Wrong item delivered online purchase

flaneurs_lobster

Given that it's a (relatively) small purchase (<£20) could you not perhaps keep the product and gift it during the upcoming festive season?

ste6085

Ergates said:

ste6085 said:

I recently ordered some aftershave online, when it arrived I opened the package and opened the box to find the bottle inside was not what I was expecting. I am sure this is perfume for women, but not really sure. I have contacted the company and returned it to them but they will not give me a refund because I opened the box. Their defence is that the boxes are different and I shouldn’t have opened it, my defence is I have no idea what either the box was supposed to look like. They have returned the perfume to me today. Is there a law that I can quote when I email them again, or maybe easier to contact my credit card company? I live with a mental disability and therefore help would be greatly appreciated

Assuming their website does not show the box then opening the box is a reasonable level of handling to determine they'd sent the wrong box.

If it says "FOR HER" on the box in big obvious letters, then maybe less so, but I suspect it doesn't.

It doesn’t - thank you.

ste6085

Okell said:

ste6085 said:

Okell said:

ste6085 said:

Hey, thank you for your reply, I didn’t take a photograph of the box, only the bottle. It was “Clinique Happy” - The box I received had Clinique happy on the outside and was bright orange as I expected but when I opened it the bottle was not the same as was advertised on the website. I ordered the “for men” and that’s not what was inside the box. There was no way of me knowing what was inside without opening it. Maybe if I had bought the product before I could have recognised that it was the Wrong box but I haven’t had this before. 

So to answer my question that I cross-posted with you, is the answer (1)?

Yeah (1) - I didn’t order what I got but because it was in a box that I opened, they will not take it back, but I had no knowledge of the product so I didn’t know it was the wrong one until I opened the box. on the outside of the box it says “Clinique happy” I ordered “ “Clinique happy for men” - ironically I’m not feeling too happy atm 🤣🤣🤣

Read again my post from 3:58pm.

It's s11 of the Consumer Rights Act 2015 - goods not as described.

Whether you opened the box or not is irrelevant as they sent you the wrong item in the first place.  The T&Cs of their returns and refunds policy cannot affect your statutory rights under the above legislation.

If you are still within 30 days of you taking delivery, you are entitled to exercise your "short-term right to reject" for a full refund under the Consumer Rights Act 2015.   (s20 and s22)

The above is what you need to tell them.  They also have to pay the return costs.

If they won't play ball come back here.  You might have to try a chargeback as suggested by @born_again or you might have to sue the seller.

This is amazing thank you 

ste6085

They have sent me the package back and again have refused to refund or replace. I’ve since Found a page on Facebook specifically for people complaining about them so I am just going to go straight for the charge back and see how I get on with that, at the end of the day I have spent £20, I’ve got a bottle of perfume that I suppose I could give to someone. Thank you so much everyone for your positive responses and assistance, it has been amazing. 

Take care chaps xxx

Ergates

Okell said:

Ergates said:

Okell said:

Ergates said:

ste6085 said:

I recently ordered some aftershave online, when it arrived I opened the package and opened the box to find the bottle inside was not what I was expecting. I am sure this is perfume for women, but not really sure. I have contacted the company and returned it to them but they will not give me a refund because I opened the box. Their defence is that the boxes are different and I shouldn’t have opened it, my defence is I have no idea what either the box was supposed to look like. They have returned the perfume to me today. Is there a law that I can quote when I email them again, or maybe easier to contact my credit card company? I live with a mental disability and therefore help would be greatly appreciated

Assuming their website does not show the box then opening the box is a reasonable level of handling to determine they'd sent the wrong box.

If it says "FOR HER" on the box in big obvious letters, then maybe less so, but I suspect it doesn't.

Does the level of handling matter?

The OP isn't cancelling a contract under the CCRs, he's returning it because they've sent him an item he didn't order - ie it isn't as described and so is in breach of s11 CRA.

There's nothing in CRA to say he can't open the package to check what's inside.  He can't know for certain that they've sent the wrong item until he's looked at it.  The seller's T&Cs about goods must be returned unopened and still sealed don't apply because those T&Cs cannot affect his statutory rights under CRA.

Isn't that the position here?

No, but if they send you an incorrect bottle of perfume, and you then use half of it, they'd be justified in not giving a full refund...

Well yes - if a consumer knows that they received the wrong item but then knowingly uses it anyway, that might* well impact on their statutory rights.

But there's no indication that that has happened here.  What does seem to have happened is that the seller has told the OP that the item can't be returned because the box was opened.  That is simply wrong in the circumstances described by the OP.  Any "handling" of the product by the OP is irrelevant.


* I say "might" as I'm not entirely sure that it would...

Yes, I'm agreeing that opening the box to see what the bottle looks like is fine and the retailer are not behaving reasonably by rejecting on this basis.

I meant that there *are* things the OP could have done that *would* have constituted "excessive handling"  (or some such thing) but that clearly isn't the case here.

Okell

But no question of "excessive handling" arises under the Consumer Rights Act, does it?

The OP isn't cancelling the contract under the CCRs, so loss of value because of "excessive handling" isn't applicable.

Yes, if the OP had used all the fragrance despite it not being what he ordered or if he'd poured it down the drain that might be a different matter, but I wouldn't use the phrase "excessive handling" to describe those actions.

All he's done here is opened the box and ascertained that they've sent him the wrong item.  Clear case of "not as described".  The seller can't refuse to refund just because - according to the OP - he's opened the box.

the_lunatic_is_in_my_head

Okell said:

But no question of "excessive handling" arises under the Consumer Rights Act, does it?

No it doesn't, only the CCRs.  

I'm assuming there is some possible claim if a customer does something outrageous like return a brand new car due a faulty wheel but the engine is missing, however opening the box of something that's been sent in error sounds trivial to me, I can't see the retailer would even have time to chase it, the loss on a £20 item is next to nothing.

ste6085 said:

They have sent me the package back 

OP worth a note if the chargeback is successful the goods still belong to the retailer, message to say they can collect and if no answer/collection arranged keep it safe for a while (technically 6 years but as time goes on there's less chance someone is going to come looking for £20). 

ButtersUK

I've read the above quite thoroughly but ultimately were all stuffed. We might as well admit, they've had us. It pains me to admit it, but we're well and truly beaten. A credit card or PayPal refund is the best anyone can hope for.