Legislation, what rights does the buyer have?
According to Law No. 2300-1 of February 7, 1992, Article 503 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation, the buyer, if he discovers an expired product, must immediately return it and receive a refund of the money paid. The consumer has the right to a replacement.
The buyer must show the seller the product and provide a written request. Refusal to replace or compensate for its cost must be justified. The reasons given are: no receipt, or torn packaging or signs of use. The requirements must be drawn up by the buyer in two copies addressed to the manager.
Consumer education: How to return money for a damaged product if the receipt has not been saved?
If the baker successfully passed off a cockroach in a cod as a raisin, then such an act is unlikely to work with live worms.
– I bought a chocolate bar at the market, but it turned out to be of poor quality. Moreover, there were worms crawling inside,
– our reader called the editorial office.
– How can I get my money back for a damaged product?
We turned to the Chairman of the Belarusian Society for Consumer Protection, Anna Suchet,
:
– You should immediately return to the store or retail outlet where you made the purchase. Present your receipt and demand a replacement for the defective chocolate bar or a refund for the defective product.
If there is no receipt, then you can also terminate the sales contract.
– You need to prove that you took the product at this particular outlet,
– Anna Susha clarified.
– As proof, you can present, for example, packaging or a price tag with store markings.
Witness testimony is also accepted: perhaps you made a purchase with a friend who will confirm your words. If the seller says that he will not accept the product back without a receipt, then refer to Article 19 of the Law of the Republic of Belarus “On the Protection of Consumer Rights”. It says: “The consumer’s lack of a document confirming the fact of purchase of the goods is not a basis for refusal to satisfy his requirements. To confirm the fact of purchase of goods, witness testimony, elements of packaging material (containers) that contain marks confirming that the purchase of goods was carried out from this seller, as well as documents and other means of evidence indicating the purchase of goods from this seller may be used.”
If you fail to reach an agreement, state your complaints in the Book of Comments and Suggestions. By law, the administration of the retail outlet is required to give a written response within 15 days. Be sure to provide your details as anonymous requests will not be considered. If the store ignores your complaint, you can safely go to court.
And further. Even if you ate half a bar of chocolate and only then discovered that it was of poor quality, the product should also be accepted back. At the same time, the interlocutor emphasized, the money must be returned for the entire product.
The consumer's lack of a receipt cannot serve as a basis for refusal to satisfy his requirements. To confirm the purchase and sale transaction, you can use witness testimony, elements of packaging material that have marks confirming that the product was purchased from this particular seller.
Nadezhda Lisova,
Minsk Courier , November 28, 2021
What to do if you bought an expired product
After the expiration date, the product may pose a health hazard and cause harm to humans. The legislation provides for a certain number of obligations to record shelf life for the following groups of products:
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— contact the lawyer on duty in the online chat on the right or call: +7 (499) 938 6124 — Moscow and region.
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- perfumery;
- nutrition;
- cosmetics;
- medications.
ATTENTION! The expiration date can be indicated in one of two possible ways. Indicating the last day when this product can be used, or when indicating the period during which it retains its properties, starting from the moment of manufacture and packaging.
We contact the seller who sold the product overdue
You need to contact the seller or store manager about this. It is worth persistently asking for a refund for a low-quality product that is no longer suitable for food.
Often people are simply afraid to prove the truth to the store administration. Sellers, in turn, do not remove low-quality products because they know that someone may buy them and will not return them. In this case, the actions of the retail outlets are illegal.
You should contact the seller and, in case of refusal, write an appeal in two copies. Give the first one to the store, keep a copy with a signed acceptance and wait for an answer.
Fact of acquisition
You must provide a receipt to the store or attach a copy to your application. The time, date, type and name are indicated there. You also provide the product itself, where it says that the expiration date has already expired.
If you threw away the check
After the expiration date, claims regarding delay will not be accepted.
If you have lost your receipt, you can still return the product. It is necessary to refer to witnesses and other circumstances that can prove the fact of purchase in this particular store.
The proof is video recordings of customer service. Based on the production date of the product, which is indicated on the packaging, the administration can be punished for violating trade rules.
What to do if the store refuses
It is necessary to write a claim in two copies and send it to the seller; keep the second sample with a signature or notification that the original was received. The products should be sent for examination and an official conclusion made about poor quality and unsuitability for consumption. If the seller does not respond to the claim you provided, you should go to court with demands.
- Holding the department accountable.
- A refund.
- To reimburse the costs of conducting an independent examination, state duty.
- Compensation for moral damage.
We are writing a complaint
When filing a complaint with the store, you must indicate:
- your contact details, personal information;
- exact name of the store, department, full address;
- a detailed description of the current situation;
- necessary requirements.
For example: a request to conduct an inspection, determine the quality of the product, return money or replace products, reduce the cost, etc.
Found an expired product? Follow the rules!
Shopping is a part of the life of each of us.
