“Buying Used Goods Online: Know Your Rights and Protections”

The Internet is full of various e-shops with used goods or platforms where private individuals resell their things. First of all, it is therefore a good idea to do your research and be interested in whether you are buying goods from an entrepreneur as part of his business, or from a private person on one of the platforms. As experts from the consumer organization dTest point out, there is a difference in terms of the level of your protection.

If you bought used goods from a trader and you need to claim them, you have the same rights as if the goods were new. For example, your claim must be processed within 30 days.

The entrepreneur is also required by law to provide you with more information. And that includes the fact that these are used goods; they must inform you of the nature of the product’s defects or the degree of wear and tear.

“Don’t be afraid to be proactive in these situations. Pay attention to the condition of the goods. If it is, for example, electronics, test whether all functions work as they should. Document the condition upon receipt. This can save you a lot of trouble in the future,” recommended Eduarda Hekšová, director of the consumer organization dTest.

Also, pay attention to the frequent negotiation of a shortened period for exercising rights from defective performance. The law allows entrepreneurs to shorten this period, but not more than 12 months.

If the seller is a private person, you may encounter various delays during the complaint. There is no 30-day period for handling complaints.

“Even with a private person, you can claim responsibility for defects, but if the seller wants, he can, for example, deliberately delay the removal of defects. Of course, it is possible to defend against such behavior, but this claim needs to be enforced in court,” pointed out Hekšová.

Under the term defective goods, it is possible to imagine goods that do not correspond to their presented or expected properties. However, in the case of used goods, the identification of defects is more complicated.

Defects that the buyer was made aware of before the purchase cannot be considered defects. Even normal wear and tear cannot be considered a defect. For example, if you get a second-hand camera and after a few days of use you notice that the resulting video is constantly out of focus, this is a defect that you could not have expected unless you were alerted to it. In this case, you have the right to complain about the camera.

On the other hand, if the seller warned you that the camera has scratches on the glass that cause poor image quality, your complaint would no longer be justified.

In the event of a successful complaint, the seller has a legal obligation to repair the defect. If the repair is not possible, you can exercise the right to a reasonable discount from the purchase price or withdraw from the contract, dTest experts add.