Why the fight for consumer rights remains ‘as vital as ever’: Helen Morrissey
When asked to name what John F Kennedy was famous for, consumer rights probably wouldn’t make the top 5,000. However, tomorrow sees one of his less well-known achievements being celebrated. It’s the anniversary of the day he became the first global leader to stand up for consumer rights: the right to safety, the right to be informed, the right to choose and the right to be heard.
In fact, over the years, some risks have intensified. The growth of global online marketplaces has meant the rise of fakes and unsafe goods being shipped to shoppers. The move online, meanwhile, has brought great steps forward but also massively raised the risk that our data could be stolen or misused. It has also exposed us to misleading marketing, unfair terms and exploitative practices – some of them driven by algorithms specifically designed to learn the best possible ways to part us from our money. Meanwhile, social media has brought new opportunities for manipulation and misrepresentation by unscrupulous influencers
It means that to protect yourself as a consumer, you need to be especially vigilant before you buy, researching sellers and products, checking any claims with a third party, and carrying scepticism into every purchase. If, for example, you seem to be seeing a product everywhere online, which addresses something you’re concerned about, it’s important to understand that this is purely because of the way the algorithms are designed. Seeing the same product in multiple adverts on lots of platforms doesn’t tell you anything about the product itself – just about the way it is being sold. For that, you need verified reviews from someone you trust.
It’s not just newcomers and nefarious chancers who can catch us out either. It’s perfectly possible to buy something with great reviews from a reputable retailer and for something to go wrong, so wherever you shop it’s important to understand your rights.
These are enshrined in the Consumer Rights Act of 2015, which says goods need to be of satisfactory quality, as described, fit for purpose and last for a reasonable time. Services, meanwhile, should be done with reasonable care and skill in a reasonable time for a reasonable price. There are an awful lot of subjective words here, so you will need to use your judgement for what satisfactory and reasonable mean. An expensive computer that won’t turn on after six months clearly doesn’t cut the mustard, whereas a cheap jumper that loses its shape after a couple of washes might be considered to be exactly as good as it should be.
On top of that, you may have additional rights depending on how long ago you bought something. If you got it online, you have a 14-day cooling off period under the Consumer Contracts Regulations – which means you have the right to cancel, return the item and get your money back.
After that, you have extra rights if the item is faulty when it arrives. The law says you can reject it within the first 30 days, which is known as your ‘short-term right to reject’ – so you should be able to get a full refund. After that, you still can return it for being faulty on arrival. The retailer may dispute this, but bear in mind that until six months after the purchase, it’s up to them to prove it was working on arrival – rather than you having to prove it wasn’t. After six months, the burden of proof shifts.
Before you approach the retailer, it’s worth collecting together any records you have, including receipts, delivery notes, and any video or photos taken on arrival. Until you’ve solved the problem, the more records you keep the better, including letters and details of phone calls made to try to sort things out. You should also be clear in your mind what you’re asking for. Do you want a refund, or will you be happy with a repair?
Next, get in touch with the retailer. This doesn’t need to be anything special. If you bought something online, go to your order to see if you can easily return the item as broken or faulty. If they have a high street presence, you can pop in, show them the problem and ask for a replacement or a refund. It doesn’t have to be any harder than that.
If they put up a fight, check their complaints procedure, and follow it to the letter. This is where your proof comes in handy. In most cases you should be able to do this online, so you can take screenshots and photos. Some people will insist on postal complaints. If this is the case, send copies rather than original documents, and do it by recorded delivery, so you can prove it arrived.
They should give a timescale for how long it will take them to reply. If not, you can set a deadline – although it’s important to give them enough time to consider it carefully. Once the deadline has passed, it’s worth chasing them up a few times. Make sure you keep records of when you do this, and any replies.
Finally, if they don’t reply, or they refuse a refund, you can step it up. If there’s an industry Ombudsman, you can submit a claim to them. Otherwise, you may need to use the legal system. You’ll need to talk to someone you trust before taking this approach. On the plus side, if you’re claiming for £10,000 or less, you can go through the small claims court, which is designed so you don’t need a lawyer. It will cost money, and if it goes all the way to a hearing there will be a fee, but if you win you get it back.
However, if you lose, you won’t get your costs back and if you win, the court may not give you the solution you’re after. It means it’s worth weighing up the potential cost and stress of doing this against what you might gain. There are plenty of people who wade into a legal fight because they’re angry or frustrated who come to regret it later.
If you decide it’s worth it, you should send a final email or letter confirming you will take legal action. This may be enough to persuade them to let you have what you’re asking for. Even if they don’t, if you end up with a legal approach, the court want to see they’ve had an opportunity to settle.
If you go through the steps one by one, you stand a decent chance of getting a result. As JFK would say “Our goal is not the victory of might but the vindication of right,” and while he might have been talking about world peace at the time, he could equally have meant your ongoing efforts to get a refund.
Borrowing
As prices keep rising, there’s growing pressure on people’s finances. Government figures from January showed that a fifth of people are having to borrow more than they did a year earlier. This rises to almost one in three among those in their 30s and 40s. It reflects Bank of England data that reveals credit card debts are up 12.1% in a year.
The HL Savings & Resilience Barometer shows that most people are still on top of their borrowing, with just 9% of people behind on bills or debt payments. However, this rises to 19% for renters, 27% among the lowest earners and 33% among those who aren’t working. It means if your debts are rising, or you have been carrying them for a while, it’s important to take stock and work out how to free up money from your budget to make repayments.