Every week, we get an expert to answer your financial problems or consumer disputes. Today, reader Enoch asks…
“I made an online order totalling £135 at TK Maxx. I received a notification stating parcel delivered – it hadn’t. I contacted the retailer and they insisted parcel had been delivered because the courier was in the vicinity of my address. The retailer asked me to chase it up with Royal Mail. They said the courier could not remember where parcel was delivered. TK Maxx has a picture of the parcel delivered at an address. The picture is not my door but are still refusing to refund my money.”
Thank you for your question – though, frustratingly, your message didn’t include contact details so we couldn’t get the information we need to go to TK Maxx for specifics.
That leaves us with only your side of the story – but we can still outline people’s rights when things like this happen.
Get more consumer news in the Money blog
For that, we’ve gone to Money regular Scott Dixon, aka the Complaints Resolver. Here’s his guide…
Deliveries
Your contract is always with the retailer, not the courier firm, to ensure that your order is safely delivered, Dixon says. If it hasn’t turned up, the first thing you need to do is to contact the retailer.
“It is their legal responsibility to make sure the item is safely delivered to you under the Consumer Rights Act 2015. They should contact the courier – who they’ve entered a contract with – and let you know what has happened to your item.
“S29 (2) of the Consumer Rights Act 2015 states the goods remain at the trader’s risk until they come into the physical possession of the consumer, or a person identified by the consumer, to take possession of the goods.”
The retailer can either refund you or rearrange for the goods to be delivered, he says.
If this doesn’t work, raise a chargeback with your bank or credit card provider within 120 days of your purchase or payment to get a refund.
“You need to push hard on chargebacks and cite ‘breach of contract’ under the Consumer Rights Act 2015, as chargebacks are often rejected on the first attempt,” he says.
“Your bank or credit card provider will reverse the payment and give the retailer an opportunity to present their case.
“Retailers don’t like dealing with chargebacks as they are problematic and costly to resolve.”
If your item was bought for between £100.01 and £30,000 and you paid on credit card, you also have Section 75 rights…
What if you leave delivery instructions?
This could see you lose all rights.
Dixon explains: “If you give specific instructions to the retailer for the item to be left in the porch, ‘leave in shed at rear’ or another designated safe place, and it is stolen, then you are responsible because the retailer and courier have simply followed your instructions.”
Returns
You have a 14-day cooling-off period for all non-bespoke items under the Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013.
Dixon says: “A retailer will usually provide a returns label or a website link to their returns policy, and give instructions for you to return goods. Usually a retailer will engage a courier firm for returns – be it Royal Mail, DHL etc etc.”
This often involves dropping the item off at a local convenience store, where labels are scanned.
“Convenience stores often say you will get a receipt by email. This isn’t always the case, leaving you high and dry if the goods go missing in transit,” he warns.
To protect yourself, Dixon says you should follow the policy courier firms use when they deliver goods to you: take a photo of the goods at the point of handover and insist on a receipt.
“This is your proof if you need to dispute lost goods in transit,” he says.
“The retailer will push back in these cases when goods are lost in transit with a fob off saying it’s not their fault and the responsibility lies with the courier, which is blatantly untrue.”
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Dixon says the retailer engaged the courier firm to safely return the goods and the Consumer Rights Act 2015 applies.
“Remember, your contract is with the retailer – you’re following their return instructions. So this is on them.
“You need to push hard on this and cite ‘breach of contract’ under the Consumer Rights Act 2015 to get a full refund.
“If you hit a brick wall, simply raise a chargeback with your bank or credit card provider and cite ‘breach of contract’ under the Consumer Rights Act 2015 to dispute the transaction.”
As a last resort you can take your case to the Small Claims Court in England and Wales – or use the respective legal routes in Scotland and Northern Ireland.
What if a company doesn’t provide specific returns instructions?
Your contract is then with the courier – but much of the above still applies with them. S49 Consumer Rights Act 2015 states that every contract to supply a service is to be treated as including a term that the trader must perform the service with reasonable care and skill.
This feature is not intended as financial advice – the aim is to give an overview of the things you should think about. Submit your dilemma or consumer dispute via:
- WhatsApp us here
- Email moneyblog@sky.uk with the subject line “Money Problem”
