Consumeractive
We stand up for your legal rights
LEAD CASE
Can Argos refuse refund for giving me wrong laptop?
Q On 26 January, I ordered a Lenovo 15.6 laptop from Argos (pictured).
I was looking for specific functions, including a backlit keyboard. I paid £329 online and went to pick it up. However, it turned out to be the wrong model and the Argos manager said, because I opened the box, I can’t return it or have a refund. Can this be right?
Ken Brown
A No it’s not, and we’re stunned that an Argos manager would think so. Opening an item bought online or in person doesn’t invalidate your rights. Confusingly, Argos told Ken that he’d be entitled to a refund if the laptop had been delivered to him. That’s true, but irrelevant. The reason it must refund him is because it gave him the wrong laptop, no matter how it came into his possession.
If the listing or advert Ken saw for the laptop is incorrect, then it’ll be considered misleading under the Unfair Trading
Regulations and must be changed. It’s also possible that an Argos employee simply put the wrong laptop in the box. Either way, Ken is entitled to his money back. He can also ask Argos to supply the laptop he wants, but it doesn’t have to if it’s no longer available.