I have previously had the unflattering experience of buying goods from a store only for them to turn out to be defective. The first instinct is to fumble for the receipt only to discover a tagline that states that goods once sold can't be returned. The staff turn out to be uncooperative.
That would drive me crazy. I would never shop a store like that again. I only shop at stores that have a decent returns policy. A store should have as its goal to keep the customer happy, and if you end up with something you can't use, that is going to make one unhappy customer. It is just not a good thing. I think that many people need to make sure they are going to the right site or store to shop.
I only shop at stores that give a refund or a return policy. It pays to pay more attention to who you purchase from and their policies.
Not being able to return a defective product would make me very upset. How can a company stay in business if they are selling defective products. After finding this out, I would not want to shop there any longer and would encourage my friends and family to not shop there as well.
I really feel sorry for you with what you have experienced from that specific store @remnant. I share @morgoodie's thoughts about that store. How can they still be operating with such a lousy policy and customer service. I would also feel so disappointed if I would experience something like that.
Any returns policy should be clearly stated at the checkout, and on the receipt. In addition they should state before you pay that items are sold as seen and cannot be returned. If an item is defective you can return it to the manufacturer (if possible) but there is no guarantee they will do anything either. Sometimes it's worth paying a bit more for that peace of mind.
Most stores have some kind of return policy. I've only experience this with sale or clearance items. I'd talk to the manager or owner of the store in a case like that.
I find a lot of stores try to tell you that they do not do returns or refunds but you need to know the consumer act to know your rights so that when there is a default in a product you are able to take it back and you have a right to get a healthy product!
Most large stores have a return policy, so is this store a small one that's why it didn't have a return policy? Anyway, sorry to hear about your loss, I guess next time you should be careful and check their policy first before you shop. By the way, what item did you buy that was defective?
It depends on the merchandise, but I seldom see any stores these days which don't accept returns. In most cases when a store doesn't take returns on certain items, it's kind of common sense - stuff like undergarments, or forms of media such as movies/music/video games, clearance items that are marked for a final sale, alcohol and such. It's also up to the consumer to do a little due diligence before making a purchase to confirm if they take returns or not. Especially if it's something like a small mom and pop store or a consignment shop, or people who are drop shipping merchandise from a vendor - since they are operating on thin profit margins. If they were to accept returns, they would actually be losing money on those items since they already paid their vendors for them and cannot get a refund for them themselves.
a lot of the big stores give you refunds and exchange your goods without question but you need to be careful of the small pop up businesses that want to make a quick buck as they will sell you an item and once you leave the store you are done for