I recently bought some collars, which were not fit for the purpose I bought them for. I asked the company to exchange them but have been told they do exchanges for refunds due to health & hygiene reason. I think this is rubbish. I am the consumer and should have the right to exhange or get a refund.

Can anybody advise me what action I can take next?

Many thanks

> but have been told they do exchanges for refunds due to health & hygiene reason.

Not sure what you mean there.  Are they saying they will not refund, only exchange?  Hygiene does not seem a logical reason there in that case.
By "not fit for the purpose you brought them for" do you mean they were faulty, in which case you are fully entitled to a refund, or do you mean they do not fit or you had some other purpose than the usual ie to restrain a dog safely on a lead, in which case all you could expect is an exchange and I am not sure they are obliged to do that as long as you were aware of the size you were ordering for instance.

I'm confused too. Do you mean they are not fit for purpose, in other words they are not able to fulfil the use to which any reasonable person would expect them to be put or did you ask for a product for a particular purpose and that supplied dose not fit that purpose.

If it fall into the above category you should get a refund and if not contact the trading standards with the order you sent.

If it is that you miss ordered then the best you can hope for is a credit but they are not obliged to do anything the mistake is yours. In that case bite the bullet and donate them somewhere they will be of use.

Sorry, I bought them for specific purpose and was told at the time of buying them that they would fine, on trying them out they are not. So they are not faulty but aren't suitable for what I wanted them for. I asked for an exchange to a different collar but they said they did not do exchanges or refunds from health & hygiene reasons (pretty rubbish reason) you should be able to return a collar! It's not underwear! They have been so unhelpful I am very annoyed. And don't really what to do, I want my money back.

> I bought them for specific purpose and was told at the time of buying them that they would fine

I suppose it is your word against theirs whether the purpose was explained or understood.  I am curious as to what unusual purpose you intended to put them.  Will you tell?

As far as i was aware under the consumer rights act they cannot refuse to give you your money back provided the product is returned in the condition you recieved it in. Contact trading standards and ask them for confirmation.

Oh yes, they are the flashing collars you know the led light type. I run my dogs in a very large paddock in the evening and now it's dark I like to see them. I bought some collars which I was told were very good but on trying them they just are not bright enough and you lose sight of the dogs. I have one collar I got a couple of years ago and it's brilliant I can see which ever dog is wearing it from such long distance.

> I bought some which was told were very good but on trying them they just are not bright enough

That seems reasonable.  I would contact them again and quote the Sales of Goods Act 1979 which requires they are fit for purpose.  I would say the purpose of flashing collars would be to be visible to a reasonable distance and if you have experience of other collars fulfulling that quite adequately you have good cause to say they do not.

Thanks, I'm on a mission now. I will make sure they sort this out.

Good luck!!! Let us know how you go on

Would agree, they do not fulfil the purpose for which you bought them and they were aware of what you wanted.

I bought some of these on ebay and they are rubbish! You can't see them within a few metres and the puppy's has now stopped working altogether!
I have had them over a month so nothing I can do but I would be interested to know if anyone finds a decent quality one of these.
Good luck with your quest for refund!

I have some that the whole collar lights up rather than just LEDs so you have a band of colour you can see.  They can be set as on or flashing on/off.  No problems with mine but my dog is shorthaired and I appreciate they may not be as effective if the dog has a  longer coat.

rather than just LEDs
There were some excellant ones at DD but the guy on the stall was rude so I did not buy them. So I still have to get new ones!
Cut my nose off to spite my face again!!!!

I have canac ones, ive had them for years.  They have LED's round the whole collar and you can see them for a real good distance (I have Setters so you can imagine the distance im talking !!)  They are so much better than the bits that hang off the collars because with those if the dogs are facing away from you then you cant see them but with the whole flashing collars you can see them no matter which way they have turned (until they disappear in the bushes !!)

I just bought a couple from the USA from a company called Sirius Dog. They are quite chunky and throw a beam of light out to the front and from below. I'm very pleased with them, but only need them for a canal holiday, and dark tow path, so not sure how they would be from a great distance.