A Federal Court judge has condemned Gerry Harvey’s “complete disregard” for potential harm to consumers from a deceptive ad campaign run alongside lender Latitude.

The Federal Court has hit Harvey Norman with a $35 million penalty for running misleading ads – much more than the $20 million slapped on its partner company.

The two businesses misled customers into taking out credit cards and paying additional fees in a 60-month interest-free payment scheme, the corporate regulator says.