93% of online shoppers in the UK don’t know their rights

Although consumers generally are aware of their right to return faulty goods, they are much more in the dark when it comes to the cancelling of orders and the return of unwanted or unsuitable items.

The Distance Selling Regulations of 2000 apply to most products sold online, which give consumers the right to cancel an order anytime within a seven working day period for any reason.

The Regulations also mean that, unless the terms and conditions that the consumer agreed to when placing an order state otherwise, it is the responsibility of the retailer to arrange collection of unwanted items, according to guidance issued by the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) in 2003.

The OFT guidance in full states:

"You must tell consumers whether on cancelling the contract, they will be liable for the costs of returning the goods. Consumers can only be made liable for return charges if the contract contains a positive requirement that they must return the goods when they cancel. The fact that they will be responsible for the cost of the return or the recovery of the cancelled goods must also form part of the durable information which is supplied, at the latest, at the time of delivery."

A spokesman for SaferShopping.org said: “Our job is to make it easier for UK consumers to identify online retailers that conduct their businesses in a trustworthy and responsible manner. Part of that task includes the education of consumers and retailers alike.”