The product never ships. The seller keeps your money and keeps moving the date. The FTC's Mail Order Rule gives consumers specific cancellation and refund protections when the rule applies.
The 30-day rule is a default, not a promise that every order arrives in 30 days
The FTC rule requires a covered seller to have a reasonable basis to ship within the time it advertises. If the seller states no shipment time, the default is generally 30 days after receipt of a properly completed order.
The rule covers most merchandise ordered through the Internet, mail, telephone or fax, subject to defined exceptions.
What happens when the seller cannot ship on time?
The seller must provide a delay option notice within the applicable time. The notice must explain that the consumer can either consent to the delay or cancel and receive a prompt refund, and it must provide the required revised-shipment information.
For certain definite delays of 30 days or less, the rule permits the seller to treat silence as consent if the notice satisfies the regulation. For longer or indefinite delays, the rule generally requires affirmative consent or treats the order as cancelled under the specified mechanism.
What if the seller simply keeps delaying?
A seller cannot avoid the rule by repeatedly moving the delivery date without following the required delay-notification and consent process. Second and subsequent delays have stricter consent requirements.
If you reject the delay or the order must be cancelled under the rule, the seller must promptly refund the money paid for the unshipped merchandise.
What should you save?
- Original advertised delivery date.
- Order confirmation.
- Payment record.
- Backorder or delay notices.
- Every revised shipment date.
- Your cancellation request.
- Refund confirmation, if any.
How fast must a rule-required refund be?
The regulation defines a “prompt refund”. Depending on the payment method, the rule generally provides a seven-working-day timeframe for certain refunds, while credit sales where the seller is the creditor have a different one-billing-cycle mechanism.
The exact refund rule depends on how the transaction was financed, so a complaint should identify the payment method rather than applying one deadline to every purchase.
FTC enforcement can be significant
The FTC explains that violations can expose merchants to federal enforcement, monetary civil penalties and consumer redress. The exact penalty depends on the enforcement action and applicable law; consumers should not assume that a specific statutory “fine per customer” is automatically payable to them.
What this means practically
- Check the promised shipment date first.
- If no date was promised, check the 30-day default.
- Save every delay notice and revised date.
- Do not accept an indefinite delay silently if you want the order cancelled and refunded.
- Use the FTC rule alongside any state remedies that may also apply.
Sources
- Federal Trade Commission — Mail, Internet, or Telephone Order Merchandise Rule: ftc.gov
- Federal Trade Commission — Business Guide to the Mail, Internet, or Telephone Order Merchandise Rule: ftc.gov
- 16 CFR Part 435 — Mail, Internet, or Telephone Order Sales: law.cornell.edu
Related Kibbo Tools
- Refund & Warranty Claim Generator — structure a cancellation and prompt-refund request.
- Shipping & Delivery Timeline Tracker — record promised dates, delay notices, consent, and refund status.