Press release
Retailers and returns services potentially breaking law on returns for disabled consumers, Which? finds
6 min read
Reena Sewraz, Which? Money and Shopping Editor, said: "As the festive season arrives, disabled consumers could be facing unreasonable barriers when they do their Christmas shopping, leaving them at a significant disadvantage. "Retailers and returns services must up their game and ensure disabled consumers' needs are not forgotten."
Gordon McCullough, Chief Executive at the Research Institute for Disabled Consumers, said: "Returning a product is an ordinary transaction that every consumer should be able to make. The fact that there are still barriers for disabled people in doing this shows there is still a long way to go for some retailers in understanding their entire customer base and having their processes and procedures designed in an inclusive way. "Consulting disabled people in all areas of the customer experience is the only way to know if a process is inclusive to everyone and even better if you can do this right at the design stage. There are over 14 million disabled people in the UK, and like all consumers, they are more likely to return to a shop if they've had a satisfactory experience. The spending power of disabled people and their families is estimated at £274 million per year to UK businesses, so there is money at stake for those retailers who are not providing an inclusive returns service."
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Notes to editors: Which? surveyed 844 members of the panel of the Research Institute for Disabled Consumers in September 2022 about their experience of making a return over the past 12 months.
Right of replies
Amazon said it's committed to diversity, equity and inclusion. In terms of deliveries, customers can input specific delivery preferences on their account, including designated safe spaces, requesting delivery to a neighbour or choosing delivery to a collection point. It also has a process for returns to be collected by DPD if a customer has a disability. Its customer service team will work closely with customers concerned about accessibility and ensure a practical solution is implemented. A spokesperson for
InPost UK said: "We are sorry to hear of Luisa's recent experience and would like to thank her for raising this. This is an important issue, and one we take very seriously. We welcome feedback from our UK locker users and remain firmly committed to providing consumers with a genuinely convenient and substantially improved ecommerce experience. But we can only achieve this when everybody benefits from our services, so improving the wider accessibility of our parcel lockers is a critical step on this journey. "That's why we are currently testing new functionality to allow for better accessibility and locker compartment selection features. For customers in the UK this means an enhanced ability to choose a locker compartment that best suits them when returning and sending parcels from a locker. Once the testing phase is complete, we will roll this functionality out across our network from early 2023."
Advice - How to take action if retailers discriminate Having a disability is a characteristic protected under the The Equality Act 2010, so if you think you have been discriminated against by a retailer due to your disability, you have a legal right to take action.
- Ask for adjustments: Under the Equality Act 2010, companies are expected to make reasonable adjustments for disabled consumers. So if your disability prevents you from making a free in-store return, you have a legal right to ask retailers to make adjustments to accommodate you. It's also worth checking the retailer's terms and conditions and contacting customer service to ask what arrangements can be made for you.
- Challenge the fee: Under the, items must be fit for purpose, as described and of a satisfactory quality. If they do not meet one or more of these qualities, you shouldn't be charged a return fee.
- Make a complaint: If you do feel you've been discriminated against due to your disability, you can make a complaint to the retailer regarding the discrimination you faced. Retailers' contact details should be easy to find. You should make it clear to the retailer that your disability makes it difficult or prohibits you from making returns using the processes it provides, such as unfairly charging you when you don't have the option of benefiting from free in-store returns.
- Report the firm to Trading Standards: If you think a retailer has broken the law or acted unfairly (i.e.they tried to stop you using your legal rights) you can report it to Trading Standards.
- Consider legal action: If you are unsatisfied with the outcome of your complaint, you may be able to use a dispute resolution scheme or take legal action, which can be assessed by seeking legal advice.
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