Refund from an online shop: when a seller won't return your money
For a wrong, damaged or missing item from an online order, or a refund the seller promised but hasn't paid. Covers the platform's own return option, its grievance officer, and the National Consumer Helpline.
Do this first
- 1
Use the return or refund option in the app or site
Do this as soon as you notice the problem, within the return window shown for that order.
- 2
Keep every screenshot
The order page, payment confirmation, delivery photo if there was damage, and your chat with customer support.
- 3
Call the National Consumer Helpline if the refund does not come
Free help getting an online seller to respond.
Step by step
- 1
Raise a return or refund request in the app, right away
Most platforms let you report a wrong, damaged or missing item from the order page itself. Do this within the platform's own return window, and note the request ID it gives you.
- 2
Write to the platform's grievance officer
Every online seller is required to have a grievance officer, whose details should be on the platform. If the in-app return does not get you anywhere, write to this officer with your order ID, what went wrong, and what you want.
Under the rules for online sellers, this officer is expected to acknowledge your complaint within 48 hours and sort it out within a month of getting it.
- 3
Register your complaint on the National Consumer Helpline
Call 1915 (8 AM to 8 PM), or register through the National Consumer Helpline website, its mobile app, the UMANG app, or WhatsApp. Give your order ID, payment proof and what you have already tried.
Your complaint gets a docket number and is forwarded to the company.
- 4
Still no refund? File with the consumer commission on e-Jagriti
File within 2 years of the problem. The District Commission hears complaints up to ₹50 lakh, which covers almost every online order.
What happens next
Under the Consumer Protection (E-Commerce) Rules, 2020, a seller cannot refuse to take back or refund goods that are defective, deficient, spurious, not as described, or delivered late, unless the delay was because of something outside its control.
The rules do not set an exact number of days for the refund itself, only that it must happen within a reasonable time once the seller accepts your return. If it drags on, that is exactly what the grievance officer and the National Consumer Helpline are for.
If none of this works, the consumer commission can order the refund and award compensation for the trouble.
Watch out
- No seller, bank or "refund team" needs your OTP, UPI PIN or card number to refund you. A refund goes back to how you paid, and you never enter your UPI PIN to receive money.
- A message saying your refund failed and asking you to click a link to 'reactivate' it is a common phishing attempt, not a real refund process.
- If you already paid and were cheated outright rather than just facing a refund delay, that may be fraud rather than a consumer complaint: see the guide for money taken by UPI or bank fraud.
When an advocate can help
You can do every step above yourself. An advocate helps when things get stuck:
- A legal notice to the seller when the grievance officer and the helpline don't get a response
- Drafting and filing your complaint with the consumer commission
Sources
- National Consumer Helpline · Department of Consumer Affairs
- e-Jagriti: file in a consumer commission · Department of Consumer Affairs
- Consumer Protection (E-Commerce) Rules, 2020, G.S.R. 462(E): grievance officer, return and refund obligations · Department of Consumer Affairs
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This guide explains how to report a problem through official channels. It is not legal advice.