Personal Finance

Why the law allows you to return goods already sold

shop

A woman shops at a supermarket. PHOTO | FILE

In the recent past, there has been a lot of social media outcry by consumers over their rights. Recently, I came across a post about a supermarket that allegedly stored stale goods that even had worms.

Whether these allegations are true or not, sellers should know that consumers are now more aware of their rights.

Sellers should thus adjust to the new consumer by ensuring that products not only meet consumer demand, but also comply with the new laws that uphold consumer rights.

The general laws that protect consumers include the Constitution, Consumer Act, Sale of Goods Act, Contract Act and other industry laws.
Consumer rights differ according to the jurisdiction.

There are some countries that uphold and enforce consumer rights more strongly than others. Kenya’s consumer rights were strengthened about five years ago when there was a major regulatory shift in the country.

Most people do not know that there is a law that governs any sales of goods — the Sale of Goods Act.

I have seen many shops write and hang up the sign that “Goods once sold cannot be returned.” Take this scenario. A person goes into a clothes shop and asks for a dress in a specific size. The shop owner gives her the dress and confirms that it is the right size. The customer pays, but on getting home, finds out that the dress is not her size as represented by the shop owner.

The customer then asks for a refund of money paid, but the shop owner refuses, saying goods once sold cannot be returned and the only option the buyer has is to take something else of the same price. This seller is, however, bound by law to refund the money paid.

One of the provisions is that any goods sold must be of a saleable quality. Therefore, sale of stale goods or goods that cannot be used is null. The customer can claim a refund in the event that the goods bought are not saleable.

If a seller sells bulk goods by sampling, then he gives a warranty that the bulk goods correspond to the samples tested. Sometimes, the sample tested is of a different quality from the bulk and often times, the sample is of higher quality than the bulk. Such differences can nullify the sale transaction.

Take the example of sampling a wedding cake from a caterer. If the sample tasted does not correspond to the cake delivered then the sale can be deemed to be null.

Where goods are delivered to a buyer and he has never examined them before, then the buyer is not deemed to have accepted those goods until he has had reasonable chance to examine them to ascertain if they are in line with the contract.

This is especially so in international trade where inspection of goods is difficult.

The Sale of Goods Act does not bind you to accept any goods until you have examined them and are satisfied with the quality. It is, therefore, important to examine and inspect goods before registering your acceptance.

The Act states that the seller must give a buyer reasonable opportunity to examine goods. This applies in pre-packaged goods where the seller insists on payment before the buyer can receive the goods. Buyers should insist on examining goods before payment and acceptance.

The Sale of Goods Act is wider than what is highlighted here and I encourage you to read the provisions for yourself to understand your rights in a buying and selling transaction.

Ms Mputhia is the founder of C M Advocates.
E-mail: [email protected]
@cm_advocates