Returns and the cut-fabric rule: what can go back

Fabric is different from most things sold online: once a roll has been cut to your metreage, the cut piece cannot go back on the roll. EU consumer law recognises this, and it shapes what can and cannot be returned. Here is how returns work at eshop.xmtextiles.com — in plain language.

The 14-day rule for consumers

If you buy as a private person (a Consumer under EU Directive 2011/83/EU), you may withdraw from the purchase within 14 calendar days of receiving the goods, without giving a reason. Send us an unequivocal statement — an e-mail is enough — before the period expires, then return the goods within 14 days of that statement. The direct cost of return shipping is the only cost you bear.

The cut-fabric exception

The right of withdrawal does not apply to products cut to your specification — fabric or tape cut from a larger roll to the metreage you ordered is the textbook example named in Article 16(c) of the Directive. The same applies to personalised goods (custom-printed tapes, non-stock colours) and to sealed hygiene-sensitive products once the seal is broken.

In practice this means:

• Cut metreage (e.g. 12 m cut from a 60 m roll) — no withdrawal right; the cut is made for you at order placement.
• Uncut full rolls, packed accessories, print catalogues — the normal 14-day right applies.

This is exactly why we encourage ordering a small test metreage first: from one metre, so you can verify handle, shade and behaviour in your production before committing to volume.

Business customers

The statutory 14-day right applies to consumers only. For companies buying on trade terms, returns are agreed case by case with your manager — contact us before shipping anything back. Statutory warranty claims for defective goods are a separate track and apply to every customer, business or consumer.

Faulty or wrong goods

If the delivered fabric is defective, damaged in transit, or not what you ordered, none of the above limits apply — that is a warranty claim, not a withdrawal. Photograph the fault, keep the packaging, and contact us; we arrange the return at our cost and replace or refund.

How refunds are paid

Refunds go back by the same payment method you used, within 14 days of an accepted withdrawal (we may wait until we receive the goods back or proof of dispatch). If you paid by bank transfer, we ask for the account to refund to.

The legally binding version of these rules, including the model withdrawal form, is on the Returns & Refunds page. When in doubt, write to us before returning anything — most cases resolve faster with one e-mail than with one parcel.