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Consumers: Repayments

Asked by Mark PritchardConservativeDepartment for Business and TradeTabled Answered 14 October 2025UIN 77489

The question

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, if he will take steps to prevent businesses claiming to be based in the UK requiring customers to return purchases to China to secure refunds.

Answered by Kate Dearden

Consumer law prohibits commercial practices involving misleading actions or omissions that might lead the average consumer to make a different decision. This includes misleading consumers about where a trader is based or where items must be returned to.

The Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers (DMCC) Act strengthens consumer law enforcement by giving the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) new administrative powers, and the CMA and courts the ability to impose significant monetary penalties of up to 10% of turnover.

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