or for a workshop, the employer must also hold an authority to buy and sell refrigerant, specifically R134a which is the only refrigerant allowed by all car makers in their vehicles.Any other refrigerant is regarded by professionals as contamination of a system which is very finely tuned to specific refrigerant and oils.

Membership of VASA is voluntary, but it is generally agreed that those workshops which are VASA members are providing advanced services and a/c service and repair because they belong to a network which shares technical information and uses a code of service to ensure that the right thing is done by customers as well as fellow workshops.

Our advice is always to check that the workshop you intend to use displays the Arctick symbol or can show you a certificate and personal card proving they hold the necessary refrigerant handling license, which is a national license in Australia, administered under the Federal Government's environmental laws. It became law in 2005 that technicians needed to prove they had the necessary skills to handle refrigerants and undertake repairs, and it is a national offence to vent refrigerants into the air.

There are a small number of workshops which try to use hydrocarbon refrigerant, which, being a natural product but highly flammable, does not fall within the environmental laws since it has no global warming potential.No car maker in the world will allow this refrigerant in their vehicles because they are not designed to use flammable refrigerant. There is a high risk of explosion if flammable refrigerant leaks into a cabin of a vehicle, because the simple opening of a door and a small spark can cause amassive explosion.These technicians, who are usually not professional, are not licensed, and that means that by law they cannot work on any vehicle containing R134a approved refrigerant. Many ignore this of course.

Trust this information helps.

lol. never mind.

Ive got a handling cert for medical cleaning solutions, does that mean I can do the dishes at home.Hell No

elviralo, you are not living buy your favorite quote. You got nothing.

Yep my favourite quote for a reason.

Sounds like a Scam to me, you should of not paid the second time you went there.

thats probably why over here we have mechanics to do mechanical things,panelbeaters to do panelbeating,auto sparkies for auto electrical work,and air conditioning specialists for air conditioning and im sure you have the same in oz, after the 1st time i would of been looking further afield myself.to me its a bit like say you were a builder im not really going to get you in to do my plumbing am i and if you muck it up the first time i m defiantly not getting you in a 3rd time

Yep point taken. He has repaired and serviced our cars in the past, with no problems, so assumed this wouldnt be any different.

Ah well, not the result you would have liked but at least you know what to look for next time anyhow. It's just like Woodrow said, alot of cowboys out there (and here as well)

Go AB's see you in 4 boys