Getting your money back
Under the distance selling regulations, you are quite within your rights to change your mind at any time within the first seven days, return the goods and get a full refund. This means without financial penalty of any kind – such as a cancellation charge or a ‘restocking’ fee. The supplier must also refund any delivery charges paid by you, and any other costs related to the contract. Refunds must be made within 30 days from cancellation, whether or not the goods have been sent back. Any related credit agreements will also cease to exist.
You may be required to pay to return the goods, but you must have been informed of this as part of the pre-contractual information. if the goods are faulty, then under Sale of Goods, the supplier will always bear the cost of returning them.
Returning the goods
Unless you are required to return the goods, and you were informed of this, your only obligations are to make the goods available for collection and to take reasonable care of them while they are in your possession. This is called a duty of care. Where the supplier has made provision to collect the goods, this duty of care expires after 21 days, but where you have agreed to return the goods, your duty of care continues until you do this and could be for as long as 6 months.
Packaging
Under a distance selling contract, a supplier cannot make refunds subject to the goods being returned unopened in their original packaging. One of the principles of the distance selling regulations is to give you a chance to examine the goods at home, not having had a chance to do so in the shop. It would be impossible for you to do this without opening the packaging and trying the product out. Having said this, you will still be under a duty to take reasonable care of the goods while in your possession, and may be subject to certain instructions such as not to wear shoes outdoors, or remove hygiene seals. But you can never be penalised simply because you did not return the goods in their original packaging.
- Know all the facts before you decide!
- Your right to cancel
- Protection against card fraud for mail order goods and services
- I’ve been sent stuff I never ordered!
- Problems with delivery and collection
Hi i ordered some trainers for my daughter on Internet but their nit the ones i ordered and im wanting to return them but the company said that I have to email them telling them why i did that and then they wil send me all things i needed to send back but I haven’t heard anything back ive emailed them lots of times thank you if you can help me
Recently needed a let for a town bar. Spoke to the manufacturers based in Sheffield, sent pictures of our tow bar and the issues. They told me they would send a part to replace the part that had broken. On inspection of the part sent I could see it wouldn’t fit, they said this was because our tow bar was an older discontinued model therefore we would need to replace the whole thing. They said they would sent a courier to collect the part from me and then issue me with a refund, that was march 1st, I have called several times to be told they will come “one lunch time in the next few days”. Still nobody has come and I’m getting sick of making sure I’m in over lunch everyday on the off chance they will come. Plus I need the money back to go towards the whole new towbar ive booked in to be fitted next week. What more can I do?
Amazon sold item via seller but late arrival so wanted a refund. Item called by courier who gave me a sticky label as receipt. Scanned all correspondence to Amazon as wanted tracking and courier letterhead ingredients for proof of collection. They still refuse to refund even though got email from seller saying they will refund.
Hi, I ordered a jacket from Zara online and opted for delivery to my address. Hermes courier service twice tried to deliver during the day when I’m in work. On the 3rd attempt they left a calling card to say it was with a neighbour. I’ve since asked the neighbour who says no parcel was delivered at all and now Zara say there are no sizes left to replace the jacket so can only offer me a refund. What a complete farce!!!
I bought an electronically item online but it showed a fault (low battery even when new batteries used). I looked online and found that it was a common fault. I returned it the seller who has said it is in full working order. He said he will test it over the weekend and then return it to me. Can he do this?
I ordered flat pack chest of drawers from online company and one panel arrived cracked and one pack of screws missing. I spoke to comsmy who were happy to refund but goods must be packed up again and courier service to pick up. They failed to pick up twice but got there in end. I was unable to get all the pieces back into original box so had to find another one myself which would never fit size of drawer fronts exactly. In email exchange I made clear I’ve done the best to package them securely as I could and would not be be held accountable for further damage. Admittedly the box had room for the panels to slide around as box wasn’t designed for them. They have arrived at warehouse from courier damaged further. Furniture company is holding me liable for this as not packaged in reasonable state and are investigating and I suspect looking a way to deny my refund. What are my rights so I can make this clear to them? Sara
I purchased a ring online which is too small. Returns have to made within 14days. I have emailed 3 times for address to return, they reply by stating someone will be in touch, this is not happened! Will my credit card deal with this, or do I have another alternative?
