Buying goods on-line – how long do you have to return them?

When placing an order on the internet the other day I decided to read the terms and conditions before ticking the box – yes, like most I do not normally bother – and noticed that the company was giving me 8 working days in which to return goods.   I also noticed that another consumer law organisation stated when buying on line you have 14 working days to return goods.  Who is right?  Neither.  When you buy goods (well, most goods – there is always a “but” with every law) at a distance from a trader, whether that is by telephone or on-line, you have 14 days in which to cancel the contract, without reason, starting the day after you receive the goods.

This applies to (almost) all contracts entered into for goods at a distance after 13th June 2014.

It does not mean that you have to return the goods within that time but you must inform the seller that you do not want the goods.  You then have a further 14 days to return the goods (unless the trader had offered to collect them or they are the type of goods that due to their nature would not normally be returned by post).