Shopping at a market

Street markets, covered markets and farmers' markets each have their regulars and their own days of the week.

This guide is free to read. It has no connection with Markety Limited, a company of a similar name.

Finding a market

The NMTF, the trade association for market and street traders, runs Market Near Me, a database of UK markets that traders and shoppers both use.

Your local council is another place to ask about markets nearby. GOV.UK's council finder takes a postcode and gives the council's website.

If something you bought is faulty

Citizens Advice says a faulty item may entitle you to your money back, a repair or a swap. Buying secondhand doesn't take those rights away.

Those rights are written in the Consumer Rights Act 2015, for things bought from a trader. Someone selling their own belongings, at a car boot sale for instance, is a private seller. What they sell must still match the way they described it. The rule on satisfactory quality, in section 14 of the Sale of Goods Act 1979, is written for sellers who sell in the course of a business.

The rights apply when the item is broken or damaged, can't be used, or doesn't match the advert or the seller's description. Damage from misuse or an accident isn't covered, and neither is ordinary wear and tear. Nor is a fault you knew about when you paid.

This advice is written for England, and Citizens Advice has separate pages for Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales.

Changing your mind

Changing your mind about an item that works is a different case. Citizens Advice explains that a refund then isn't automatic, and any offer is the seller's choice.

For things bought in a shop, Citizens Advice suggests checking the returns policy, and taking the receipt and the original packaging back with the item.

A 14-day cooling-off period, Citizens Advice says, covers things bought without seeing them in person, such as online orders.

Fake goods

Buying a fake or counterfeit item from a trader entitles you to your money back by law, Citizens Advice says. Inside the first 30 days after paying, you are owed the full amount.

After that, and up to 6 months from payment, the seller may offer the genuine article in place of the fake. A seller who can't do that has to refund you.

Trading Standards takes reports about sellers of fakes and might take them to court. Citizens Advice notes that Trading Standards can't recover your money, though.

Sold by weight

Across England, Scotland and Wales, GOV.UK says goods sold loose or in packs must be weighed or measured in metric units. A short list of exceptions includes a pint of draught beer or cider, and milk sold by the pint in returnable containers.

Pounds and ounces may be shown too, provided they are no more prominent than the metric amount. Northern Ireland follows different rules.

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