When does an online cancellation period start?
Where cancellation rights apply, the period begins when the contract is made. For goods, it normally ends 14 days after receipt, with special rules for separate deliveries. Missing cancellation information can extend it by 12 months. Coordinate factory shipment records with Cambridge China Bridge.
Separate the right to cancel from the deadline
For covered consumer distance sales, the cancellation period begins when the contract is entered into. The customer can therefore cancel before delivery. For an ordinary goods order, the period normally ends 14 days after the day the customer, or their nominated recipient other than the carrier, takes physical possession.
Record contract formation and actual receipt separately. A factory dispatch date or carrier collection date does not establish customer receipt. This guide addresses your consumer sales; use our online sourcing guide for product, packaging and stock planning.
Choose the receipt event for separate deliveries
For multiple goods ordered in one order but delivered on different days, use receipt of the last goods. For goods delivered in lots or pieces, use receipt of the last lot or piece. For regular delivery during a defined period, use receipt of the first goods. In each case, the normal deadline is 14 days after that receipt day.
Keep the customer's order linked to every parcel and its receipt record. Check the agreed delivery arrangement before choosing the event. Use our split shipment guide for the separate factory purchase and shipment ledger, then maintain a customer delivery record alongside it.
Provide the cancellation notice and form
Before the customer is bound, give or make available clear cancellation conditions, the time limit and the procedure, together with the statutory model cancellation form where a right exists. Disclose any applicable customer return costs, including the return cost for goods that cannot normally be posted. Where cancellation rights are excluded or can be lost, provide the relevant information.
Send contract confirmation on a durable medium, such as email, within a reasonable time and no later than delivery. Include the required pre-contract information unless it was already provided on a durable medium before the contract was made. Keep the exact notice and confirmation sent, rather than relying on your current website wording.
Correct missing information and recalculate
If you omit the required information about the right to cancel, the period can end 12 months after the normal deadline. If you provide that information correctly within the statutory window of 12 months beginning with the first day of the ordinary 14-day period, cancellation instead ends 14 days after the customer receives it.
Audit affected orders, send the missing information in a form the customer can retain, and record receipt before recalculating the deadline. Updating a website alone gives you no customer-specific receipt record. Missing return-cost information has a separate consequence: the customer does not bear those undisclosed return costs.
Give customer service a usable order record
Keep the contract date, delivery arrangement, parcel receipt records, notice version, confirmation and any corrective notice together. Give customer service a written calculation and flag incomplete delivery evidence for review before refusing a cancellation.
The customer may use the model form or another clear statement of their decision to cancel. Do not require your form as the only route. For a cancellation sent by communication, sending it before the period ends is sufficient for timing purposes.
Frequently asked questions
Can a customer cancel before the goods arrive?
Yes, where the statutory right applies. The cancellation period begins when the contract is made, so the customer need not wait for delivery.
Does each parcel start a separate cancellation period?
For multiple goods in one order delivered separately, the normal deadline runs from receipt of the last goods. Goods supplied in lots or pieces use the last lot or piece.
What if I forgot to give cancellation information?
The period can extend to 12 months after the normal deadline. Correctly providing the information within the statutory window gives the customer 14 days after receipt of that information.
Must customers use my cancellation form?
No. You must make the statutory model form available where a right exists, but customers may cancel through another clear statement of their decision.