Distance selling - cooling off?

tuxy

Hi this thread http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=52686359&posted=1#post52686359
was going way off topic so I decided to start one here.

How long is the cooling off period?
Googling tells me 7 days, but another poster is convinced it is 14.

Can the consumer take advantage of the cooling off period if the item has been opened.

And one last thing that I have always wondered.
If an Item is faulty, at what point can the consumer insist on a full refund and not have to accept a repair or replacement.

I buy online a lot so this info will be very usefull.
Thanks

MOH

According to the distance selling regulations here you can cancel the contract without giving a reason within 7 days, with no penalty beyond you paying for the cost of returning the goods.

This doesn't apply for:
- Something made specifically/personalised for you;
- audio or video recordings, or software, once unsealed;
- newspapaers or periodicals;
- anything where the price fluctuates outside of the suppliers control.

So it would seem it's OK for the item to be opened once it's not software/video/audio.

But obviously individual suppliers might offer their own 'no-quibble' return policies of 14 or 28 days.

mcaul

tuxy wrote:

Hi this thread [URL="http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=52686359&posted=1
Can the consumer take advantage of the cooling off period if the item has been opened.

And one last thing that I have always wondered.
If an Item is faulty, at what point can the consumer insist on a full refund and not have to accept a repair or replacement.

I buy online a lot so this info will be very usefull.
Thanks

The item must be returned in a saleable condition. If it is a DVD and the seal is broken, it would not have to be accepted.

as for accepting a repair, if the item can be repaired to a condition whereby it can be fully used for the purpose intended than a repair must be accepted.

example - faulty battery cover on digital camera - simple repair which won't affect the working or value of the camera, so must be accepted.

Example - contact points in camera broken. Extensive repair required, replacement should be offered. If replacement not available, refund must be offered.

tuxy

Thanks for clearing that up for me.