Overview
- In-store purchases carry no automatic right to return non-defective goods, and retailers may insist on a receipt or refuse a refund outright.
- Online orders generally include a 14-day right of withdrawal from delivery, requiring notice to the seller, followed by 14 days to send items back, with exclusions for custom goods, opened hygiene items, perishables and many private sales.
- Return shipping costs usually fall to the customer, though many merchants voluntarily cover postage and extend holiday windows such as 30 days or mid-January deadlines.
- Defective products trigger statutory warranty rights for repair or replacement even without a receipt, and defects reported within 12 months are presumed to have existed at delivery.
- Consumer advocates warn of costly cross-border returns and fake shops, recommend the Verbraucherzentrale Bayern’s Umtausch-Check tool, and note an upcoming legal requirement for a one-click withdrawal function on merchant websites in the second half of next year.