In Spain, you have rights when an online purchase is late

Although the vast majority of online sales transactions are without incident, arriving more or less, when the selling website promises, occasionally, a purchase might seem like it´s never going to arrive, in which case you have rights when an online purchase is late, in particular, the right to withdraw from the sales agreement.

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According to the rules, the right of withdrawal can be exercised if a product purchased online arrives with a considerable delay and, in addition, we have the right to terminate the contract and we can even claim double the amount we have paid.

As a minimum, by law, whenever we make an online purchase, we have a right of withdrawal of 14 calendar days from the receipt of the product or the contract for a contracted service with some particular exceptions.

These exceptions are collected by law for certain personalised products and services (things made to measure, personal belongings, etc.), capable of being consumed once opened, or for hygiene reasons.

This right of withdrawal is inalienable, and the term cannot be legally reduced by the seller, although it can be extended.

But what happens when the purchased item does not reach us?

When we have paid for an online purchase and the product does not reach us or has a considerable delay, we have the right to claim.

The General Law of Consumers and Users*, in its article 109 states that

“Unless the parties have agreed otherwise, the employer must execute the order without undue delay and no later than 30 calendar days from the conclusion of the contract.”

Therefore, except for purchases in which the seller expressly notifies that the order will arrive within a period of more than one month but determined, the online order should reach the buyer within a maximum period of 30 days.

After this term of 30 days, we have two options. We can choose:

Terminate the contract and request the return of the amounts at that time.

Notify the seller of a prudent additional period for them to comply with this obligation and proceed to deliver the product.

This Right, before receiving the product, is valid for all the goods and services that we can buy / contract online.

When can I demand compensation or compensation?

If, after a delay of more than 30 days, we choose to ask the online merchant to deliver the product or service purchased due to objective impossibility, and it continues to fail and does not deliver what was purchased, then the merchant must return the price paid immediately.

Article 110 of the General Law of Consumers and Users, states that

“In the event of non-execution of the contract by the employer because the contracted good or service is not available, the consumer and user must be informed of this lack of availability and must be able to recover without undue delay the sums that have been paid by virtue of the same”.

If the company stops answering our e-mails, delays the return of the money without justification or puts all kinds of obstacles to the return that we are requesting, the same article 110 includes the possibility of claiming double the amounts paid:

“In case of unjustified delay on the part of the employer regarding the return of the sums paid, the consumer and user may claim that they be paid double the amount owed, without prejudice to their right to be compensated for the damages suffered in whatever exceeds said amount”.

What are my chances of getting my money back?

Sometimes, the online business or seller refuses to pay the user or consumer double voluntarily, either due to ignorance of the Law or in bad faith.

This is so because the online seller can deduce in advance that depending on the amount in question, the consumer or user will not go to the courts of justice because of the associated costs of making a claim. If, for example, we are claiming for a new collar for our pet dog which costs 20 euro, the collar will cost us more than the dog to go to court to claim this amount.

However, there are legal claims of all kinds and some are quite cheap and can even be made by yourself without having to go to a professional, lawyer or attorney.

In any case, it is recommend that you exhaust all possibilities of negotiating with online businesses in a friendly or prejudicial manner before going to court. One of them would be the mediation of consumption.

Ultimately, going to a lawyer who can advise us adequately on the steps to follow, and the formalities to carry out, when online commerce does not give us a solution is a good resource.