Dear BBB,
I recently purchased a laptop as a gift for my son. When I gave it to him he explained that it was not suitable for his needs. I went to return the laptop to the store and was informed it would cost me 35% of the original cost to return the product. This charge seems outrageous, isn’t this considered fraud on the part of the business?
~Computer Crazy
A:Computer Crazy,
You are WRONG in assuming the business is being fraudulent in charging you money to return a product. The concept of charging a customer to return a product is what is known as a “re-stocking fee.” Re-stocking fees are based on the premise that it costs businesses money to have a product returned to them. There are no laws in B.C. pertaining specifically to re-stocking fees or refund and exchange policies for that matter. A business does have the right to charge such a fee, but it is their responsibility to have consistent refund, exchange and restocking fee policies. Most re-stocking fees run about 10-20%, but a 35% re-stocking fee is not unheard of. It really is your responsibility as a consumer to know what the refund, exchange and re-stocking fee policy is before you purchase any product.