Shopping online is very convenient. It saves us a lot of time and effort we otherwise would spend to visit “traditional” shops.
However there are some drawbacks – we never know what we will get and oftentimes it may be much below our expectations.
This is why it is good to know, that in Poland you have a right to return anything you bought within 14 days and get your money back. And you don’t have to provide any explanation for return.
What are the rules for returns?
First of all, you have a right to return only items that you bought remotely – usually using Internet (online) or phone). So no returns if you bought in “traditional shop” (unless the shop owner has different return policy).
Secondly, you have 14 days to inform the seller that you want to terminate contract and return the item. You don’t have to explain your decision or provide any reason for that. These 14 days are counted starting from the day your purchase was delivered to you. You also have to make sure your message will be received by the seller within these 14 days (what is relevant is not the time you send the message, but the time the seller receives it).
Example: If you ordered the laptop by the Internet on 5th of March, and the laptop was delivered to you on 8th of March, then you can terminate the contract until 22nd of March.
However, if the seller did not inform you in any way about the right to terminate the contract, then the deadline to terminate the contract will be extended by 12 months from the last day of the 14-days period.
After terminating the contract, the contract is considered as void. This means that the seller have to give you back the price you paid and you have to send the item back to the shop.
How to terminate the contract ?
Shops provide various ways for making the statement. Most often you can download the draft of statement from the shop’s website – you can then fill it in and send it together with the item you return.
However, in any case it is best if you contact with the shop before (e.g. via email) and say that you want to return the item. If you send you statement in a package and it will arrive to the shop after 14-day period, the shop will not be required to accept a return. So it is always much more safe to contact the seller beforehand.
The seller is obliged to return to you all payments you made (including delivery cost) for the item within 14 days from the date of receiving the statement.
However you can only get back the delivery costs for the cheapest method of delivery.
The seller returns your money using the same method of payment that you used (unless he specifically agreed to a different method).
After sending the statement, you are obliged to return the product to the seller within next 14 days. This 14-day period starts from the day when the seller received your statement. The costs of returning the item rests with you (unless the seller agrees to pay for this).
Remember that the goods you want to return should be intact. Otherwise you may be obligated to pay for any damages (however you are still entitled to payment return).
You can’t terminate contract if the item you bought:
- has been produced on your custom order,
- deteriorates (expires) quickly (example: yoghurt),
- was delivered in sealed package and loses it’s value when opened (example: eye contact lenses)
- is a CD, DVD, Blue Ray or computer software and you opened it after delivery,
- is an alcohol beverage,
- is a newspaper or magazine.
If you have sent the item back within the prescribed period, but the seller did not return you payment, then you can always take legal action to get your money back.
If you are interested in getting help with any issues related to your stay in Poland, feel free to contact us and take advantage of our services.
Good day,
I’ve placed an order at a Company in Poland. This was not my first purchased from them.
I’ve done the payment on the 7th of March, but until today, I haven’t received the order.
What can I do? I’m from South Africa.
The standard way of solving this problem is to send a written request for the items to be delivered or to cancel the order and request the money to be returned.
It all depends on details of your individual case.
It is very difficult to return something as the post is expensive and I paid customs duties
I have a limited liability company and I made return within 14 days back to seller, he says that he will not refund me because the law of returning items doesn’t apply to Limited Liability companies. please suggest
These returns don’t work for companies. The returns only work for consumers (natural persons).