- You have rights if you are treated differently and unfairly when you want to buy something
- You have rights if you buy something and it isn’t what you expected
- You should feel able to complain if something isn’t what you expected
When you buy something you are a ‘consumer’ no matter how old you are. You can expect that the things you buy will do what they are supposed to, and won’t be damaged or broken. If what you have bought isn’t what you expected, you can usually return it and get your money back – your consumer rights say how this will happen.
If you are treated differently and unfairly when you are buying something, this could be discrimination, and may be against the law.
The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) protects you until you’re 18. Making sure you are treated properly, and that you are protected from harm. Your rights under the UNCRC are mostly connected with the way you are treated by public bodies like the government, the police and local authorities. In Wales, your right not to be treated differently and unfairly by someone selling things you might want to buy comes from this. The UK Government has made rules that mean that you shouldn’t be treated differently and unfairly because of your sex or race or religion. These apply when you are buying things, or using services, so you shouldn’t be treated differently.
You also have the right to be protected from harm – so there are laws in place which mean that you can’t buy somethings because they would be dangerous to you.
Consumer rights are rights that everyone who buys something in Wales have. They are rights that make sure you can get your money back if you buy something and it breaks or doesn’t do what it says it should do. These rights don’t come from the UNCRC but they are important because they mean that you shouldn’t be taken advantage of because you are younger.
In this section of the website we look at