Consumer Rights Act 2015: Refunds, Repairs and Getting Your Money Back
Consumer Rights Act 2015: the 30-day refund right, repair or replacement, digital content and services rules, plus Section 75 and chargeback.
Quick answer
Under the Consumer Rights Act 2015, goods must be of satisfactory quality — fit for purpose, free from minor defects, safe and durable. If they are not, you have a short-term right to reject them within 30 days of delivery for a full refund, payable within 14 days of the trader agreeing, by the same payment method and with no fee. After 30 days (or by choice within them) you can require a repair or replacement at the trader's cost; if one repair or replacement fails you can take a price reduction of up to the full price or finally reject the goods, with no deduction for use in the first 6 months except for motor vehicles. Digital content carries the same quality right with a six-month non-conformity presumption, and services must be redone or discounted if not performed with reasonable care and skill. Paying by credit card adds Section 75 protection for purchases over £100 and up to £30,000, while debit card payments can be recovered via chargeback and card refusals go to the Financial Ombudsman Service.
Overview
The Consumer Rights Act 2015 gives every UK consumer statutory rights when buying goods, digital content or services: goods and digital content must be of satisfactory quality, and services must be performed with reasonable care and skill. When something goes wrong, the Act sets out a ladder of remedies, starting with a 30-day short-term right to reject faulty goods for a full refund. This guide walks through each remedy in order, then the card-payment routes — chargeback and Section 75 — that can recover your money when the trader will not.
Who Can Use This Process
- You bought goods, digital content or a service as a consumer from a trader (business seller)
- The statutory quality terms are implied into every consumer contract — they apply whether or not the trader mentions them
- Purely private sales between individuals are not covered by these trader obligations
Step-by-Step Process
Check what the law promised you
Every contract to supply goods is treated as including a term that the quality of the goods is satisfactory. Quality includes fitness for all the purposes for which goods of that kind are usually supplied, appearance and finish, freedom from minor defects, safety and durability. Digital content carries the same satisfactory-quality term, and every service contract includes a term that the trader must perform the service with reasonable care and skill.
- Judge quality against the description, the price and any public statements such as advertising
- Faults the trader specifically pointed out before purchase are not covered
Within 30 days: reject faulty goods for a full refund
The short-term right to reject lets you hand back non-conforming goods and end the contract. The time limit is the end of 30 days beginning the day after you own the goods, they have been delivered, and any required installation has been notified as done. Tell the trader clearly that you are rejecting the goods. The refund must be given without undue delay and in any event within 14 days of the trader agreeing you are entitled to it, using the same means of payment you used, with no fee imposed.
- Perishable goods have a shorter rejection window — the period the goods could reasonably be expected to last
- Put the rejection in writing and keep proof of the date
- The trader bears reasonable return costs, except your cost of physically taking goods back to where you collected them
Ask for a repair or replacement
Inside or outside the 30 days, you can require the trader to repair or replace the goods. The trader must do so within a reasonable time and without significant inconvenience to you, and must bear any necessary costs including labour, materials or postage. If you agree to a repair, the 30-day rejection clock stops running for the length of the waiting period and you get at least 7 days after the repaired or replaced goods come back to reject them if they still do not conform.
- You choose repair or replacement, but the trader can substitute the other where your choice is impossible or disproportionately costly
- Give the trader one reasonable opportunity before escalating — that unlocks the next remedies
If the fix fails: price reduction or final rejection
After one repair or one replacement that still leaves the goods not conforming — or where repair and replacement are impossible or not done within a reasonable time and without significant inconvenience — you can choose either a price reduction (which can be up to the full price) or the final right to reject. On final rejection the refund may be reduced for the use you have had, but no deduction can be made in the first 6 months unless the goods are a motor vehicle.
- You can exercise only one of the two — price reduction or final rejection, not both
- Keep records of every failed repair: the 'one repair' threshold is the key gateway
Digital content: the same quality bar, adapted remedies
Digital content — apps, games, downloads, streaming — must be of satisfactory quality. If it is not, your rights are repair or replacement, then a price reduction; and where the trader had no right to supply the content, a refund. Digital content that fails to conform at any time within six months of supply is presumed not to have conformed when it was supplied, unless the trader proves otherwise.