The first and most important rule of a reasonable buyer is to always, in 100% of cases, look for the expiration date and production date on the packaging, even if we are not talking about a perishable product like milk, but about a “long-lasting” one like cereal or a jar of pickles. These products also have a limited period (albeit with completely different periods) when they can be consumed. If you haven’t found this marking, you can’t examine it because it’s worn off, peeled off, or smudged - definitely refuse to purchase.
This is the first and most important rule - check all expiration dates on all products without exception right at the counter. Do not waste time and effort on this, because after you pay for the goods and bring them home, it will be much more difficult to win back and return the money.
But what if you pick up a package of kefir on the supermarket shelf and its expiration date has expired? Put it back? To call the police? Create a scandal? No, it is better to act according to civilized rules. First of all, without letting go of the find, contact the store staff and invite the seller responsible for this department (or the shift supervisor, or the sales floor manager). In the Pyaterochka retail chain, in order to prevent such situations and resolve relations with customers, each supermarket has a special employee - the Freshness Director, who is solely responsible for the absence of expired goods for sale. “We are personally responsible for ensuring that not a single expired product remains on the sales floor, we constantly monitor counters, refrigerators and chest freezers... But, given that even in the smallest store of our chain there are several tens of thousands on sale at the same time goods, about a third of which are perishable, we understand that situations with expired goods can happen. After all, our shelves are serviced by living people who may accidentally fail to notice and not remove this or that product in time, although in recent years the number of such situations has tended to zero,” the Freshness Director of one of the supermarkets of the Pyaterochka chain told us. Galina Shustrova.
Pyaterochka specialists recommend following this procedure: when you find an expired item, call the store’s responsible employee and demand that he remove all expired goods from the counter or refrigerator in your presence. If you want, you can take a photo of the shelves “before” and “after” with your smartphone. In civilized large networks, this issue is usually resolved very quickly, calmly and without problems.
If no one comes to you, take a photo of the expired product on the shelf, then go to the “Consumer Corner”, where you immediately write a detailed complaint in the “Book of Complaints and Suggestions” (be sure to indicate your contact information and the fact that you have a photo document ), and then call the “hotline” of Rospotrebnadzor (this data must also be in the “Consumer Corner”). But if there is no book of complaints there (and the store manager, instead of providing it upon request, is rude to you or hides in the back room), and in general this “corner” is empty - call the police and record your conversation on a voice recorder (in many smartphones have this option). Even if the police do not arrive, you can write or call Rospotrebnadzor from home and attach photo, video and audio evidence to the complaint. Fortunately, such situations are happening less and less now, but it is important to know how to act correctly in them.
Responsibility
For the sale of low-quality goods, the store is necessarily liable, both administrative and criminal.
Administrative
Article 14.4 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation provides for fines for individuals from 1 to 2 thousand rubles, for officials - from 3 to 10, for individual entrepreneurs - from 10 to 20, for legal entities - from 20 to 30.
Also, in addition to these measures, the license may be withdrawn for up to a year. For individual entrepreneurs, legal entities and individuals, penalties will be accompanied by confiscation of expired goods.
Criminal
Regulated by Article 238 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. Various punishments are provided here, because there is a threat to the health and life of buyers. There are penalties of up to 300 thousand rubles, forced participation in compulsory labor for up to 360 hours, and restriction of freedom for 2 years.
ATTENTION! It is prohibited to sell expired products at a reduced price.
Who carries
Both the seller and the merchandiser or director are responsible for allowing food and other goods to expire at the point of sale. All this is spelled out in the job descriptions of any employee. It follows from this that the employer appoints a person who is responsible for expired goods and controls its availability on the shelves.
What could be the fine?
According to Article 14.4 of the Administrative Code of the Russian Federation, Rospotrebnadzor can hold administrative liability, and the implementer will face fines for both individuals and legal entities. Their size has already been stated above. This is from 1,000 to 30,000 rubles, depending on the status of the seller.
For repeated violations of the law, fines increase significantly. For individuals they reach 5,000, for officials - up to 15,000, for individual entrepreneurs - up to 30,000, from legal entities they can collect 50,000 rubles.
Attention! In addition to this punishment, officials may be suspended from activity for a period of one year, and Rospotrebnadzor has the right to confiscate all overdue payments from entrepreneurs.
Tips and tricks
The consumer should know all the rights and not be afraid to defend them. You should go to the supermarket, talk with the seller, as well as the administration of the outlet. If they do not want to voluntarily return your money or replace the product, you should definitely contact a lawyer for help. Only a qualified specialist can easily help you return your money and receive compensation for purchasing a low-quality product.
Dear readers! To solve your problem right now, get a free consultation
— contact the lawyer on duty in the online chat on the right or call: +7 (499) 938 6124 — Moscow and region.
+7 (812) 425 6761 — St. Petersburg and region. 8 (800) 350 8362 - Other regions of the Russian Federation You will not need to waste your time and nerves - an experienced lawyer will solve all your problems! Or describe the situation in the form below:
