An online purchase can go wrong in genuinely different ways — the seller won't help and you need a regulator, the charge itself is the problem and you need your card network's dispute rules, the product turns out to be unsafe and you need a recall database, a marketplace transaction breaks down and you need the platform's own buyer protection program, or you just need the retailer's actual return policy instead of guessing. This directory keeps those apart on purpose.
Coverage is primarily US and UK. EU and Australia entries are limited to product recall databases, since a recall/safety alert system is inherently multi-region and adds real value even outside our primary markets.
Before you buy, three free checklists from this same block are worth running first: the Hidden Fees Checker, the Marketplace Seller Risk Checklist, and the Fake Sale Checker.
Report a US company for unfair or deceptive e-commerce practices
What: The FTC handles complaints about unfair or deceptive online shopping practices, fake sale tactics, and marketplace fraud under its Section 5 authority.
When to use: When a US-based seller or platform has misrepresented a product, used a manipulative sales tactic, or engaged in a pattern of deceptive practices.
File the actual complaint with the FTC
What: The FTC's own complaint portal. The FTC doesn't resolve individual complaints directly, but reports feed its enforcement priorities.
When to use: After you've identified the issue and want it on record with the FTC.
Complain about a payment-related e-commerce problem
What: Relevant here specifically for the payment side of an e-commerce dispute — a card issuer mishandling your chargeback, an unauthorized charge, or a payment processor problem tied to an online purchase.
When to use: When the problem is really about how your bank or card issuer handled the payment or dispute, not the seller itself.
Get free consumer advice from a specialist helpline (UK)
What: Free advice on consumer rights, faulty goods, refunds, and what to do when an online seller won't cooperate.
Phone: 0808 223 1133
When to use: Before escalating a UK e-commerce dispute — they'll tell you exactly what you're entitled to and how to ask for it.
Report a UK trader to Trading Standards
What: The professional body for UK Trading Standards, with guidance on your rights and links to report a trader to your local Trading Standards service.
When to use: When a UK-based online seller has broken consumer protection law, not just failed to meet your expectations.
This section covers card NETWORK rules (Visa, Mastercard, Amex) — not individual bank chargeback processes, which vary too much bank-to-bank to usefully directory-ize. Filing windows generally run up to 120 days from the transaction or delivery date, but the exact number depends on which reason-code category your dispute falls under — always confirm the specific window with your card issuer, since your issuer (not the network) is who you actually file with for Visa and Mastercard.
Understand how a Visa dispute works
What: Visa's own overview of how it categorizes disputes (Fraud, Authorization, Processing Errors, and Consumer Disputes). Visa doesn't take your dispute directly — you always file with your card-issuing bank, which applies Visa's rules on Visa's behalf.
When to use: To understand the reason-code category your dispute is likely to fall under before you call your bank.
Understand your Mastercard dispute and fraud protections
What: Mastercard's cardholder-facing page on Zero Liability protection for unauthorized transactions. Like Visa, Mastercard applies four reason-code categories (Authorization, Fraud, Cardholder Disputes, Point-of-Interaction Error) behind the scenes, but you file the actual dispute with your issuing bank, not Mastercard directly.
When to use: To confirm you're protected before reporting an unauthorized charge to your bank.
Dispute a charge directly with American Express
What: Unlike Visa and Mastercard, Amex is both the network and the issuer, so this is a genuine direct-filing page — view your transactions, select the one in question, and click "Dispute this Charge."
When to use: For any Amex-issued card charge you want to dispute. Amex recommends contacting the merchant first.
Related Kibbo tool: Once you know which reason-code category applies, put your dispute in writing with our Card Transaction & Billing Dispute Generator →
Check whether something you bought — or are about to buy — has already been flagged as unsafe.
Search official US product recalls
What: The official, searchable US database of every consumer product recall — filterable by product category, hazard, and date.
When to use: Before buying a used or secondhand item, or if a product you own suddenly seems unsafe.
