Does this count as buying over the phone / online?

Pinksterp

Hi there, just wondering if anyone has an opinion on this as I'm unsure after reading the MSE consumer rights guide. I've ordered 16m2 of tiles from a local tile shop. I spoke with them on the phone at first, then popped in to check the design, but then called up to confirm the order, got sent an invoice on email, and paid (via Sage Pay / C Card) online. Most of our communication has been on email or phone apart from that one brief visit. My husband has now decided he doesn't like the tiles - so I emailed the shop 6 days after purchase to say we wanted to change them. They say they won't refund or exchange them without a massive carriage cost (over half the value of the tiles) to send the tiles back to their main depot being deducted. We haven't actually had the tiles delivered from the shop to our house yet. On the invoice it doesn't stipulate any delivery or transport cost - it's just price per m2 of tile. We weren't advised that there would be no refunds at the time of order. Do we have the right to a full refund, or is this a lost cause? Thanks for any advice.

martinsurrey

CCR definition

http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2013/3134/made

“distance contract” means a contract concluded between a trader and a consumer under an organised distance sales or service-provision scheme without the simultaneous physical presence of the trader and the consumer, with the exclusive use of one or more means of distance communication up to and including the time at which the contract is concluded;"

they will argue that your visit to the store means it was not "exclusive"ly using distance communication so does not meet the criteria of a distance contract, so dont have the protections of the CCR

Pinksterp

Thanks @martinsurrey - that's what I was concerned about. I was hoping there would be some right to a refund before actually receiving the goods too, but I can't find that anywhere either!

Shaka_Zulu

Lost cause.

DoaM

If you'd ordered and paid over the phone then collected in store, that would still be a distance contract.

Because you inspected the goods in store prior to order and purchase then you would struggle to convince a "reasonable person" that this was a distance contract ... and that's the stance a judge would probably take.

kazzah

personally I avoid this type of scenario by NEVER allowing my husband an opinion or any input on decorating or interior design matters..........