Right of Withdrawal
Pursuant to the Law No. 6502 on the Protection of the Consumer ("Law"), the buyers have the right to use their right of withdrawal within 14 days from the delivery date to return the products without giving any reason and "without paying the shipping fee".
1. Consumer's Right of Withdrawal in Installment Sales Contracts;
Provisions regarding sales in installments are regulated in Article 17 of the Law, and the right of withdrawal is regulated in Article 18.
The Regulation on Contracts for Sale by Installments was published in the Official Gazette dated 14.01.2015.
Accordingly;
Right of withdrawal
(1) The consumer has the right to withdraw from the sales contract in installments within seven days without giving any reason and without paying any penalty.
(2) The term of the right of withdrawal, in contracts related to the performance of service, the day the contract is established; In contracts for the delivery of goods, it starts on the day the consumer or the third party determined by the consumer receives the goods. However, the consumer can use the right of withdrawal within the period from the conclusion of the contract to the delivery of the goods.
(3) In contracts where the delivery of goods and the performance of services are made together, the provisions of the right of withdrawal regarding the delivery of goods shall apply.
(4) It is sufficient that the notification regarding the exercise of the right of withdrawal is addressed to the seller or supplier in writing or with a permanent data storage within the period of the right of withdrawal. The seller or the provider is obliged to prove that the consumer has been informed about the right of withdrawal.
(5) If the seller has delivered the goods to the consumer within the withdrawal period, the consumer may use the goods only to the extent required by an ordinary review. The regular review includes the initial inspection of the property. In case the goods are used as usual, the consumer cannot use the right of withdrawal.
(6) Before the expiry of the right of withdrawal, the consumer cannot use the right of withdrawal in the service contracts where the performance of the service has started with the approval of the consumer.
(7) The right of withdrawal cannot be exercised in financial leasing transactions where the consumer finds the seller.
(8) The provisions of the right of withdrawal in favor of the consumer regarding other contracts regulated in the Law are reserved.
Consequences of exercising the right of withdrawal
(1) In case the consumer exercises his right of withdrawal, the seller or the supplier is obliged to return the price he has received and any document that puts the consumer in debt within seven days from the date of receipt of the withdrawal notification, without incurring any expense to the consumer.
(2) The consumer, who uses his right of withdrawal, is obliged to return the contractual goods to the seller within seven days from the date of exercising his right of withdrawal. Otherwise, the consumer is deemed not to have used his right of withdrawal.
(3) In case of exercising the right of withdrawal, the consumer has to bear the costs of returning the goods.
Consumer's Right of Withdrawal in Distance Contracts,
Provisions regarding Distance Contracts are explained in Article 48 of the Law.
Distance contracts, like contracts made outside the workplace, also contain some risks for the consumer. While the determining feature in contracts made outside the workplace is that the parties physically meet outside of the usual contracting places such as a store, the decisive feature in distance contracts is that the parties never meet. The consumer, who concludes the contract from his home via telephone, internet, letter, etc., does not even see the face of the seller or provider. As a matter of fact, the problem in such contracts is that the contract of sale is concluded without much thought, without adequate knowledge of the details of the contract and the performance, without comparing the contract conditions for the same type of goods or services offered in the market, without seeing the goods at all. Therefore, in order to eliminate the lack of information in such cases, it seems appropriate to inform the consumer about the contract and the performance and to give him a right of withdrawal in accordance with the Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council No. 2011/83/EU on Consumer Rights dated 25/10/2011.
The Regulation on Distance Contracts was published in the Official Gazette dated 27.11.2015.
According to this regulation, the Consumer's Use of the Right of Withdrawal and the Obligations of the Parties are determined as follows.
Right of withdrawal
(1) The consumer has the right to withdraw from the contract within fourteen days without giving any justification and without paying any penalty.
(2) The term of the right of withdrawal, in contracts related to the performance of service, the day the contract is established; In contracts for the delivery of goods, it starts on the day the consumer or the third party determined by the consumer receives the goods. However, the consumer can use the right of withdrawal within the period from the conclusion of the contract to the delivery of the goods.
(3) In determining the period of the right of withdrawal;
a) In the case of goods that are subject to a single order and delivered separately, the day the consumer or the third party determined by the consumer receives the final product,
b) In the case of goods consisting of more than one piece, the day when the consumer or the third party determined by the consumer receives the last piece,
c) In contracts where the goods are delivered regularly for a certain period of time, the day on which the consumer or the third party determined by the consumer receives the first goods
basis.
(4) Delivery of the goods by the seller to the carrier is not considered as delivery to the consumer.
