Distance selling regulations for a business

Aruffell · 12 Apr 2016 at 18:32

Hi all,

Long story short:

Bought an item
Item arrived late
Item arrived broke
Informed company and they offered to swap out and pick up old and send new
New one arrived, broke again
Informed sender to pick up both as both now faulty
Said ok and documented again on support ticket
Company asked for pictures of damage and asked me to taken good parts off of item A and put onto item B
I ask for both items to be picked up as agreed and refund to be given
Company gets angry and evasive
I file complaint through Google shopping
Company inform me that I don't have distance selling rights as it was invoiced to a ltd company and not a consumer and they tell me I must now pay for return postage on both items
I screenshot support tickets showing them saying they will arrange collection
I wait and write this thread asking for advice

Do distance selling regulations apply to a company? Initially I found this - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Consumer_Protection_(Distance_Selling)_Regulations_2000 which states:

A consumer is a "natural person who is acting for the purposes other than those of his trade, business or profession".[1] The definition is slightly broader than that in the Unfair Contract Terms Act 1977, where the subjective requirement of the person not regarding himself as acting in the course of a business is not present. So, under the Regulations, someone who uses a company account or business details for tax obligations is still considered a consumer if the transaction is not one done for or on behalf of the business. A customer is a person who actually buys the product but this doesn't mean they have to use the product. The person who uses the product is called a consumer.

Any help is greatly appreciated.

D.P. · 12 Apr 2016 at 18:50

Distance selling doesn't apply to companies, there are other rules in place though

Haggisman · 12 Apr 2016 at 18:53

DSR doesn't exist anymore does it? Also it's not relevant in this case as the item(s) turned up broken

[TW]Fox · 12 Apr 2016 at 18:53

Most consumer protection regulations do not apply to B2B transactions - you are expected to seek redress through standard court action etc in a business environment.

Aruffell · 12 Apr 2016 at 19:31

D.P. said:
Distance selling doesn't apply to companies, there are other rules in place though

What would apply here? Especially as the items are faulty.

[TW]Fox · 12 Apr 2016 at 19:48

You can sue them for damages, presumably.

D.P. · 12 Apr 2016 at 20:26

[TW]Fox;29384041 said:
You can sue them for damages, presumably.

This, get your company lawyer on the phone.

Aruffell · 12 Apr 2016 at 20:37

D.P. said:
This, get your company lawyer on the phone.

I don't have one. It's a small Ltd company.

So I have to pay someone to sue someone for two lots of faulty items? Seems excessive, no?

[TW]Fox · 12 Apr 2016 at 20:42

Aruffell said:
I don't have one. It's a small Ltd company.

So I have to pay someone to sue someone for two lots of faulty items? Seems excessive, no?

I doubt you need to pay somebody to do it - but this is business to business. It doesn't get the comfort blanket that consumer sales do.

It seems like just paying the return postage is the line of least resistance here.

Ace Modder · 12 Apr 2016 at 22:38

Aruffell said:
I don't have one. It's a small Ltd company.

So I have to pay someone to sue someone for two lots of faulty items? Seems excessive, no?

No, but the company is right that DSR does not apply to orders made by a Ltd company.

Battery! · 12 Apr 2016 at 22:58

I hope you sort it out but this is the reason I expense everything with my business.

cadmunkey · 12 Apr 2016 at 23:41

Fallen foul of this in the past with Ebuy*r. Now buy everything via personal account and charge to company expenses

Aruffell · 13 Apr 2016 at 09:24

Moses said:
What's the value of the goods?

£110 but I now have 2 lots of it but only been charged once.

I also have support tickets of them confirming that the items will be picked up and now the same with them trying to turn the tables asking me to pay for return postage.

Aruffell · 13 Apr 2016 at 13:58

Bank is doing a chargeback through Visa now.

tom_e · 13 Apr 2016 at 14:01

Pay for return shipping, they refund you, stop being a ****?

Aruffell · 13 Apr 2016 at 14:06

tom_e said:
Pay for return shipping, they refund you, stop being a ****?

I'm being a **** because I bought a product that arrived with me damaged and they said they'd pay for return postage but are now refusing?

Would hate to ever buy or sell anything to you.

Kylevdm · 13 Apr 2016 at 14:08

tom_e said:
Pay for return shipping, they refund you, stop being a ****?

The company stated that they would pay for shipping and gone back on that claim. On principle I would want them to pick it up anyway - the item is faulty after all.

tom_e · 13 Apr 2016 at 14:16

I take it that offer was made on the assumption they were dealing with a private individual rather than another business.

Aruffell · 13 Apr 2016 at 14:17

tom_e said:
I take it that offer was made on the assumption they were dealing with a private individual rather than another business.

They knew who they sold it to and regardless, why should that matter?

DaleTheWhale · 13 Apr 2016 at 14:18

Surely warranty comes into play here not DSR? (No longer exists anyway?)

The item arrived damaged and should be replaced, it turning up twice broken is unlucky on their part but you should be covered by warranty to return them for a replacement or refund.