Call to Donate Unwanted Christmas Presents
Local charity Emmaus is urging people to donate their unwanted gifts instead of leaving them to gather dust
Struggling to find a place for that Christmas present you really didn’t need?
A Leeds charity is urging people to donate any unwanted gifts instead of hiding them at the back of the cupboard.
Emmaus provides shelter and job opportunities for homeless people.
General Manager Ali Ward says money raised from people’s donations will enable them to keep helping people in the new year:
“That jumper that doesn’t fit and there’s no receipt, games that you’re never going to play, books you’re never going to read…. And also there’s the opposite where you get so much stuff that you need to make room. Even though it’s been used, we can still resell it.
“If you get a new set of wine glasses, donate your old ones. Somebody will buy them.
“Even if you absolutely hate something – what you think is tat is somebody else’s treasure. It’s amazing what people will buy!”
Ali says the donations will also help give homeless people a chance to work: “Because our funds go to house previously homeless people, by them doing the selling and the work in the community, they are actually putting a roof over their own heads. They’re not just relying on hand outs.”
But if you're not feeling charitable and want to get your money back on an unwanted gift - what are your legal rights? David Strover from West Yorkshire Trading Standards thinks most shops should be able to help out with advice:
“Many of the larger retailers offer customer services training to staff and they do actually know what the requirements of the Sale of Goods Act are. Maybe in the smaller independent shops there might be a bit less of an understanding.
“But they do usually understand that if the goods aren’t correct, they’re not of satisfactory quality or they’re not as described, they will offer a refund.”
And if you DO decide to try and return your gift – what are your legal rights?
“If the shop has sold an item that is correctly described and is of satisfactory quality, the shop legally does not have to give you a refund,” says David.
“So it does rather depend what’s written on the shop’s return policy.”