If an item you've bought develops a fault, your refund rights depend on when you bought it and who is responsible.
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What did you buy?
The Consumer Rights Act 2015 requires any products you buy must be of satisfactory quality, fit for purpose and as described.
The rules also include digital content like downloaded films, games or apps. So all products, whether physical, electrical, digital or even a car , must meet the following standards:
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If what you’ve bought doesn’t satisfy any one of the three criteria outlined above, then the retailer that sold it to you is in breach of the Consumer Rights Act.
This means that your statutory consumer rights are against the retailer – the company that sold you the product – rather than the manufacturer.
You may still be able to make a claim against the manufacturer if you have a guarantee or warranty , or if the product has caused additional damage or injury, but we strongly recommend that you deal with the retailer in the first instance to avoid prejudicing your right to claim against them in the future should another fault arise.
The date you made the purchase determines which legislation applies.
The Consumer Rights Act gives you a clear early right to reject goods that are unsatisfactory quality, unfit for purpose or not as described, and get a full refund.
Contact the retailer you bought the goods from and tell it about the problem and that you want to reject the item and get your money back.
Your right to a quick refund is limited to 30 days from the date you took ownership of the product (this could be the date of purchase or the date it was delivered to you - whichever is later).
This right doesn’t apply to faulty digital content. The retailer has one opportunity to repair or replace digital content that is of unsatisfactory quality, unfit for purpose or not as described, before you can claim a refund on a digital download .
Under the Sale of Goods Act (which applies to goods bought before 1 October 2015), the time limit was a less clear-cut three to four weeks.
If you're outside the 30-day right to reject, you have to give the retailer one opportunity to repair or replace any faulty goods or faulty digital content which are of unsatisfactory quality, unfit for purpose or not as described.
Tell the retailer whether you'd prefer a repair or a replacement, but bear in mind that it can refuse if it can show that your choice is disproportionately expensive compared with the alternative, or it can show that is impossible to provide it.
If you discover the fault within the first six months from delivery, it's presumed to have been there from the time you received it - unless the retailer can prove otherwise.
During this time, it's up to the retailer to prove that the fault wasn't there at the time of delivery - it's not up to you to prove that it was.
If the attempt at a repair or replacement is unsuccessful, you can then claim a refund, or a price reduction if you wish to keep the product.
The retailer usually can't make any deductions from a refund in the first six months.
If you've owned the item for less than six months, the retailer must give you a full refund if an attempt at a repair or replacement is unsuccessful.
The retailer can't make any deduction from a refund in the first six months.
The only exception to this is motor vehicles, where the retailer can make a deduction for fair use after the first 30 days.
It doesn't matter whether you bought your goods before or after 1 October 2015 - in the first six months from when you buy something, the onus is on the seller to prove your defective product was of satisfactory quality when you received it.
It's not for you to prove that the faulty item was not of satisfactory quality in order to get it repaired or replaced during the first six months after purchase.
However, you may find that the retailer will conclude that the product is of satisfactory quality by taking the product in for an ‘in-house’ inspection or arranging for it to be looked at by the manufacturer.
As a result, even if the retailer has not produced enough evidence to satisfy the legal burden of proof by doing this, you will likely have little choice but to find your own independent evidence to move matters forward.
If a defect develops after the first six months, the burden is on you to prove that the product was faulty at the time the goods were delivered to you.
In practice, this may require some form of expert report, opinion or evidence of similar problems or defects across the product range.
The retailer can also make a deduction from any refund for fair use after the first six months of ownership if an attempt at a repair or replacement is unsuccessful.
You have up to six years to take a claim to the small claims court for faulty goods in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, and five years in Scotland.
This doesn't mean that a product has to last six years - just that you have this length of time in which to make a claim if a retailer refuses to repair or replace a faulty product.
The truth is, the law doesn't explain how you can prove the fault was present at the point of purchase, which can make it problematic when you’re asked to do so.
Guidance has tended to focus on getting an independent report from a repair shop or expert, but this advice dates back to a time when these were a common presence on high streets.
You could be hard pressed to find one now. But it's worth looking in your local area for a repair shop if you need to get an objective opinion.
