A retailer cannot always make you pay return postage. But the answer changes depending on whether the goods are faulty, misdescribed, sent in error, or simply unwanted under the online cancellation rules.
First ask: why are you returning the item?
UK consumer law treats faulty or misdescribed goods differently from an ordinary change-of-mind cancellation. That distinction determines who normally bears the cost of returning the goods.
If the goods breach the Consumer Rights Act standards, statutory remedies can include rejection, repair, replacement, price reduction or a refund, depending on the stage of the dispute.
Faulty or non-conforming goods
When goods are rejected under the Consumer Rights Act, the trader must generally bear reasonable return costs, subject to the statutory exceptions. A retailer should not make a consumer fund the normal cost of returning genuinely rejected faulty goods simply by pointing to its standard returns policy.
Ordinary online cancellation is different
For many distance contracts, the Consumer Contracts (Information, Cancellation and Additional Charges) Regulations 2013 provide a 14-day cancellation period. The consumer generally has a further 14 days to send the goods back after communicating cancellation.
For an ordinary change-of-mind cancellation, the consumer can generally be required to pay the direct cost of returning the goods if the trader gave the required information before the contract was made. If the trader failed to provide that information, the cost can shift to the trader.
Who pays when the seller sent the wrong product?
If the trader supplied the wrong goods or the goods are not as described, treat the matter as a statutory conformity problem rather than simply a voluntary return. Ask the trader to explain the remedy and return arrangements under the applicable consumer rules.
Be careful with “restocking fees”
A blanket fee imposed on a consumer who exercises a statutory cancellation or faulty-goods right can raise serious consumer-law issues. Whether a specific fee is lawful depends on the legal basis for the return and the information provided before the contract.
Build the return-cost evidence
- Reason for return.
- Terms shown before purchase.
- Returns policy.
- Evidence of defect or wrong item.
- Postage quote or receipt.
- Trader's explanation of who should pay.
What this means practically
- Faulty goods and change-of-mind cancellations are different legal routes.
- Check whether the trader gave the required pre-contract return-cost information.
- Do not accept a generic “all returns are at your cost” statement without checking the legal basis.
- Keep the return policy and evidence of the problem.
Sources
- GOV.UK — Accepting returns and giving refunds: the law: gov.uk
- GOV.UK — Consumer Contracts Regulations guidance: gov.uk
- Legislation.gov.uk — Consumer Contracts (Information, Cancellation and Additional Charges) Regulations 2013: legislation.gov.uk
Related Kibbo Tools
- Refund & Warranty Claim Generator — structure a request for the trader to cover lawful return costs.
- Return Policy Checker — check the reason for return against the seller's actual policy and postage terms.