UK Distance selling regulation

Hollydale

Hi

I bought a camera lens from MyDigitaland.com and having received decided it was not what I wanted. I informed them, within 7 deays of reciept, that I wanted to return the goods but they have refused saying it is not faulty. I have informed them that the UK distance Selling regs gives me 7 days cancellation period.

However they still refuse to allow me to a return the goods.

WHat is my next step

The goods are worth £235

Many thanks

Graham

pendulum

How did you pay?

Hollydale

I payed via Credit Card.

Graham

Mark_Hewitt

From what you have told us, which is all we can base a response upon. You have every right to return the goods.

Hollydale

Yep I believe I do but I cannot get the vendor to accept this. So need to know what should be my next step. Contact the CC company?

Graham

Ivory_Tinkler

Remind them of their legal obligations under the DSR's and mention Trading Standards too. Providing the item is in a resaleable condition (assuming that you haven't used it but have just examined it) then you have the legal right to return the product under the DSR's.

If they still don't budge then contact Trading Standards.

derrick

As said above, inform them of their legal obligations re DSRs.

See The Consumer Protection (Distance Selling) Regulations 2000; -


[FONT=&quot]Right to cancel[/FONT]
10. - (1) Subject to regulation 13, if within the cancellation period set out in regulations 11 and 12, the consumer gives a notice of cancellation to the supplier, or any other person previously notified by the supplier to the consumer as a person to whom notice of cancellation may be given, the notice of cancellation shall operate to cancel the contract.

(2) Except as otherwise provided by these Regulations, the effect of a notice of cancellation is that the contract shall be treated as if it had not been made.

(3) For the purposes of these Regulations, a notice of cancellation is a notice in writing or in another durable medium available and accessible to the supplier (or to the other person to whom it is given) which, however expressed, indicates the intention of the consumer to cancel the contract.

Cancellation period in the case of contracts for the supply of goods
11. - (1) For the purposes of regulation 10, the cancellation period in the case of contracts for the supply of goods begins with the day on which the contract is concluded and ends as provided in paragraphs (2) to (5).

(2) Where the supplier complies with regulation 8, the cancellation period ends on the expiry of the period of seven working days beginning with the day after the day on which the consumer receives the goods.


OFTs BUSINESS GUIDE TO DSR link

http://www.oft.gov.uk/shared_oft/business_leaflets/general/oft698.pdf

From page 17; -
3.23Where the DSRs give consumers the right to cancel an order, this right is unconditional and begins from the moment the contract is concluded. Unlike when buying from a shop, the first time that a consumer will typically have an opportunity to examine goods purchased by distance means is when they receive them. The DSRs give consumers who buy by distance means more rights than consumers who shop in person. When a distance consumer cancels a contract to which the cancellation provisions apply they are entitled to a refund of any money they have paid in relation to the contract even if the goods are not defective in any way. Please also see paragraph 3.46 for further information.

From page 20; -
What must my consumers do if they want to cancel?
3.26 They must tell you in writing, or in another durable medium, if they want to cancel. This includes letter, fax or email. A phone call is not enough unless you say in your terms and conditions that you will accept cancellations by phone.

From page 25; -
What specifically do I have to refund to the consumer if they cancel?

3.48 The DSRs require you to refund any money paid by or on behalf of the consumer in relation to the contract to the person who made the payment. This means the full price of the goods, or deposit or pre- payment made including the cost of delivery. The essence of, distance selling is that consumers buy from home and receive goods at home. In these circumstances, almost every case of home shopping will involve delivery of the goods ordered and so delivery forms an essential part of the contract.

From page 28; -
Can I insist that consumers who cancel an order within the cancellation period return the goods as new or in their original packaging?
3.58 No. Consumers are under a duty to take reasonable care of the goods while in their possession as discussed in paragraph 3.44. The DSRs allow consumers to examine goods they have ordered as they would
in a shop. If that requires opening the packaging and trying out the goods then they have not breached their duty to take reasonable care of the goods. In these circumstances you cannot insist that consumers return the goods as new or in their original packaging. You may ask consumers to return goods with the original packaging, but you cannot insist on this. In the case of goods such as earrings that have hygiene seals, you may require consumers to exercise reasonable care by not removing the seals when examining them.

How can I resell the goods as new if they have been opened and tested by the customer?
3.59 The DSRs do not provide any general exception to the right to cancel on this point. Unless one of the specific exceptions referred to above at paragraph 3.38 applies, consumers can exercise their right to cancel a contract and return the goods to you. The DSRs do not link cancellation rights with a supplier’s ability to resell items as new.

derrick

You need to inform them in writing, (e-mail is acceptable), that you are returning the item under statutory rights,(DSRs), and that you are informing Trading Standards of their attempts to disregard Consumer Law, you then need to contact Trading Standards, this can be done via Consumer Direct, and inform them the company are disregarding statutory rights.

sweep9

I was going to say that the UKDSR do not apply because all the data on the website comes from Hong Kong servers and it's possibly a Hong Kong business... but the person that owns/registered the website is based in the UK!

The information in case you need it:-

Franky Li
16 Shearway Business Park
Folkestone, Kent CT19 4RH
United Kingdom
0208 123 6208

The_Pedant

That does throw a bit of a spanner in the works.
As a first step, I think calling consumer direct may help clarify where you stand.

Looking at all the information, one could be forgiven for thinking that they are simply box shifting stock that's been imported in bulk from overseas.

The question though is the grounds required to deem them to be actually 'trading' in the uk. They have a UK phone number, the contact details above seem to imply a UK presence, but the postal address given on the website is in Hong Kong!

Where was the camera dispatched from? Did it come in from overseas, or the UK?

Given that you paid in pounds, they have a uk address above, a uk phone number, and if the camera was dispatched from the uk; then it may be argued that they are to all intents, trading in the UK. In that case I would expect your rights to be as stated above.

If the good were dispatched from overseas (as some cheap eBay deals are) then you may not be as lucky.

See what Consumer Direct say & decide where to go from there. There's more and more of these sites cropping up atm and consumers don't always realise they may be dealing with companies that fall outside of UK & EU juridstiction.

derrick

Numbers for Consumer Direct in place of the 0845 one; -

Mon-Fri 0800-1830 Sat- 0900-1300

Consumer Direct is designed to operate from our 0845 number, so we cannot guarantee connectivity, but under many circumstances these landline numbers will work correctly.

East of England: 01438 737460
East Midlands: 01522 563000
London: 020 8799 9200
North-East: 01642 495600
North-West: 01229 842203 020 31035167
Scotland: 01851822401
South East: 01622 626520
South West: 01209 720333
Wales (English language): 02920 367800
Wales (Welsh language): 02920 367801
West Midlands: 02476 786610
Yorkshire and the Humber: 0113 201 3670

Consumers who call Consumer Direct from a mobile phone are handled personally. We will offer to text a landline number to consumers who call us from a mobile phone, and who live in an area that is served by Consumer Direct, because calls from mobile phones to 0845 numbers can be much more expensive.