Can I be charged a returns charge for cancelling online order before delivery?

Jenni_D

Okweird0987 said:

Thanks for all the replies, after speaking with them they also said if I exercise my right to cancel after I accept delivery they will not refund any delivery charges as per their company policy!!

Now that is unlawful and against the CCRs.

Ergates

Okweird0987 said:

Thanks for all the replies, after speaking with them they also said if I exercise my right to cancel after I accept delivery they will not refund any delivery charges as per their company policy!!

Tell them that you don't care what their company policy states as it cannot override the law as laid out in the Consumer Contract Regulations 2013:

Section 34:

(2) The trader must reimburse any payment for delivery received from the consumer, unless the consumer expressly chose a kind of delivery costing more than the least expensive common and generally acceptable kind of delivery offered by the trader.

(3) In that case, the trader must reimburse any payment for delivery received from the consumer up to the amount the consumer would have paid if the consumer had chosen the least expensive common and generally acceptable kind of delivery offered by the trader.

sheramber

Okweird0987 said:

Undervalued said:

Okweird0987 said:

the_lunatic_is_in_my_head said:

The cancellation period begins when the contract is entered into, if you cancel before this no fee may be imposed. 

T&Cs don't seem to state when the contract is entered into, I would assume their actions of either accepting payment, sending you an order confirmation or dispatching the goods would be classed as acceptance. 

After acceptance the consumer is to bear the return costs when the trader states such and, in the case of goods which can't be returned via normal post, states the fee, which Dusk do. 

Based on that the fee is due

Okweird0987 said:

What happens if I reject delivery?

It's an interesting question, the goods remain at the trader's risk, whether delivery of goods from the CRA  would allow you to treat the contract at an end for the traders failure to deliver entitling a full refund has been discussed here before with no real answer.

@born_again will likely clarify if a chargeback for non receipt is valid with rejected delivery (I have a feeling it isn't but may be wrong). 

Sperate to all of the above, their terms and conditions effectively mention under cancellations they will not refund for opened/used/assembled items, which they can not do, the CCRs state the consumer is not bound by the contract if the trader fails to provide the required information, what this means in the real world I've not seen answered here. 

The paragraph under cancellations in the T&Cs looks as if it should be separated after the link to the returns policy meaning their returns policy isn't related to your right to cancel But then they already have a section in the T&Cs about returns mentioning to look at the return policy page.

The information is poorly presented and I really can't tell whether they honour the right to cancel for used/etc items. 

Thank you for the informative response! 

I think from everyone’s answers the bottom line is that they’re entitled to charge the fee and I should have been more diligent with checking measurements 🫠

Indeed.

Plus, I have to say even if you had found a legal loophole (as you were clearly hoping), do you really think it would have been morally right to leave the company forty quid out of pocket because of your mistake?

Honestly, my issue arises more from the fact that it’s triple the amount I’ve paid for delivery which (to me) felt excessive.

The delivery fee may be discounted  as  l part of your purchase. 

Also, maybe more than one delivery so costs is split among them. 

Return will be a one off journey. 

screech_78

I’m not convinced you should have to pay the fee but others who have answered before me are far more knowledgable. 

Only reason I say this is that we had a case a couple of months ago that came to me (I work in high level complaints for another company). Customer had ordered a mattress, chose a delivery day and in the morning of delivery, called to cancel. Customer service advised them it was with our crew and they would be refunded minus the £29.95 collection charge. Customer argued the item wasn’t being collected but they wouldn’t budge. Customer received their refund, minus the collection charge and they escalated their complaint and it landed with me. 

I would have given them back the £29.95 anyway as it’s not worth the time to argue over 30 quid but I raised it with a colleague who works alongside our legal team and they didn’t think we’d have a leg to stand on if the customer was to take it further, even though contract begins on dispatch for us. They said we would be saving money by the crew not having to deliver (although this is our own crew, not a third party so might be different) and the charge is there more so when we have to make a second trip to collect a large item. Of course, I never actually asked our legal team so this is all opinion. 

the_lunatic_is_in_my_head

screech_78 said:

 I raised it with a colleague who works alongside our legal team and they didn’t think we’d have a leg to stand on if the customer was to take it further, even though contract begins on dispatch for us. They said we would be saving money by the crew not having to deliver (although this is our own crew, not a third party so might be different) and the charge is there more so when we have to make a second trip to collect a large item. Of course, I never actually asked our legal team so this is all opinion. 

I think the difference here might be your team set off from a warehouse containing the goods, at the end of the day they go back to that warehouse and unload the (refused delivery) goods back in the space they were so there isn't really any cost to this as it's all in house and the crew are doing a full circle.

Couriers probably charge retailers for returned parcels, the regs refer to the "direct costs" so if the courier does charge £40 they can pass that on, if they charge £40 to collect a parcel from a customer but only £20 for a refused parcel being returned OP should only be paying £20 but how would you know? 

screech_78

the_lunatic_is_in_my_head said:

screech_78 said:

 I raised it with a colleague who works alongside our legal team and they didn’t think we’d have a leg to stand on if the customer was to take it further, even though contract begins on dispatch for us. They said we would be saving money by the crew not having to deliver (although this is our own crew, not a third party so might be different) and the charge is there more so when we have to make a second trip to collect a large item. Of course, I never actually asked our legal team so this is all opinion. 

I think the difference here might be your team set off from a warehouse containing the goods, at the end of the day they go back to that warehouse and unload the (refused delivery) goods back in the space they were so there isn't really any cost to this as it's all in house and the crew are doing a full circle.

Couriers probably charge retailers for returned parcels, the regs refer to the "direct costs" so if the courier does charge £40 they can pass that on, if they charge £40 to collect a parcel from a customer but only £20 for a refused parcel being returned OP should only be paying £20 but how would you know? 

I agree that it’s because we use our own crew. We don’t use couriers for large/bulky items (unless being delivered directly from the supplier) but I know the costs of one-man couriers such as DPD and DHL are expensive. Well only use DPD for collections for instance if It’s a high value item over £300 as the cost is too much. 

Renfrewman

the_lunatic_is_in_my_head said:

screech_78 said:

 I raised it with a colleague who works alongside our legal team and they didn’t think we’d have a leg to stand on if the customer was to take it further, even though contract begins on dispatch for us. They said we would be saving money by the crew not having to deliver (although this is our own crew, not a third party so might be different) and the charge is there more so when we have to make a second trip to collect a large item. Of course, I never actually asked our legal team so this is all opinion. 

I think the difference here might be your team set off from a warehouse containing the goods, at the end of the day they go back to that warehouse and unload the (refused delivery) goods back in the space (where?) they were so there isn't really any cost to this as it's all in house and the crew are doing a full circle.

Couriers probably charge retailers for returned parcels, the regs refer to the "direct costs" so if the courier does charge £40 they can pass that on, if they charge £40 to collect a parcel from a customer but only £20 for a refused parcel being returned OP should only be paying £20 but how would you know? 

Eh? Are you assuming the space hasn't been filled with a delivery intake?