Can Section 75 cover a sole trader's China stock?
A sole trader's first China stock purchase may qualify for Section 75, but a personal or business card label does not establish protection. Check the regulated credit agreement, contracting buyer, each item's cash price and payment chain before paying. Cambridge China Bridge can help clarify the order paperwork.
Start with the actual credit agreement
Section 75 concerns qualifying debtor-creditor-supplier agreements; the statutory definition requires a regulated consumer credit agreement. Buying stock and choosing a card labelled personal or business do not answer that question. Obtain your agreement and ask the issuer to explain whether it is regulated and whether Section 75 applies to the proposed stock purchase.
Disclose that you are a sole trader buying stock for resale from a Chinese supplier. Ask separately whether the card terms permit that use. Request the grounds for any exemption or exclusion, including how the repayment terms affect eligibility. Keep the agreement and written reply. Our personal-account guide covers account-use checks and payment records.
Identify who contracts for the stock
Section 75 gives the debtor a like claim against the creditor where the debtor has a qualifying claim against the supplier for misrepresentation or breach of contract. Paying with your card is therefore not the whole enquiry. Ask who is named as debtor in the credit agreement and who is buying under the supply contract. For cardholder arrangements, see our guide to someone else's or an additional card.
For your sole-trader order, ask for your full personal name alongside any trading name, consistently across the accepted order and invoice. If the buyer is a limited company or another person, give the issuer the documents rather than assuming your payment resolves the difference. Identify whether the sourcing business sells you the goods or acts as an agent, using our contracting-party guide.
Check the item price, not just the deposit
The Section 75 price range is more than £100 and no more than £30,000 for the relevant item. Check the supplier's cash price for each item rather than treating the deposit or invoice total as the eligibility test. A stock order containing separately priced goods needs that distinction examined.
Ask the supplier to show unit prices and explain any genuinely priced set or package. Send the quotation and proposed payment split to the issuer, and ask how it assesses the relevant item and any foreign-currency price. Do not relabel separate goods as a bundle to manufacture eligibility. Our card-deposit guide covers the wider deposit question.
Trace the proposed payment chain
The statutory definition involves arrangements between creditor and supplier. Draw the proposed route from your card issuer through the checkout or payment provider to the contracting seller. Record who sells the goods, who takes the card payment and what service any intermediary provides.
Before using a marketplace checkout, wallet top-up, transfer service or agent collection account, send the issuer the route and terms. Ask whether the proposed transaction finances your purchase from the supplier through a qualifying relationship. Request an explanation specific to that route. A familiar payment logo or a matching statement name is not enough to complete this check.
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Keep a claim file and a separate recovery plan
Section 75 addresses qualifying supplier misrepresentation or breach of contract. Keep the accepted specification, delivery commitment, supplier statements, credit agreement, invoice, payment records and correspondence. If something goes wrong, identify the disputed promise, what happened and the remedy you seek, then submit the supporting documents to the issuer.
If the issuer declines protection, ask which agreement term, buyer detail, item-price issue or payment-chain issue it relies on. Seek legal advice if the explanation remains disputed. Ask separately about chargeback and use our delayed-order chargeback guide for that enquiry. Continue factory verification, sample approval and inspection planning before committing further money. For insurance enquiries about dispute costs, see our home legal expenses cover guide.
Frequently asked questions
Does Section 75 cover business stock bought by a sole trader?
It may, where the agreement and transaction qualify. Give the issuer the credit agreement, buyer details, item prices and payment route, and disclose that the goods are stock for resale.
Do personal and business credit cards have the same protection?
Do not assume they do. Ask the issuer about the actual agreement's regulated status, exclusions, repayment terms and permitted business use before choosing the payment route.
Is my China order deposit the Section 75 price test?
Check the relevant item's cash price, not just the deposit. The range is more than £100 and no more than £30,000. Ask the issuer to assess separately priced stock and the proposed payment split.
Does paying through a marketplace guarantee Section 75?
Do not assume protection from the checkout logo. Identify the seller, payment recipient and intermediary's role, then ask the issuer to assess the exact route and supporting terms.