The Ministry of Economic Development proposed to change the rules for returning goods on marketplaces

Brief retelling from RIA II

The Ministry of Economic Development proposed to secure the possibility of returning goods of proper quality only after agreement with the seller, who must make a decision within two days.

The changes are aimed at solving problems with the return of goods of proper quality and the lack of balance of interests between the seller and the consumer.

MOSCOW, September 17 - RIA Novosti. Changing the rules for returning goods of good quality purchased on marketplaces will make it possible to find a balance of interests between the seller and the consumer, the Russian Ministry of Economic Development told RIA Novosti.

Earlier, the Russian Ministry of Economic Development published draft amendments to the current legislation to regulate the activities of digital platforms. In particular, the ministry proposes to secure the possibility of returning goods of proper quality only after agreement with the seller. The seller must make a decision within 2 days. Failure to receive a response from the seller within the established period is recognized as his consent to return the goods.

In addition, the amendments propose to give the Russian government the right to approve a list of goods of good quality, which the consumer has no right to refuse and return, as well as a list of goods of good quality that cannot be returned.

“Changes to 289-FZ (“On certain issues of regulation of the platform economy in the Russian Federation”) are aimed at solving the accumulated issues of returning goods of proper quality and the lack of balance of interests between the seller and the consumer,” the ministry said.

They recalled that the current regulation of the rules for returning goods is based on the provisions of the Law “On the Protection of Consumer Rights”, which were introduced in 2004 and do not take into account the new model of relations - in which intermediaries appeared in the form of digital platforms and pick-up points (POIs).

As a result, the Ministry of Economic Development notes, the seller pays for the customer-centricity of platforms with free return delivery for returns and for the lack of control over returns. They cited statistics according to which in 2025, 62% of sellers on platforms encountered problems returning goods of proper quality.

“We have proposed a system of measures that includes defining a list of goods that cannot be refused when receiving orders (the most sensitive categories of goods: food, medicine, medical products), and a list of goods that can be refused upon receipt or trying on, but cannot be returned after being picked up from a courier or at a pickup point (for example, goods that cannot be returned in offline trade: electronics, personal hygiene items, perfumes and cosmetics),” the ministry explained.

The department emphasized that if a defect is detected in the product, the return is carried out in accordance with the general procedure in accordance with the law “On the Protection of Consumer Rights”.