The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission accused automaker Toyota of making false claims about the leather used in a range of vehicles sold between 2005 and 2009, Australian news websites report.
At the heart of the ACCC accusation is the way Toyota used the terms "leather" and "all-leather accented" to describe the interior of some models. The claim states that Toyota was likely to mislead Australian consumers to believe that the entirety of the upholstery or relevant components of their vehicles were made of genuine leather.
Many of the components in question were in fact partial or faux leather, reports state.
"The ACCC was concerned that consumers were likely to have been misled by these claims. If consumers are prepared to pay a premium to have quality finishes for their car interiors, they are entitled to get what they paid for," ACCC chairman Rod Sims said, as reported by news.au.com.
About 98,500 vehicles sold in Australia between 2005 and 2009 were involved in the investigation and, according to reports, included variants of the Aurion, Camry, Kluger and Prado.
Toyota will no longer use the terms "leather accented" and "leather accents" in advertisements of its vehicles, The Canberra Times reported.
Toyota issued a statement of apology for misleading customers, saying, "Toyota Australia acknowledges the statement from Australian Competition and Consumer Commission. We apologise if any customer felt they were misled as a result of our advertising."
A $200 AUD discount on the purchase of the next Toyota will be made available for any customer affected customer, The Canberra Times reported.
"In most cases everything that people sit on or touch is genuine leather in the affected vehicle models," Toyota's statement said. "The areas where synthetic material is used are those that are more prone to wear and tear, such as the back of the seat and door trim. This helps make the areas easier to clean and wear more consistently."
Many automakers have begun using synthetic leather in place of genuine in an effort to reduce costs, however it is often marketed as faux.
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