(5) In contracts where the delivery of goods and the performance of services are made together, the provisions of the right of withdrawal regarding the delivery of goods shall apply.
Missing information
(1) The seller or the supplier is obliged to prove that the consumer has been informed about the right of withdrawal. If the consumer is not properly informed about the right of withdrawal, he is not bound to use the right of withdrawal for fourteen days. In any case, this period expires one year after the end of the withdrawal period.
(2) If the necessary notification regarding the right of withdrawal is made within a one-year period, the fourteen-day right of withdrawal begins to run from the day this notification is duly made.
Exercise of the right of withdrawal
(1) It is sufficient to send the notification that the right of withdrawal has been exercised to the seller or supplier, in writing or with a permanent data storage, before the right of withdrawal expires.
(2) In exercising the right of withdrawal, the consumer can use the form in the Annex or make a clear statement of the decision to withdraw. The seller or the provider may also offer an option on the website so that the consumer can fill out this form or send the withdrawal statement. In the event that consumers are given the right of withdrawal via the website, the seller or the provider must immediately convey to the consumer the confirmation that the withdrawal requests submitted by the consumers have been received.
(3) In sales made via voice communication, the seller or the supplier has to send the form in the Annex to the consumer, at the latest, until the goods are delivered or the service is rendered. The consumer can use this form to use the right of withdrawal in such sales, as well as the methods in the second paragraph.
(4) The burden of proof regarding the exercise of the right of withdrawal in this article belongs to the consumer.
Liabilities of the seller or supplier
(1) The seller or the supplier is obliged to return all payments collected, including the delivery costs of the goods, if any, within fourteen days from the date on which the notification regarding the use of the consumer's right of withdrawal is received.
(2) The seller or the supplier is obliged to make all the repayments specified in the first paragraph at once, in accordance with the payment instrument used by the consumer and without incurring any expense or obligation to the consumer.
(3) In the exercise of the right of withdrawal, in the event that the goods are sent back through the carrier specified by the seller for the return, the consumer cannot be held responsible for the costs related to the return, within the scope of subparagraph (g) of the first paragraph of Article 5. In the event that the seller does not specify any carrier for the return in the preliminary notification, no compensation can be claimed from the consumer for the return cost. In the event that the carrier specified in the preliminary notification for the return does not have a branch at the location of the consumer, the seller is obliged to ensure that the goods to be returned are received from the consumer without demanding any additional costs.
Consumer's obligations
(1) Unless the seller or the supplier makes an offer to take the goods back, the consumer is obliged to return the goods to the seller or the supplier or the person authorized by him, within ten days from the date of the notification regarding the use of the right of withdrawal.
(2) The consumer is not responsible for the changes and deteriorations that occur if he/she uses the goods in accordance with the operation, technical specifications and usage instructions within the withdrawal period.
The effect of the use of the right of withdrawal on subcontracts
(1) Provided that the provisions of Article 30 of the Law are reserved, ancillary contracts automatically terminate if the consumer exercises his right of withdrawal. In this case, the consumer is not obliged to pay any costs, compensation or penal clauses, except for the cases specified in the second paragraph of Article 13.
(2) The seller or the supplier must immediately notify the third party, who is a party to the subcontract, that the consumer has exercised his right of withdrawal.
Exceptions to the right of withdrawal
(1) Unless agreed otherwise by the parties, the consumer cannot use the right of withdrawal in the following contracts:
a) Contracts for goods or services whose prices change depending on the fluctuations in the financial markets and which are not under the control of the seller or supplier.
b) Contracts for goods prepared in line with the consumer's wishes or personal needs.
c) Contracts for the delivery of perishable or expired goods.
ç) From the goods whose protective elements such as packaging, tape, seal, package have been opened after delivery; Contracts for the delivery of those whose return is not suitable in terms of health and hygiene.
d) Contracts for goods that are mixed with other products after delivery and cannot be separated due to their nature.
e) Contracts regarding books, digital content and computer consumables presented in material environment, if protective elements such as packaging, tape, seal, package are opened after the delivery of the goods.
f) Contracts for the delivery of periodicals such as newspapers and magazines, excluding those provided under the subscription contract.
g) Contracts for accommodation, transportation of goods, car rental, food and beverage supply and the use of leisure time for entertainment or rest, which must be made on a certain date or period.
ğ) Contracts regarding services performed instantly in electronic environment or intangible goods delivered instantly to the consumer.
h) Contracts regarding services that are started to be performed with the approval of the consumer, before the expiry of the right of withdrawal.