Do I have to accept a credit note?

Q: I recently bought a set of frames as a gift for a friend but then changed my mind and decided to give her something else. When I went back to the shop to return the frames, I was offered something else but there was nothing to my liking. At this point I was offered a credit note but I wanted my money back. Am I entitled to a refund or do I have to accept a credit note?

A: In this particular case, being offered a credit note by the seller is actually more than the law grants you as a consumer. Keep in mind that once a purchase is made you have no right for a remedy unless the goods purchased are found to be faulty or not as agreed at the time of purchase.

On the other hand, when goods are returned because there is something wrong with them, being offered a credit note is actually less than what the law grants. In case of faulty goods the law entitles us to either request repair, replacement, or refund.

We are usually offered a credit note when the seller cannot repair or replace the defective good.

In this case we are entitled to our money back and not a credit note. If we accept a credit note we cannot later change our mind unless we can prove that we were forced to accept the credit note by the seller.