Shopping online for Black Friday? Know your consumer rights!

November 16, 2022

With Black Friday/Cyber Monday weekend ahead of us, it’s a popular time to shop online.

Recent research conducted by the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (CCPC) found that just under 40% of consumers plan on shopping in the upcoming sales, with those consumers expecting to spend an average of €400. Insights from the research also found that 81% of consumers plan on researching the price of items before buying.

While it’s important to research the deals that are on offer to make sure they are genuine, it’s equally important that you know your consumer rights.

You have stronger consumer rights when shopping online from an EU website

Consumer law protects you when you shop online from businesses based in the EU.

If the business is located outside the EU (this includes the UK), make sure you read the website terms and conditions carefully, and check what their returns policy is as you will be relying on this if there’s a problem and you need to return an item.

What if you change your mind?

If you buy from a website in the EU, you have the right to change your mind and ‘cancel’ the order up to 14 days after you receive it. Then you have a further 14 days to return it. As for a refund, you should receive it within 14 days of cancellation, but a business can wait to refund you until you have returned the item or have proof of return postage.

Do your rights change if you buy something on Black Friday/Cyber Monday?

No. When you’re buying online within the EU, it doesn’t make a difference if it was on sale, you’re consumer rights are the same.

Make sure you know all about your consumer rights the next time you click-to-buy by visiting our buying online section.

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