Here are a few suggestions on what you can do:
Whether you'll need to pay depends on when you found the fault and whether you want a refund, repair or replacement.
If you want to return your faulty goods for a refund, a repair or replacement, you should be refunded the delivery cost you paid to get it sent to you.
If you paid for enhanced or express delivery and you’re returning the faulty goods early on, this will also be refunded to you.
But if you’ve had the goods for a while and they’ve only just developed a fault, you probably won’t be able to claim back the initial delivery costs for getting the goods to you.
This is because you’ll have benefited from owning the product for a while already.
In some situations the retailer - or you - might want or need to send the faulty good to a manufacturer for closer inspection of the fault.
This is so that an expert can confirm whether the fault was present when you purchased it.
It is worth taking any conclusions from this with a pinch of salt if they do not side with you, particularly if it relates to a possible manufacturing fault.
This is because the manufacturer is not independent and accepting liability could have a knock-on effect on what it have to pay out to the retailer to indemnify it for paying you, as well as the costs of handling widespread issues if it transpires that this is a product-wide fault.
If the fault developed within first six months of you owning the product and you’re looking for a repair or replacement, it’s down to the retailer to check the fault in order to demonstrate the product wasn’t faulty when you received it.
Because of this, the retailer will usually want to get it checked by a manufacturer. The retailer has a legal obligation to cover these costs.
So, if it asks for you to return the faulty item to the manufacturer, get confirmation from the retailer that it'll refund the cost of doing so.
The retailer has to cover the cost, so if it refuses to do this complain to its customer services team and refuse to send the faulty item without confirmation you’ll be compensated.
It is not advisable to arrange the return yourself even if the retailer says that you will be compensated. This is because you will be liable for any issues that occur during transit. You should therefore push for alternative arrangements such as the retailer providing a prepaid label and arranging the courier, or the dealership organising a recovery vehicle.
If the fault developed after the first six months of you owning the product, the onus is on you to prove the fault was present at the time you took ownership of it.
So, you should expect to pay for any reasonable steps and delivery costs to prove the fault was present at the time of purchase.
It’s always best to notify the retailer that you will be claiming any such costs back from the retailer in the event that the goods are found to be faulty.
If you manage to prove this, you can contact the retailer and ask them to reimburse you these delivery costs, plus any costs charged for inspecting the goods.
It’s always best to agree the approach the retailer will use to establish whether or not the goods are faulty.
If you don’t want to go down the route the retailer has suggested, make sure you’ve agreed a new approach with the retailer beforehand. This includes making sure costs are reasonable.
Your report will need to follow a prescribed form if you intend to use it as expert evidence in legal proceedings.
If the retailer has already repaired or replaced the faulty item and wants to send it back to you, there should be no cost to you.
The retailer must pay the costs of repairing or replacing your faulty item and they must also pay to deliver it back to you.
If you’re being asked to take something back in store and that would be a significant inconvenience to you, you can suggest a reasonable alternative.
For example, you can suggest posting the goods back and that you expect the cost of delivery, and perhaps also some form of parcel insurance, to be paid back.
Being able to show a receipt for the faulty goods you purchased may speed up your claim, but it is not essential to have one.
In many cases it would be unreasonable for a retailer to expect you to have kept your receipt, especially if the goods develop a fault after several months.
If you want to return faulty goods without a receipt, proof of purchase - such as a bank statement - can be sufficient alternative and enough evidence to prove you purchased the goods.
If you have not got any evidence of the purchase, that could potentially be fatal to your claim as you need to be able to prove you purchased the item.
A bank statement may be enough evidence but it also may not be if it does not show sufficient detail for it to be conclusive. For example, if you paid for a suit from a department store as a part of a large order of clothes five years ago, it will likely be impossible to tell from the statement alone what was actually purchased.
The seller's returns policy can't require customers to take vouchers where an item has been returned because it is faulty.
The Consumer Rights Act specifies the rights that consumers have if products develop a fault, and the seller can’t remove or reduce these.
If you're having problems and the shop won't refund, repair or replace your goods, then you should report it to your local trading standards department
, as the retailer is breaching your statutory rights.
