People who shop online have been granted new rights by EU law.
The major new set of consumer rights, the Consumer Rights Directive, applies across all of the European Union’s 28 member countries.
Online shoppers now have longer to cancel orders while complaints calls should be cheaper, under laws that took effect on Friday.
The cooling-off period for an online or telephone order is now 14 calendar days, up from seven working days.
This 14-day limit starts from the moment the consumer receives the goods, rather than at the time of purchase, which was previously the case.
A full refund can be claimed during this period without having to give a reason for the cancellation.
Traders must refund customers for the product within 14 days of cancellation, including the costs of delivery.
Consumers can no longer be charged high fees for buying online with their debit or credit cards.
Companies may not charge more than a local rate for a customer inquiry or complaint call. But companies can still charge higher rates when customers are purchasing goods or services.
For the first time books, music, and film in digital format are included in the cooling-off period if customers have not started downloading the item.
The EU’s Justice Commissioner said this means “no more pre-ticked boxes when you buy a plane ticket, no more extra charges for paying with your credit card online and no more traders telling you that you can't return a good you bought online."