Report — or search — a US product safety incident
What: The CPSC's public incident-reporting database — submit a report if a product injured you or nearly did, or search reports other consumers have filed on a specific product.
When to use: After an injury or near-miss with a product, or to check for unreported safety patterns before a recall is issued.
Check the EU's rapid alert system for unsafe products
What: The EU's rapid alert system for dangerous non-food consumer products, covering all EU member states plus Iceland, Liechtenstein, and Norway — searchable by product category, risk level, and country.
When to use: Before buying from an EU-based seller, or to check whether a product already has an active safety alert.
Search Australian product recalls and report an unsafe product
What: The same ACCC resource referenced in our Health & Supplements directory for medicine and supplement safety — here it's the general consumer-product recall and reporting channel for anything bought in Australia.
When to use: Before buying a product from an Australian seller, or to report one that's caused injury or seems unsafe.
Also covers medicines & supplements — see the Health & Supplements directory →Search UK product safety alerts and recalls
What: The UK government's official, searchable database of product safety alerts, reports, and recalls, run by OPSS — filterable by risk level, category, and date. Doesn't cover food, drink, vehicles, or medicines.
When to use: Before buying a used or secondhand item in the UK, or to check whether something you own has an active alert.
Each of these requires you to contact the seller directly first — a claim generally isn't eligible until you've genuinely tried to resolve it with them.
File an Amazon A-to-z Guarantee claim
What: Amazon's official buyer protection program for purchases from third-party sellers — covers non-delivery, damaged or wrong items, and items not as described. Coverage generally runs up to the purchase price including shipping; personal injury or property damage from a defective product is covered separately, up to $1 million.
When to use: If a third-party seller on Amazon won't resolve a delivery, refund, or item-condition issue after you've contacted them directly.
Want to know more? Read our full guide → Run the full checklist →File an eBay Money Back Guarantee claim
What: eBay's buyer protection covering most items bought on the platform — if an item doesn't arrive or isn't as described, and the seller doesn't resolve it, you can ask eBay to step in.
When to use: If an eBay purchase never arrived, arrived significantly not as described, and the seller won't cooperate. Category and payment-method exclusions apply — check eligibility before you buy if it matters to you.
File an Etsy Purchase Protection claim
What: Covers a qualifying order — including shipping and taxes — up to $250 USD if it never arrives, arrives damaged, doesn't match the listing, or is significantly late. Updated 7 May 2026: this $250 cap now applies per order even when the order total is higher, rather than excluding orders above $250 entirely.
When to use: After starting a Help request with the seller and waiting 48 hours without resolution — you can then ask Etsy to step in.
Related Kibbo tool: Vet a marketplace seller before you buy, not after something goes wrong, with our free Marketplace Seller Risk Checklist →
Direct links to each retailer's actual return policy page — not a generic customer service hub. Verified 1 September 2026. Argos (UK) is intentionally omitted: its help site blocks automated verification and we couldn't independently confirm a direct policy URL, so we're not guessing — see summary.
Amazon's return policy
What: Amazon's own return-policy page — standard window, non-returnable categories, and how free returns work.
Walmart's return policy
What: Walmart's standard return policy — 90 days for most items, shorter windows for electronics (30 days) and wireless phones (14 days), extended holiday-purchase window.
Target's return policy
What: Target's own return policy — 90 days for most Target-sold items, 30 days for Target Plus marketplace items, and shorter windows for electronics.
Best Buy's return & exchange policy
What: Best Buy's return window — 15 days standard, 60 days for My Best Buy Plus/Total members, with category-specific exceptions.
John Lewis's return policy (UK)
What: John Lewis's returns hub — free returns and exchanges within 30 days of receipt, with specific rules for jewellery over £500 and items over 15kg.
Currys's return policy (UK)
What: Currys's returns policy — up to 30 days to return most unwanted items, unopened and in original packaging, alongside your standard 14-day statutory cancellation right for online/phone orders.
Related Kibbo tool: This section is the direct-link complement to our checklist — know what to check before you rely on it with the free Return Policy Checker →