- Keep the store receipt or order confirmation — the six-month presumption does the heavy lifting in disputes
- If a faulty download damages your device, separate compensation rules can apply — raise it with the trader
Services: repeat performance or a price reduction
Where a service is not performed with reasonable care and skill, you can require repeat performance — the trader must redo it to conform, within a reasonable time, without significant inconvenience and at their own cost. Where repeat performance is impossible or not done properly in time, you are entitled to a price reduction, which may where appropriate be the full amount of the price, with any refund due within 14 days of the trader agreeing you are entitled to it.
- Set out in writing what a conforming re-performance looks like before the trader starts again
- Quotes, photos of poor workmanship and expert opinions are the evidence that wins service disputes
Paid by card? Use Section 75 or chargeback
If you paid with a credit card or buy now, pay later, ask for your money back under Section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act — as long as you paid more than £100 and no more than £30,000. If you paid by debit card or charge card, or Section 75 does not apply, ask your card provider for a chargeback, ideally in writing. PayPal has its own dispute route with 180 days from payment to open a dispute.
- Section 75 makes the card provider answerable alongside the trader — useful when the trader has vanished or gone bust
- If the card provider refuses, you can complain to the Financial Ombudsman Service
Escalate: formal complaint, ADR, then court
If the trader digs in, send a formal written complaint setting a deadline. Many sectors have an ombudsman or alternative dispute resolution scheme — for card provider refusals it is the Financial Ombudsman Service. If all else fails, a money claim in the county court small claims track is the standard route for consumer disputes; see our small claims court guide for the step-by-step process.
- Keep every receipt, photo, email and call note — the paper trail is your case
- State the statutory basis in your letter: satisfactory quality (s.9), short-term right to reject (s.22), or reasonable care and skill (s.49)
Important Warnings
The 30-day clock is unforgiving — for perishable goods it is even shorter, so act as soon as a fault appears.
Motor vehicles are the exception to the no-deduction rule: use can be deducted from a final-rejection refund even in the first 6 months.
Price reduction and final rejection are alternatives — choosing one excludes the other.
Section 75 needs a single item costing more than £100 and no more than £30,000 paid at least in part on a credit card or buy now, pay later.
Useful Links
Frequently asked questions
- How long do I have to return faulty goods for a full refund?
- The short-term right to reject runs until the end of 30 days beginning the day after ownership has transferred, the goods have been delivered and any trader installation has been notified as complete. Goods expected to perish sooner get a shorter window. If you agree to a repair or replacement first, the clock stops for the waiting period and you get at least 7 days after redelivery to reject goods that still do not conform.
- How quickly must a refund be paid?
- Without undue delay and in any event within 14 days beginning with the day the trader agrees you are entitled to a refund. The trader must use the same means of payment you used, unless you expressly agree otherwise, and must not impose any fee for the refund.
- Do I have to accept a repair instead of a refund?
- Within the first 30 days, no — you can reject for a full refund. After that, the remedy ladder applies: the trader gets one repair or one replacement, done within a reasonable time, without significant inconvenience to you and at their cost. If the goods still do not conform, you choose between a price reduction (up to the full price) and the final right to reject.
- What are my rights for apps, games and downloads?
- Digital content must be of satisfactory quality. If it is not, you can require repair or replacement, then a price reduction — and a refund where the trader had no right to supply the content. Digital content that fails within six months of supply is presumed to have been non-conforming from the start unless the trader proves otherwise.
- What can I do about a badly performed service?
- Every service contract includes a term that the trader must perform with reasonable care and skill. If they did not, you can require repeat performance at the trader's cost within a reasonable time; if that is impossible or not done properly, you are entitled to a price reduction which can be the full amount of the price, refunded within 14 days of the trader agreeing.
- When should I use Section 75 rather than chargeback?
- Use Section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act if you paid with a credit card or buy now, pay later and the item cost more than £100 and no more than £30,000 — the card provider shares liability with the trader. Use chargeback if you paid with a debit or charge card, or where Section 75 is unavailable. Ask the provider in writing; PayPal disputes must be opened within 180 days of payment. If the provider refuses, complain to the Financial Ombudsman Service.
Part of our Consumer Claims hub
Faulty goods, undelivered orders, refused refunds — the full consumer route from retailer to small claims court.