What are your consumer rights this Christmas? Quiz

Friday, 21 November 2008 03:47

Knowing your consumer rights could the difference between a Merry Christmas and a Blue Yule.

Take our quiz - put together by Consumer Direct and the Trading Standards Institute - to see how well you are prepared for Christmas

Answer the questions below - each worth one point - and find out how savvy you really are!

1. You buy a digital music player online as a present but when it arrives you don't like the colour. What are your rights?

• a. You have no rights
  
• b. You can return the item within seven working days and get a full refund
  
• c. You will have to rely on the online retailer's goodwill

Question 1 Answer

2. You receive a sweater from a high street store as a Christmas gift but it is three sizes too big. You have the receipt so what are your rights?

• a. You can take it back and insist on a refund
  
• b. You can take it back and insist you get an exchange
  
• c. You can take it back and insist on a credit note
  
• d. You have no rights and you may have to rely on the retailer's goodwill

Question 2 Answer

3. You buy a pair of shoes in the pre-Christmas sales, but the one of the heels starts to come away the first time you wear them. What are your rights?

• a. You have no rights as you bought the shoes in the sale
  
• b. You have the same rights for sale items as you do for full price
  
• c. You will have to rely on the retailer's goodwill.

Question 3 Answer

4. You decide to buy a new telly in time for the family visit. It works fine for a couple of months then mysteriously stops working. You take it back with the receipt and the shop accepts the fault but only offers you a repair. Where do you stand?

• a. You can reject the goods and demand a full refund
  
• b. A repair would be a reasonable offer
  
• c. You should contact the manufacturer

Question 4 Answer

5. You are interested in improving the insulation of your home before winter sets in, and you arrange for a double glazing salesman to visit you at home. After the sales pitch, you sign an agreement for a new windows costing £15,000 but as soon as the salesman leaves you have second thoughts. What are your rights?

• a. You have signed an agreement and therefore you are bound by it.
  
• b. You should have seven days to cancel
  
• c. You should have fourteen days to cancel

Question 5 Answer

6. You see a DVD box set that's perfect for your brother priced at just £10. When you get to the till the sales assistant says it's wrongly priced and should be £30. He refuses to sell it at the cheaper price. What are your rights?

• a. You can insist on purchasing it at £10
  
• b. You don't have any right to purchase at the lower price but could tell Trading Standards who can investigate pricing errors.
  
• c. You are entitled to the goods free of charge because of the mistake

Question 6 Answer

7. You order a pair of shoes for a Christmas party from a catalogue on December 1st but they don't arrive in time for the party on December 20th. When should they be delivered?

• a. There is no time limit
  
• b. Goods bought by mail order must be delivered within 14 days or you can claim a full refund.
  
• c. Goods bought by mail order should be delivered within 30 days or you can claim a full refund.

Question 7 Answer

8. You bought a games console two months ago and now it doesn't work. You return it to the retailer who says you must have misused it and that you need a report to prove that it's faulty before he has to do anything. Is this correct?

• a. Yes, the onus is on the customer to prove that the goods are faulty if this is disputed.
  
• b. No, for the first six months there is a presumption that the goods are faulty unless the retailer can prove otherwise.

Question 8 Answer

9. You pay a deposit on a leather sofa costing £500 but the company goes bust leaving you without your sofa or your deposit. You have paid using a credit card and you find out you can claim against your credit card company but under what conditions?

• a. The cash price for a single item purchased is between £100 and £30,000
  
• b. The cash price for a single item purchased is between £1,000 and £300,000
  
• c. The transaction takes place in the UK only

Question 9 Answer

10. You feel really let down by a company that has fobbed you off with faulty goods or poor service and ruined your Christmas. You want to complain but don't know who to turn to for advice. Should you.

• a. convince yourself that complaining never works anyway
  
• b. expect a knight in shining armour to solve all your consumer problems
  
• c. call Consumer Direct for clear, practical and impartial advice on 08454 04 05 06.

Question 10 Answer + Results

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