With the rise of online marketing platforms, apps, and resellers, consumers can now easily purchase products – even the branded ones just by using their mobile phones and computers. However, this convenience comes with its own set of risks.

The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) is constantly reminding consumers to stay vigilant before making any online purchases as some branded products may be marketed at seemingly attractive prices. Keep in mind that lower price tags or seeing brand names on packages or displays do not always equate to a better deal.

Breville Philippines, for instance, has monitored numerous reports and complaints against unauthorized resellers of its branded kitchen appliances, mostly online. In most cases, consumers who bought their Breville products through unauthorized resellers online were left without anywhere to go when it comes to after-sales services, particularly repairs and warranty claims.

With this, Breville Philippines reminded the public to buy only from authorized Breville distributors and retailers.

“Our Breville Philippines’ team, including sales and after-sales teams, is regularly trained on our products. Our local team can provide expert advice on product selection, usage, cleaning, and maintenance, aligned with global best practices,” said Haj Cortez-Flores, Breville Philippines Food and Beverage Business Unit Manager.

Here are five reasons customers should purchase Breville products only from authorized sellers and distributors:

1) Quality standards assured

Before being introduced in the Philippines, all Breville products undergo a series of research and development processes that include compliance with local regulations set by the DTI – Bureau of Product Standards (BPS).

Products that are on the DTI-BPS list require testing and retesting even before the decision to proceed with the importation is made. They are also tested upon arrival in the country by DTI-BPS-accredited testing laboratories.

Each product shipment, upon arrival and after passing the local testing, is issued with a Certificate of Exemption or an Import Commodity Clearance Certificate. Customers may not receive the same quality assurance when purchasing from unauthorized sellers, who may not adhere to local import regulations for kitchen appliances like Breville Philippines.

2) Guaranteed safe for use in the Philippines

There are Breville appliances being sold by parallel importers that have been purchased from Breville Australia’s authorized retailers. Unfortunately, these products are not intended for the Philippine market due to differences in technical specifications, especially the electrical rating. Although genuine Breville appliances, these products were meant for other countries, making them vulnerable to electrical-based malfunctions once plugged in. Due to these products being sold by parallel importers, there has been a significant increase in service requests related to these products.

Breville produces products for the Philippines based on the specifications from the DTI Bureau of Product Standards (BPS). These are the ones that are guaranteed safe for use in the Philippines.

3) Easy warranty claims

Keep in mind that Breville Philippines is not, in any way, obligated by law to process claims from customers who purchased outside its authorized dealers list. Claims for warranty or requests for after-sales service from customers who bought from parallel importers or unauthorized sellers cannot be processed.

Resources for warranty claims and repairs are allocated to those who purchased from authorized Breville Philippines’ dealers/retailers only. These warranty, repair guarantee claims, and service requests are handled by the Breville Philippines after-sales service team. Customers only need to present proof of purchase or a copy of their online warranty registration in order to process claims. If the item was a gift, a verification process will be done based on the serial number.

4) Genuine parts

All spare parts and accessories used to service Breville Philippines’ products are sourced directly from Breville, except for cleaning tablets and solutions that can be bought from the Philippine distributor of Breville’s specified brand.

The after-sales team of Breville will not be able to process products purchased from unauthorized sellers. So if you buy from unauthorized sellers, you will be forced to settle in having your Breville products serviced by unauthorized service centers. In this case, there is no guarantee that the parts they will use are genuine Breville parts. Taking this route may risk more or bigger product issues in the future.

So to ensure genuine parts and proper repair, always deal with the Breville Philippines authorized service centers only.

5) Scam-proof

While Breville Philippines has not received direct reports, it is already actively monitoring monitored online posts that indicate parallel importation or a potential scam.

Additionally, online marketplaces have listings with suspiciously low prices. These low prices may attract buyers, increasing the risk of scams.

To avoid scams, refer to Breville Philippines’ official website https://www.breville.com.ph/ to see the list of authorized retailers, or contact the company on its official social media accounts for verification.