sale item bought online but out of stock

mike_s_5

hi , just wondered where i stand re some boot i bought my wife from an online (small local) store that were half price?(£155 from £309)
They were advertised on their web page and the site let me pay for them with added postage, through paypal .
I've had an order confirmation sent . then i've had a phone call saying they're out of stock and they will refund my money. but untill last night the boots were still on the net.
I've not accepted my money from them yet and wondered if i could get a new season pair of the same boots from them.
have i a arguement?
many thanks
mike

Ivory_Tinkler

I think if they have offered a refund then there is nothing more you can expect. Maybe someone walked into the shop and purchased them, hence they can't be sent to you. Most websites have terms and conditions stating that a contract does not exist until despatch so I don't think you stand much chance of getting another pair of boots from the new season range at the sale price!

bingo_bango

As Ivory states, the order confirmation email generally does not constitute acceptance of your order. Most firms these days will tell you in it that while they have received the order, they will not actually process it until they have checked stock. Once they send you an email stating that the order has been processed, you then have a contract. At this point there is no contract between you, and therefore nothing you can do.

May seem harsh, but that's the legal position.

There is a separate issue whereby they are offering goods that are unavailable for sale. This likely constitutes an offence under S.9 of The Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008 ( a misleading action in S.5(4)(a) )and should be reported to your local authority Trading Standards dept.