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UK consumers lose £5000 EACH in faulty goods

Friday 5th March 2010

By Mike Jones

UK consumers on average lose £4950 each in their lifetime on faulty goods they have failed to take back to the shops, according to a survey by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS).

The research was undertaken as part of the "Know Your Consumer Rights" campaign which aims to make sure that shoppers get a fair deal by knowing how and when to take goods back to the shops.

The findings also reveal that almost half of shoppers surveyed (48%) have at least one faulty item at home they wished they had exchanged or had refunded, with almost a third (32%) possessing up to five faulty items.

And it’s male shoppers losing the most money. On average they fail to take back £89 worth of faulty goods a year compared to women who are losing £71 a year: a cost of £5465 and £4658 in a lifetime respectively.

Fear plays a major part in stopping shoppers from returning goods and getting a fair deal. Shoppers have the right to return faulty items, but many stores allow returns for unwanted goods even if you have just changed your mind.

Yet more than a third (36%) of those surveyed feel nervous when they try to return an unwanted item to a store and 40% feel embarrassed (21%) or intimidated (19%).

Londoners are the most anxious shoppers with more than half (55%) feeling nervous when taking back an unwanted item, while consumers in the North West are least nervous (27%).

Consumer Minister Kevin Brennan said: "We want to do all we can to encourage people not to lose out financially because they don’t know their rights.

"Now is the time to brush up on your consumer rights so you can return any faulty or unwanted goods with added confidence."

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