RIYADH: The cliché that goods can't be returned or replaced by some shops constitutes a flagrant violation of Article 2 of Commercial Anti- Fraud Law, said an official source at the Ministry of Commerce and Industry. He said the article makes it mandatory that violators withdraw fake products and refund the buyers' money, according to the conditions and procedures defined in the executive ordinance of the law. He said the ministry and all its branches throughout the Kingdom receive complaints from consumers about merchants who say fake goods and those violating the specifications can't be returned or replaced. “If the goods that were sold were genuine and conform to the specifications, their return is subject to the agreement between the seller and buyer,” he said. “It should also be remembered that the fierce competition among the merchants to gain the customers' trust makes it mandatory for many merchants to offer more facilities and privileges such as the right of returning goods.” Ibrahim Al-Nasseri, a legal expert, said if the merchants do not accept the return of fake goods, they violate the law and become liable to punishment. That action would also violate the anti-fraud law, which states that merchants must refund the price of fake products, he noted. Consumers should know their rights in order to avoid being exploited by greedy merchants, Al-Nasseri said. The law does not include goods sold according to their current conditions, he said, because it is presumed that the buyer and seller already know of the product's defect. In those cases, it is permissible for merchants to say that the goods cannot be returned.
