Online auctions: your rights explained Online auction site FAQs

Not the genuine article

I collect Disney memorabilia, and bought what was described as an original 1950s Mickey Mouse figure in an online auction. I could tell from the quality and the finishing that it was not the genuine article. What can I do?

You have a claim against the vendor for misrepresentation or misdescription under the Sale of Goods Act 1979. You are entitled to send the goods back and request a full refund, though you may have to threaten – or take – court action to get your money.

You could also report the seller to your local trading standards department for providing a false trade description, which is an offence under the Trade Descriptions Act 1968. Trading standards won't be able to get your money back but officers could prosecute the vendor.

Responsibility for faulty goods

I bought a camera from an auction website. It died after a couple of weeks. When I emailed the person I bought it from, he told me that he was not responsible if the goods he sold me failed. This cannot be right, surely?

Unfortunately, he is right. An individual seller is not liable if the goods they sell are not of a satisfactory quality. The only possibility you would have for a claim against him would be if he was ‘acting in the course of trade’: in other words, a trader rather than a private seller.

This could be the case he was doing a large amount of selling: you could check the auction site you bought from to see. But proving this and bringing a claim against him may still be tricky.

Nothing turns up

I won a bid for tickets on an auction website and I paid for them but nothing has arrived. After continued efforts to get my money back from the seller, I contacted the website, but it says it’s not responsibility for sellers. Is this true?

Yes, your only claim is against the seller. It’s a bit like a shopping mall or market: the shops or stalls are responsible for what they sell, not the company that runs the mall or market.

However, some auction sites do have complaints-resolution procedures, so see if you could use them. Also, you should make sure that your experience is taken notice of by the website, for example by blacklisting the seller.