Dutch consumer law sits in books 6 and 7 of the Civil Code and implements the European directives. It is strict on the seller, and almost none of it can be contracted away.
Two provisions do most of the work. Article 7:6(1) of the Civil Code makes the consumer sale rules mandatory: a term that departs from them to the buyer's detriment is voidable, whatever the shop's conditions say. And article 6:83(a) makes default automatic where a statutory deadline passes, so no reminder is needed before interest and costs start running.
| Situation | Rule | Article |
|---|---|---|
| Cooling-off | 14 days from receipt, no reason needed | 6:230o |
| Refund after cancelling | 14 days, including outbound delivery costs | 6:230r(1) |
| Delivery | Without delay, in any event within 30 days | 7:9(4) |
| Conformity | Goods must match the contract | 7:17 |
| Burden of proof | Reversed for the first year after delivery | 7:18a(2) |
| Remedy for a defect | Free repair or replacement, seller pays return | 7:21(2) and (7) |
| Mandatory law | No departure to the buyer's detriment | 7:6(1) |
| Article | Subject |
|---|---|
| How long may a retailer take to refund? | The fourteen days of article 6:230r(1), and the right of suspension that retailers read too widely. |
| The thirty-day delivery period | Article 7:9(4) and when default arises under article 7:19a. |
| The fourteen-day cooling-off period | When it starts, when it becomes twelve months, what falls outside it. |
| Who pays return shipping? | The difference between cancelling and a defect, and why that decides who pays. |
| The presumption in the first year | Article 7:18a(2) puts the burden on the seller. |
| There is no chargeback on iDEAL | What can be recovered per payment method. |
| Disputes board or subdistrict court | What each route costs and when it makes sense. |
| What a trustmark is worth | Which ones carry an enforceable guarantee. |
Claims up to twenty-five thousand euros go to the subdistrict court, where no admitted attorney is required. Alongside that sit the sector disputes boards, which are cheaper but only work where the business is affiliated. The consumer regulator is the ACM. See disputes board or court.
We put them in default under the article that applies and attach a deadline. It costs you nothing.