Returns & Refunds

Last updated: 27 October 2026

At a glance

• Faulty, damaged or not as described? You have legal rights to a repair, replacement or refund. Bring it back to the shop with your proof of purchase.
• Changed your mind? Return it in as-new condition (unopened and undamaged) within 14 days, with your receipt, for a refund or a credit note. Some exceptions apply (see section 3).
• Reserved an item? You don’t pay until you collect, and you can decline the item at the counter at no cost.
• Returns are made in person at 90 High Street, Nailsea BS48 1AS. We don’t offer postal returns.
• Faulty item too large to bring back? Call us and we’ll collect it free of charge.
• No restocking or return fees.

1. Reservations: decline at collection

When we order an item in for you, you don’t pay for it until you come into the shop. If you see it and decide it isn’t right, you don’t have to buy it, and there’s nothing to pay or return. Please tell us if you no longer need it.

2. Faulty or misdescribed items: your legal rights

Goods you buy from us must be of satisfactory quality, fit for purpose and as described, including as described on our website or by our staff. This applies to everything we sell, both shop stock and items ordered in for you. These rights come from the Consumer Rights Act 2015 and cannot be taken away by any shop policy.

If something you bought is faulty or not as described:

• Within 30 days of buying it, you can reject it and get a full refund.
• After 30 days, you’re entitled to a repair or replacement. If that isn’t possible, or doesn’t fix the problem, you can have a price reduction or a refund. A refund after the first six months may be reduced to reflect the use you have had.
• Within the first six months, a fault is assumed to have been there when you bought it, unless we can show otherwise. After six months, you may need to show that it was.
• You can generally make a claim for up to six years after purchase (five years in Scotland).

These rights do not cover normal wear and tear, damage caused by misuse or incorrect installation, or a fault you were told about before you bought.

Many products also come with a manufacturer’s guarantee. This is in addition to your rights against us, not instead of them.

3. Changed your mind?

Your legal right to return goods because you’ve changed your mind applies only to goods bought at a distance (see section 4). For items bought in the shop, returns for change of mind are offered at our discretion under our own policy.

If you change your mind about something you bought from us, you can return it within 14 days of purchase for a refund or a credit note, as long as:

• it is in as-new condition: unopened, unused, undamaged and in its original packaging;
• you bring your receipt; and
• it isn’t one of the exceptions below.

Exceptions: we can’t accept these back for a change of mind

• items cut to length or size, or otherwise made up to your requirements;
• items whose packaging or seal has been opened; and
• large special orders, such as benches, kitchen units and worktops, and other items too large to come on a pallet with our normal weekly delivery. We’ll tell you when you reserve one of these items that it can’t be returned for a change of mind.

Items we ordered in for you are otherwise treated the same as items from our shelves.

Whether you receive a refund or a credit note for a change-of-mind return is at the shop’s discretion. We’ll tell you which before we accept the return.

None of these conditions or exceptions apply if an item is faulty or not as described. Those items are always covered by section 2, even if they were cut to size, opened or specially ordered.

4. Cancellation rights for distance sales

The legal 14-day right to cancel applies to goods bought online, by phone or by email, and to some sales made at your home. It doesn’t apply to items you buy in the shop, including items you reserved by email or phone and items we deliver to you after you’ve paid in the shop. Our 14-day change-of-mind policy in section 3 still applies, as do your rights for faulty items in section 2.

5. How to return an item

1. Bring the item to the shop at 90 High Street, Nailsea BS48 1AS during opening hours (see Visit Us). If a faulty item is too large or heavy to bring back, call us on 01275 853368 and we’ll arrange to collect it at no cost to you.
2. Bring proof of purchase. For a change-of-mind return, you need your receipt. For a faulty item, your receipt is best, but a bank or card statement showing the purchase also works, and you don’t need the original packaging.
3. Tell us what’s wrong. We may need to check the item, or send it to the supplier or manufacturer for assessment. If so, we’ll tell you how long that is likely to take.

6. Refunds

• Refunds are made using the same method you paid with, unless you agree otherwise: cash purchases are refunded in cash, and card purchases go back to the card you paid with.
• We process card refunds in the shop when we accept your return. How long a refund takes to show in your account depends on your card provider’s normal timescales.
• For a faulty or misdescribed item, the choice of a refund is yours, not ours. We’ll only give a credit note if you’d prefer one.
• Where you’re entitled to a refund for a faulty or misdescribed item, we’ll refund you without undue delay, and within 14 days of agreeing that you’re entitled to it.
• We don’t charge for returning faulty goods.

7. Exchanges

For faulty items, you can ask for a replacement instead of a refund. For change-of-mind returns, you can use a refund or credit note towards a different item.

8. Questions or problems

Call 01275 853368, email info@johnbrownhardware.co.uk, or speak to us in the shop. If we can’t resolve something, Citizens Advice offers free, independent consumer advice.

This page does not affect your statutory rights. See also our Terms & Conditions.