Returns and refunds: shop policy versus your legal rights

Last checked November 2026. Offers and rules change: confirm with the provider before you rely on them.

There are two separate things at work when you take something back: the shop's own returns policy, which is a goodwill offer, and your legal rights, which no policy can take away. Knowing which one applies tells you whether you are asking a favour or claiming what is yours.

Shop policy and legal rights side by side

Changing your mind in a high-street shop

A shop does not have to take back goods that are simply the wrong size, the wrong colour or an unwanted present. Most large retailers do anyway, typically for 28 or 30 days and sometimes longer around Christmas, but the terms are theirs to set. They can ask for the receipt, insist the item is unused with its labels, and offer an exchange or gift card rather than cash.

If a shop displays or prints a returns policy, it must honour it. Check the back of the receipt or ask at the till before buying anything you are unsure about.

The 14-day cooling-off period for online and phone orders

Because you cannot see or handle goods before buying at a distance, the Consumer Contracts Regulations give you a right to cancel for any reason. It applies across the UK to most things bought online, by phone or by mail order from a business.

1. The right to cancel starts when you place the order and ends 14 days after the day you receive the goods. If an order arrives in several parcels, the 14 days run from the last one.
2. Tell the retailer clearly that you are cancelling. Use its returns form or send an email, so there is a record. Simply refusing a delivery or posting it back without a word is not enough.
3. Send the goods back within 14 days of telling the retailer.
4. Your refund should arrive within 14 days of the retailer getting the goods back, or getting proof that you have posted them.

Who pays for what

• The refund must include the cost of standard delivery to you. If you chose a dearer option such as next-day, the shop need only refund the basic rate.
• You normally pay the return postage, unless the retailer offers free returns or failed to tell you that you would have to pay. Keep proof of postage.
• You are allowed to open the packaging and examine goods as you would in a shop. If you have gone beyond that, by wearing a coat out for the day for instance, the retailer may reduce the refund.

If the retailer never told you about the right to cancel, the cancellation period is extended, by up to a year.

The exceptions

You cannot use the 14-day right to cancel for:

• goods made to your specification or personalised, such as made-to-measure curtains or an engraved gift
• perishable goods, such as food and fresh flowers
• sealed goods that cannot be returned for health or hygiene reasons once you have unsealed them
• sealed CDs, DVDs and computer software once the seal is broken
• newspapers and magazines, other than subscriptions
• hotel rooms, travel, event tickets and other leisure services booked for a specific date
• digital downloads once the download has begun with your agreement

For services arranged online or by phone, such as a broadband contract, the 14 days generally run from the day you agree the contract. If you asked for the service to start within that time, you may have to pay for what you have used.

Returning something faulty

If goods are faulty, not as described or unfit for purpose, the shop's policy is irrelevant. Within 30 days you can reject them for a full refund; after that, the retailer gets one chance to repair or replace. The retailer should also cover the reasonable cost of sending a faulty item back. The detail is in your consumer rights.

Making a return go smoothly

• Keep receipts, order emails and the original packaging until you are sure you are keeping the item.
• Start the return through the retailer's website or by email, so the date is recorded.
• Get a proof-of-postage receipt, free at the Post Office counter, or use the tracked label the retailer provides.
• Many retailers let you return online orders to a local store or a parcel shop, which saves packing and queuing; see click and collect.
• Note the date you sent the goods back, and chase the refund if 14 days pass.

If the refund does not arrive

Write to the retailer, quoting the order number and the dates. If that fails and you paid by card, ask your card provider about a chargeback or a Section 75 claim, both explained in paying safely online. For free advice, ring the Citizens Advice consumer helpline on 0808 223 1133 in England and Wales, Advice Direct Scotland on 0808 164 6000, or Consumerline on 0300 123 6262 in Northern Ireland. Which? has a clear guide to the Consumer Contracts Regulations if you want the fine detail.

Marketplaces and doorstep sales

The 14-day right applies when the seller is a business. It does not apply to a private individual selling on a marketplace; see buying on marketplaces. Contracts signed in your home have their own 14-day cancellation right, covered in doorstep selling rights.

Common questions

Can I return something bought in a shop just because I do not like it?

Only if the shop's own policy allows it. There is no legal right to return non-faulty goods bought in person.

Do I have 14 days if I ordered online but collected in store?

Generally yes, if you paid online, because the contract was made at a distance. If you only reserved the item and paid at the counter, the shop's own policy applies instead.

Can an online shop refuse a refund because I opened the box?

No. You are entitled to open the packaging and inspect the goods as you could in a shop. The sealed-goods exceptions for hygiene items, recordings and software are the main limits.

Does the shop have to refund the delivery charge?

If you cancel a distance purchase within 14 days, yes, at the standard delivery rate. Return postage is normally yours to pay unless the retailer says otherwise.