Online shopping problems How to complain

If you decide you don't want the item

Step one - Contact the online shop or catalogue

If you know that what you ordered isn't what you want, let the retailer know, make sure you say in writing or by email within the cancellation period. Check the seller's terms and conditions as these may give you longer than the legal minimum to say that you want to cancel.

If you cancel by phone, confirm it by letter or email as soon as possible and make sure you do so within the cooling-off period.

Check their terms and conditions to see if they say how you should return the unwanted item.

Step two - Return the item as soon as possible

If the retailer's terms don't say who pays for returns then they have to either arrange to collect the item, or refund the postage. 

If you need to pay to return the goods, the retailer can't expect you to return them in a way that is so expensive or involved that it would be cheaper and easier to keep them.

If your online shopping is faulty

Step one - decide whether you want a refund, repair or replacement

As soon as you realise there is a problem with the item, decide what you want done and stop using the item. 

If you want your money back, you have only a 'reasonable' time to 'reject' a faulty item and claim a refund. What's reasonable depends on the item and the nature of the problem.

As a general rule, three to four weeks is normal, but if the problem is immediately obvious it may be less, so write to your online shop as soon as you become aware of it.

You don't have to reject the item - you can write to the online shop or catalogue telling them you want a repair or replacement. However, if they can show that repairing would be disproportionately expensive compared to replacing (or vice versa) they can choose the cheaper option.

If you get no joy from the online shop, try and claim from your credit card company

Step two - claim your money back from your credit card company

If you get no response or the online shop refuses your request, you have two main options.

1. If you paid for the item by credit card, you may be able to claim from your card company.

Your card company is liable, along with the online shop, for any misrepresentations or breaches of contract, as long as you paid more than £100 but not more than £30,000. If the seller arranged finance for you to buy the item you may be able to claim from the credit provider in the same way.

2. You could take the shop or catalogue to the small claims court if you paid less than a certain amount (£5,000 in England and Wales and £3,000 in Scotland and Northern Ireland).

Before you start court action you must have complied with the Practice Direction on Pre-Action Conduct, so that the seller has been given every chance to settle and has been fully warned that court action will follow.