It's worth telling the shop that you're going to do this, as it could mean your complaint is then dealt with.
Although it is possible for Trading Standards to advocate for a victim surcharge and/or consumer compensation as a part of a prosecution or enforcement order, Trading Standards cannot order redress for you in its own right and will not take court action on your behalf. Trading Standards act in an enforcement capacity only and, in certain instances, may provide limited advice.
If the retailer fobs you off or blames the manufacturer, you might want to take your complaint to an ombudsman if the retailer is a member of an ombudsman scheme.
If you get no response from the retailer, or if it has gone bust, and you paid for an item costing between £100 and £30 000 with a credit card, you can take your claim to the card company under Section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act 1974 .
You have the same rights from your finance provider as you have against the retailer under this legislation.
Alternatively, you may be able to do a ‘chargeback’. Chargeback is not enshrined in law, but it's part of Scheme Rules, which participating banks subscribe to.
It applies if you paid by debit card, or on a credit card for an item costing less than £100 and it is less than 120 days since you made the purchase.
You can ask your card provider to try to claw back the money you paid or part of it, although exact rules may vary between Visa, Mastercard and American Express.
You could also consider using your guarantee or warranty .
Many products, such as electrical goods, are offered with a manufacturer's guarantee or sold with a manufacturer's warranty that often lasts for one year.
Guarantees and warranties are a contract between you and the manufacturer, and the manufacturer must do whatever it says it will do in them.
Usually this will be to repair or replace a faulty item. Retailers will sometimes contact the manufacturer on your behalf, but they are not obliged to do so.
If the product is within its guarantee period, check to see if the guarantee offers a refund in your circumstances.
If it doesn't, you could still contact the manufacturer, explaining the problem and asking if it will give you a refund.
If the retailer or the manufacturer won't help, and you believe you are within the reasonable time for rejecting the item, write to the retailer (not the manufacturer) formally rejecting the product under the Consumer Rights Act 2015 or Sale of Goods Act .
Your consumer rights will usually apply even if your manufacturer's warranty or guarantee has expired, and retailers can't ignore this.
It will depend on the product and the fault, but you could be legally entitled to a free repair or, in some cases, a replacement by the retailer for some time after the manufacturer's guarantee has expired.
According to the Consumer Protection Act 1987 , anyone who's harmed by a faulty item can sue the manufacturer - even if you didn't buy the product yourself.
You can sue for compensation for death or injury. You can also sue for damage or loss of private property caused by faulty goods if the damage amounts to at least £275.
The amount you can claim will depend on the harm suffered, and there is no upper limit to compensation.
There are also certain criminal sanctions that apply to the general safety of products. For example, a lack of safety information can lead to up to 12 months' imprisonment and a large fine.
Court should be a last resort and you should do everything you can to resolve the dispute before taking this step.
If all your attempts to exercise your rights fail or the retailer doesn't respond, you should ask yourself the following questions:
Anyone considering starting court action in England and Wales (even in the small claims court ) has to follow the Practice Direction on Pre-Action Conduct.
This gives you and the party you're in dispute with clear steps to follow to help you resolve the dispute. And, if this isn't possible the Practice Direction tells you the necessary steps to take your dispute to court.
Failure to follow the Practice Direction on Pre-Action Conduct and Protocols can result in a judge imposing sanctions on you even if you are successful in your court claim.
If you purchase goods as a consumer from a trader based in the EU, you should be able to apply the Consumer Rights Act and other relevant UK consumer legislation.
If the company is not in the EU, it is unlikely that you can apply UK domestic laws unless there is a provision in the terms and conditions that allows for this.
Even if you can apply the same legal arguments, the real issue can be enforcing your rights.
You may be able to get a court in the UK to accept jurisdiction of your claim but if the trader has no assets in the UK, you may never get your money back.
Although your options are more limited, you might also find that there are some free alternative dispute resolution schemes that you can access. The UK International Consumer Centre
can help you to engage with the trader and any consumer organisations based in its country of residence.
You should also be wary of your potential liability for tax when purchasing goods that are imported from abroad.
