Your rights when buying goods in-store

When you buy goods in a shop, market, garage forecourt or any other place where a business or trader has a premises, you have certain rights under consumer law. Different rights apply if you buy online, over the phone or at your doorstep.

Under the Consumer Rights Act, 2022, the term ‘goods’ includes any physical product or item you can buy that you can move from one place to another. It does not include property such as land, houses or apartments.

Your consumer rights are the same whether you buy something new or second-hand, or whether you buy at full price or during a sale. However, the Consumer Rights Act doesn’t apply if you buy from a person who is not selling as a business (for example, if you buy a used car privately from an individual).

Your consumer rights before you buy an item in-store

You are entitled to clear and accurate information about the item you are buying. This includes information on the:

• item’s details, if they aren’t already obvious
• total price.

It’s against the law for a business to engage in misleading advertising or to give false information about an item for sale.

Pricing

The price of all consumer products must be clearly displayed and must include VAT and any other charges that may apply. In some cases, the unit price must also be displayed. For example, if you buy a 500 ml carton of milk, the display price should state the price of the carton and the price per litre.

The price displayed must not be misleading. But if the store makes a mistake and marks an item lower than its actual selling price, it does not have to sell the item to you at the lower price. Additional rules apply to reduced prices, like items on sale or special offer.

Your consumer rights once you buy an item

When you pay for your goods, you are entering a contract with the seller. The goods you buy must ‘conform to’ the sales contract. In other words, the goods must meet the standards a consumer would generally expect and match any specific requirements that you agreed with the business or trader.

If you experience a problem with an item you bought instore, you have a number of rights under consumer law if something goes wrong. This includes:

• a short-term right to terminate and get a refund for problems in the first 30 days
• a right to a repair or replacement for issues that occur after 30 days.

Change of mind

Your ability to return an item to a store because you’ve changed your mind depends on a shop’s returns policy. Many shops have returns policies, and this information should be available to you on request.

However, if you buy something online, over the phone or on your doorstep, consumer law does allow a change of mind during what’s called a ‘cooling off period’.