Your rights if a delivery goes wrong

Businesses must ensure the delivery gets to you on time and you get what you paid for. John Hearne examines your rights when they don't.

If there’s a problem, your contract is with the business you bought from, not the courier. So don’t get fobbed off by an online retailer who tells you to take your complaint to the company that either delivered or failed to deliver. Picture: iStock

When you buy online or over the phone, you want to know that whatever it is you’ve spent your hard-earned money on will arrive intact, on time and as described. So what can you do if a delivery goes wrong?