half of the refunds policy

is it legal to have a policy where if the buyer wants a refund than they only get 50% back?

 

I've never seen a policy that stated such a claim, right out. What I've seen instead is a policy that offers a full refund minus what's called 'non-refundable' fees. I additionally have never seen non-refundable fees total half of a full refund.

 

Yes, Most Commonly, Non refundable fees covers up only upto 20 or maximum upto 40% Of the Fees!! Many keep It below 20%!!

~Exp~

 

Since someone could say "all sales final" or "no refunds," I don't see any reason why they could not say that they would only refund 50% of the purchase price. It seems odd, but not illegal.

 

That may be the case in other coutries but certainly not in the UK. If the purchaser was a consumer in the UK such terms would not stand and would be automatically unfair and illegal. Goods have to be of merchantable quality and be substantially as described - even those sold in a sale or discounted - and various act such as Unfair Terms in Consumer Contracts Regulations 1999, Consumer Protection (Distance Selling) Regulations 2000, and Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008 provide comprehensive consumer rights and protections. Business relationships have more leeway for unscrupulous sellers, but certain legal right still apply. However, it's not uncommon to see traders selling to consumer on Ebay where they attempt to subvert consumers legal rights.

An absolutely precise answer depends on the circumstances, what is being bought, and how it is being purchased, but consumer law has precedence over any contract terms and business buyers would still have a number of rights.

 

@RonBrown

You raise a good point about inferior goods and warranties of merchantability. I was assuming that there was no problem with the goods but that the buyer simply wants to return the goods for a refund. There are consumer laws in the US that would also trump the "no refunds" policy.

Where the goods are not defective, misrepresented or similarly problematical, it is a different story. I can't speak for UK or any country other than the US, but except in the case of certain door-to-door sales (where some states have laws that allow the buyer to rescind a sale for a period of 3-5 days), there is no requirement that a seller allow a buyer to return perfectly acceptable goods simply because the buyer has a change of heart. Most retail stores have very lenient return policies, but that is a matter of customer relations, not the law.

 

I obviously misunderstood the question being asked. You are absolutely correct about a customer simply just changing their mind being a matter of company policy/customer relations. In the UK, the most common circumstances where the law would have a say is when consumers purchase goods at a distance (i.e. over the internet or telephone). In these cases the Consumer Protection (Distance Selling) Regulations 2000 would have precedence where the consumer has an absolute right to cancel the contract within 7 days of the date of order for a full refund, or return goods (in "new" condition) within 7 days of receiving them - not from the order date but the receipt date - for a full refund, and can cancel an order if it is not fulfilled within a certain period of time (30 days if I remember correctly). There are some notable exceptions such as when the goods are personalized or made to a personal specification, or when purchasing a service and the service starts within the 7-day period (hosting being a good example), but the exceptions are few and the legislation very clear.