Holiday Shopping Online - Delivery Rules For Your Orders
Holiday shopping online has taken a lot of stress out the
holiday season with one exception. What if your order doesn't
show up on time? Here are the delivery rules.
Holiday Shopping - Prompt Delivery Rules
The Internet is the fastest growing source of holiday gifts
orders. The FTC, however, has received complaints in the past
about gifts not being delivered on time. To stop this, the
agency has set down rules for Internet retailers.
The FTC has issues directives spelling out the ground rules for
making promises about shipments, notifying consumers about
unexpected delays, and refunding consumers' money. Enforced by
the FTC, the Mail or Telephone Order Rule applies to orders
placed by phone, fax or the Internet.
Delivery Rules
By law, an Internet retailer must have a reasonable basis for
stating that a product can be shipped within a certain time. If
their advertising doesn't clearly and prominently state the
shipment period, they must have a reasonable basis for believing
they can ship within 30 days. Most retailers, however, will
promise much shorter times, even a few days if you agree to
extra shipping costs.
If a retailer runs into inventory problems and can't ship within
the promised time, it must notify you of the delay. The retailer
must also provide a revised shipment date and explain your right
to cancel and get a full and prompt refund. There are no
exceptions to this rule.
Your Response
For definite delays of up to 30 days, a retailer can treat a
customer's silence as agreeing to the delay. But for longer or
indefinite delays - and second and subsequent delays - a
retailer must get the customer's written, electronic or verbal
consent to the delay. If you tell the retailer to pound sand,
they must promptly refund all of your money.
FTC Takes Care of You
The FTC takes a very aggressive stance towards retailers who
fail to deliver orders on time. This is particularly true if a
retailer blows it during the Christmas season. Millions of
dollars in fines are handed out each year.
Summary
If you order gifts online, keep notes on when you ordered and
expect delivery. Also, keep an eye out for emails from the
retailer, particularly since they may end up in your spam box.
If nothing comes from the retailer, get on the phone and find
out what is going on. Taking these steps will keep the kinks out
of your online holiday shopping experience.
About the author:
Rick Chapo is with http://www.nomadjournals.com - makers of
writing journals. Writing journals are great Christmas gifts for
him or her and are always shipped on time.