I returned an item of clothing I purchased online via signed for delivery the same day I received it (the garment didn’t suit me). The seller (a business) has yet to collect the item from the sorting office as they weren’t there when the Post Office try to deliver. Should the seller fail to collect the item from the Sorting Office and it be returned to me, where do I stand on getting a refund? I paid via credit card for £56.
I bought a coin of eBay and when I open the envelope the coin was empty and there was two rips one on the side and one in front what my options please
I tried to order an item online but was unable to do so due to not having the money in my bank account, or so I thought until I received it in the post saying I could pay later. I explained that I couldn’t afford it so they told me to return the product. I did this but only got a proof of postage instead of a tracking number. Now the company are saying they haven’t had it back so I must pay the invoice & late payment fees. Can they do this even though I have emailed them the proof of postage?
I have returned items to a company called fineallures. They only have an email address. I have contacted them numerous times but they have never replied. I cannot find a contact address or number and the return address was China. How can I get my £80 back.
I ordered a pair of trainers and was sent a completely different pair, I emailed the company to let them know I had received the wrong item, they replied that the ones I wanted were out of stock and they sent me the newest model and all shipping charges to return I will have to pay which will be expensive. What rights do I have?
My problrm is this a bracelet was sent back via shopping channel it was sent via royal mail the company says they never got it and now thry saying take me to court im in poor health i dont no what to do i offered to pay in small ammounts but they want it all in one go
Dear sirs,
I recently recieved a package that turned out to be not wht i ordered. K phobex the company immediately to be told i had to wait for a refund and the repurchase what i wanted to order originally. Now I made the package available for collection but the courier refused me a receipt although I did sign his electronic device. Anyway it’s now been 5 working days and the company are saying they haven’t recieved the item back so won’t refund my money. I can’t afford to lose £198 what can I do
When goods are returned, isn’t the supplier supposed to refund p&p under recent regulations, as well as the cost of the goods. Is this is true is there a time limit? I purchased an I pad from ideal world and it was faulty, the cost of carrying out their instructions and the cost of the p&p came to over £20 to return the goods, apart from the time spent (hours) on the telephone to apple on there helpline, about 5 helpers, I gave up and decided to return the goods. The mailing cost for the return which ideal world advised was the most expensive means of doing so. Value of iPad £389.
I recently ordered clothes on a MISS PAP site I paid the full amount for them. When I returned them they did not write to me until I asked them did they receive the clothes. They told me they had received them but it would take 21 days to refund my money. After a week they sent me an email with the amount they were going to refund and since that time stuck a sale on some of the items so that I couldn’t get my full refund!! Surely if my items were received at the time allowed and at the same price because I checked the website at that time and there were no sales I have the right to a full refund?
Purchased curtains and douvet paying £130 by debit card. Decided the colour did not really
match and returned unopened to highstreet shop.
Sales person refused refund and offered credit voucher saying this was company policy and said we were told when purchasing. Is this legal.
Packaged unopened as sold returned 5 days after purchased and unaware of policy. Had experienced refund returns in previous purchaser.
Purchased curtains and douvet paying £130 by debit card. Decided the colour did not really
match and returned unopened to highstreet shop.
Sales person refused refund and offered credit voucher saying this was company policy and said we were told when purchasing. Is this legal.
Packaged unopened as sold returned 5 days after purchased and unaware of policy. Had experienced refund returns in previous purchases.
I am assuming that you bought these items in a shop and NOT online…
Contrary to popular belief, shops are under no obligation to refund purchases simply because the buyer changed her mind; this is a highly generous policy adopted years ago by the large stores that we now all take for granted but there is no legal basis for it. The likes of Argos, Screwfix, Tesco, B&Q, et al, have allowed us for YEARS just to return these things and get our money back when, for whatever reason, we regret the purchase but they have only done this as a goodwill gesture to encourage further business from us. What we used to get in the 60s was a Credit Note so we could buy something else from the same store and it seems that this is what you have been offered. If the purchase was from an online seller, the rules are quite different.
To answer your question…Yes…It is legal.
Hi I bought a cooker yesterday ex display arrange to collect today then they rang me and told me I can’t have for 6 weeks as they need to wait till kitchen are refitted and cooker is pat tested can they do this