The money-saving expert says people buying gifts for their loved ones should do this before the big day
Martin Lewis has advised those who have splashed out on ‘pricey’ Christmas presents to do one thing before the big day. Many people will be taking advantage of the final weekend before Christmas to splash out for loved ones.
By the end of the weekend, there will only be three full days – or 72 hours, before Christmas Day. Controversially, Mr Lewis is advising people who have bought ‘expensive’ gifts ahead of Christmas to open them before Christmas Day.
The suggestion, which he made on BBC Radio 5 Live, might seem odd to some. In the UK, as well as in other countries with British ties such as Australia, the US, and New Zealand, it’s customary to unwrap gifts on December 25 – Christmas Day. However, in many mainland European countries, presents are opened on Christmas Eve.
Mr Lewis was specifically referring to gifts you have bought for others, and there is a crucial reason behind his advice. He explained that due to consumer rights laws, individuals who may have purchased their gifts in advance could find themselves unprotected if an item is faulty when given as a gift on Christmas Day.
The money-saving expert clarified: “Because of consumer rights, I would suggest that, if you bought an expensive present for someone, you should probably be opening before you give it to them just in case to check if its faulty.
“If you leave it too long, you will lose your right to send it back and get a full refund under fault rules. But am I breaking a social convention in doing that?”
He went on to say: “When it comes to Christmas gifts, timing matters. By law, if you buy something online, unless they are perishable or personalised, you have within 14 days of you receiving the item to notify the company that you want to send it back for any reason. And then 14 days after notification to send it back.
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“If you are buying something in a store, you have no right of return to change your mind, but if an item is faulty and you take it back within 30 days of buying it, you have a right to a full refund. After that, it is repair, replacement, or partial refund.
“So, you see, one of the things that happens at this time of year is people who – and they tend to be people who are good with money – buy things ahead of time and might buy them on Black Friday in the sales, or even earlier in the year, they pack them away so it is a new gift to give someone, especially to the kids or someone close and it is expensive, but they haven’t checked it.
“Then, when they open it, because in consumer rights law, timing matters, and there are time limits, you actually have fewer rights than you would have had had you opened it right away.
“So my instinct is actually, if you are buying something expensive for somebody else as a Christmas gift, the sensible thing to do would be to open it yourself and check that it is working.”
Mr Lewis indicated that this approach was particularly important when it came to pricey tech gadgets, explaining that it was sensible and straightforward to remove items from their packaging and check they functioned properly.
Nevertheless, he recognised that such behaviour might seem odd and could potentially violate unwritten rules surrounding present-giving. He said: “Clearly, there is a lack of romanticism in that in terms of the gift-giving process..”
