united-states business consumer-protection common-law commerce
I returned an order to a business online that has a &quot;typical&quot; return policy, and they have not issued a refund. How can I take legal action?
<p>I ordered an item from business online that has a &quot;typical&quot; return policy, i.e., a full refund will be issued in, say, two weeks upon receiving the returned item, assuming that the item has maintained the quality it had when it was shipped, etc. Once I received the item, I immediately decided that it was not what I expected, and returned in within the week. I contacted the business, and they gave me the address to ship it to, which is across the country from me. I shipped it in an envelope through USPS with multiple Forever USA stamps to be sure that it reached the address given to me by the business. I was in contact with the business over email about returning the package, and suddenly they stopped replying once I noted that my return package did not have a tracking number, which is because it was sent in an envelope via USPS. That was a little more than a month ago, and I am beyond certain that they have received my return. I have emailed the business several times without receiving a reply. What legal action can I take against the business to get my refund? Or, is there a way I can legally &quot;scare&quot; the business into giving me a refund? The research that I have conducted online recommends hiring an Ombudsman. What recommendations do you have?</p>

<p>When a company sells you things and ships them to you, they are obligated to actually get them to you: they can't say &quot;We gave it to our shipper, it's your responsibility now&quot;. The same is true with a return: you have to be sure that the stuff is received. The typical way of doing that is to insure the shipment and get a tracking number, so that if the shipment is lost, it might be found, and you won't be financially harmed by the loss. If you do not do this, the company is unlikely to voluntarily refund the money without the returned goods, and you cannot legally &quot;scare&quot; the company onto doing so.</p>
