Seller won't refund you? Your rights and what to do next (UK, EU, US)

Faulty, never arrived or not as described: what the law says in the UK, EU and US, the message that gets a refund, and the card and marketplace routes if they still refuse.

Updated 30 October 2026 · 5 min read

"We don't do refunds" is one of the most common things sellers say and one of the least true. If what you bought is faulty, never arrived or is not what was described, the law in the UK and the EU is on your side, and in the US your card is. The trick is to name your right, ask for one thing and give a date.

First, which problem do you have?

Faulty: it broke, does not work or is not of the quality you would expect for the price.
Never arrived: missing, or marked delivered but not received.
Not as described: different from the listing, photos or what you were told.
Changed your mind: nothing wrong with it, you just do not want it. Your rights here depend on how you bought it.

Your rights in the UK

Under the Consumer Rights Act 2015, goods must be of satisfactory quality, fit for purpose and as described.

Within 30 days of getting a faulty item, you can reject it and get a full refund.
After 30 days, the seller gets one chance to repair or replace it. If that fails, you can have a refund, minus a deduction for use if you have had it a while, or a price reduction if you keep it.
Within six months, a fault is presumed to have been there from the start unless the seller proves otherwise. After six months, it is on you to show it.
Bought online or by phone? You can usually cancel within 14 days of delivery for any reason, then return it within 14 days. The seller must refund within 14 days of getting it back.
It is the seller's job, not the manufacturer's, to put it right. You do not have to deal with the manufacturer's warranty instead.

Your rights in the EU

A legal guarantee of at least two years from delivery. Some countries give longer.
Within one year (two in some countries), a fault is presumed to have existed at delivery.
The seller must repair or replace it for free. If that is not possible or takes too long, you can have your money back, in full or in part.
Online purchases come with a 14-day right to withdraw, for any reason, in most cases.

Your rights in the US

There is no general federal right to return something you simply do not want: that comes down to the store's own policy, so read it. You do have stronger rights in two situations:

Mail and online orders must ship within the time the seller stated, or within 30 days if it stated none. If it cannot, it must tell you and offer you the option to cancel for a full refund.
Credit card payments are protected by the Fair Credit Billing Act. Goods that were not delivered, or not delivered as agreed, count as a billing error. Write to the card issuer at its billing-dispute address so it receives your letter within 60 days of the first statement showing the charge.

Your state may also have its own consumer protection law, and your state attorney general's consumer office takes complaints.

The message that gets a refund

Write to the seller first, by email or through the marketplace's messaging, so there is a record. Keep it short:

Subject: Order 48213: refund request, faulty coffee machine

I bought a coffee machine from you on 2 March for £349 (order 48213), delivered on 4 March. On 18 March it stopped heating. Photos and a video are attached.

Under the Consumer Rights Act 2015 I am rejecting the machine within 30 days and asking for a full refund of £349, including delivery, and for you to collect it.

Please confirm by 25 March. If I do not hear from you, I will claim the amount from my card provider.

Swap the law for your country: the EU legal guarantee, or for a US card payment, your billing-dispute rights. Name the order, the date, the problem and the evidence, ask for one thing, and give a date.

If they still say no

Your card. In the UK, if you paid more than £100 and up to £30,000 for a single item on a credit card, you can claim from the card provider under Section 75: it is equally responsible with the seller. For debit cards and smaller amounts, ask your bank for a chargeback. It is not a legal right, but banks follow card scheme rules and time limits, so ask quickly. In the US, use your Fair Credit Billing Act dispute rights.

PayPal. You have 180 days from the payment to open a dispute.

The marketplace. Amazon, eBay, Etsy and others have their own buyer guarantees. Open a claim there as well as messaging the seller, and keep to their deadlines.

Formal dispute or small claims. Many UK and EU sellers belong to an alternative dispute resolution scheme. After that, small claims are designed for people without lawyers: in England and Wales you can claim online, and inside the EU the European Small Claims procedure covers sellers in another country. In the US, small claims court is cheap and quick.

The short version

Work out which problem you have, name the right that covers it, ask the seller for one thing by a date, and keep it in writing. If they refuse, go to your card provider, PayPal or the marketplace, then a dispute scheme or small claims. Most refunds are won at the first or second step, not in court.

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Questions

The shop only offers a credit note. Do I have to accept it?

Not for faulty goods. In the UK and the EU your rights for a faulty item are to a repair, a replacement or your money back, not a credit note. A credit note is only fair game when you simply changed your mind in a shop, where returns are down to the shop's own policy.

The sign says no refunds. Does that apply?

Not to faulty goods, or to online orders inside the cancellation period. A shop's policy cannot take away your legal rights.

How long should a refund take?

For an online order cancelled in the UK or the EU, the seller must refund within 14 days of getting the item back, or of your proof that you sent it, if sooner. For faulty goods in the UK, a refund must be paid within 14 days of the seller agreeing you are entitled to it.

I paid by bank transfer. Can I still get my money back?

It is harder, because there is no card route. Your legal rights against the seller are the same, so send the formal message, then use the small claims route. If it was a scam, tell your bank straight away.

General information, not legal advice. Rules change and depend on where you live: check the official source before you rely on a date or an amount.