Black Friday Shopping – Know your consumer rights
How shopping on Black Friday affects your rights
Shops are already releasing Black Friday sales and deals, but as we edge closer to the annual pre-Christmas sales bonanza Dean Dunham explains your consumer rights when shopping in a sale.
The 24th November is Black Friday, one of the biggest sales of the year as shops slash prices in the run-up to Christmas. However, there is a long-standing myth that when you buy goods on Black Friday or during sale period you somehow have fewer consumer rights. This is not true, the Consumer Rights Act 2015 does not provide that your rights are any different during or after sale periods. So if you’re planning on going on a shopping spree this Black Friday here’s what you need to know:
What happens if you buy a faulty item on Black Friday?
If you find the goods are faulty within the first 30 days after purchase you can take them back and demand a full refund. If it’s after this period you can ask for a replacement or repair – although the retailer can chose which of these to provide.
What if I change my mind about a Black Friday sales purchase?
Again, the same rules as when you buy outside of the sales apply. If you purchased in-store during Black Friday sales you will need to see what the retailer’s terms and conditions say. It is there therefore advisable to ask this question before you purchase. However, if you purchased a Black Friday deal online the Consumer Contract Regulations provide that you can change your mind and send the goods back at any time up to 14 days of delivery.
Buying something online? When can you expect to receive your goods?
Generally, within 30 days. If you have a specific date in mind you must stipulate this at the point of purchase. It also worth noting that the retailer is responsible for the goods until they are placed in your hands, unless you authorised them to leave your order outside or with a neighbour. So, if the delivery company lose the goods or damage them, it’s the retailer’s responsibility to sort it.
Stay safe when shopping online – Be aware of Black Friday scams
Fraudsters are busy during big retail events like Black Friday so it’s important to look out for online scams and email scams. If you think a deal is too good to be true on a website, then make sure you follow this advice below.
You can check to see if a website is safe by checking the URL. Look at the address bar of the website you are on and check to see if the URL starts https://www. – you will notice that a secure website will have an ‘S’ after the’HTTP’ part and will look like this ‘HTTPS’. This is very important especially if you are on a payment page of a website.
Another thing to look out for is the padlock symbol in the address bar which also indicates that a web page is secure and you can be confident in using its payment system.
Dean Dunham – Sunday Mirror
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