Vintro Pro
NL · FR · EN
Vintro Pro
NL · FR · EN
Even a seventy-year-old chair is covered by consumer law when a dealer sells it to a consumer. How long, and who has to prove what, depends on the country. Every rule below comes from the statute itself.
The short answer holds in all four countries.
If you sell as a dealer to a consumer, the statutory rights apply, second-hand pieces included. A sign saying “no returns” or “sold as seen” does not take them away. What differs is how long they last, whether they can be shortened for second-hand goods, and for how long the customer does not have to prove the fault was already there.
The rights cover faults that existed at delivery. Wear that comes with a piece’s age, visible or pointed out to the buyer, is not a fault. A 1920s wardrobe does not have to be as new; it has to be what you sold.
In practice this is the difference that matters. If a fault shows within the period below, it is presumed to have existed at delivery, and you have to prove it did not.
only if the customer is clearly told
what the buyer could expect; cannot be limited
second-hand at public auction: excluded
30 days to reject without argument
The Consumer Rights Act 2015 sets no fixed guarantee period. Goods must be of satisfactory quality, fit for purpose and as described, and what a buyer may expect of a second-hand piece is less than of a new one. For the first thirty days after delivery the consumer has a short-term right to reject faulty goods, new or second-hand:
“The time limit for exercising the short-term right to reject … is the end of 30 days” — s.22(3)
If a fault shows within six months, the goods are taken not to have conformed at delivery (s.19(14)). A term that excludes or restricts these rights is not binding on the consumer (s.31(1)). Second-hand goods sold at a public auction that buyers can attend in person are largely outside the Act: the buyer is not treated as a consumer there (s.2(5)).
So describe a piece honestly on the receipt, faults included, and keep photos of its condition at the sale. Within those six months, that is how you show a crack was already there and disclosed.
Belgian consumer sales are still in the old Civil Code, articles 1649bis to 1649octies. The period is two years (art. 1649quater, §1), but for second-hand goods a shorter period may be agreed, never less than one year, and only if the consumer is informed clearly and unambiguously. Since 1 June 2022 the presumption lasts two years (§4). A public sale is not excluded; only a court-ordered sale is (art. 1649bis, §3).
Dutch law sets no fixed period. The goods must have the properties the buyer could expect under the contract (art. 7:17 BW). Those rights cannot be limited or excluded (art. 7:6). The presumption lasts one year after delivery (art. 7:18a), second-hand included.
The garantie légale de conformité covers faults that show within two years of delivery (art. L217-3 Code de la consommation). The presumption lasts 24 months, reduced to twelve for second-hand goods (art. L217-7). Second-hand goods at a public auction the consumer can attend in person are excluded (art. L217-2).
Against a consumer this works in none of the four countries. At most it describes what the buyer could expect.
Shortening to one year is in the Belgian Civil Code. In the UK and the Netherlands consumer rights cannot be limited.
Without a record of the condition at delivery it is your word against theirs, and the presumption works in their favour.
Checked on 8 October 2026, each time in the statute itself. UK: Consumer Rights Act 2015, s.2, 19, 22 and 31, on legislation.gov.uk. Belgium: old Civil Code, art. 1649bis, 1649quater and 1649octies, as amended by the law of 20 March 2022, on Justel. Netherlands: Civil Code Book 7, art. 7:6, 7:17 and 7:18a, on wetten.overheid.nl. France: Code de la consommation, art. L217-2, L217-3 and L217-7, on Legifrance.
This is an explanation, not legal advice. If you are in a dispute with a customer, take it to a lawyer, with the section number.
Yes. The Consumer Rights Act 2015 applies to second-hand goods sold by a trader to a consumer. There is no fixed guarantee period: the goods must be of satisfactory quality, fit for purpose and as described. For the first 30 days the consumer can simply reject faulty goods (s.22(3)).
No. A term that excludes or restricts the consumer's rights is not binding on the consumer (s.31(1) of the Consumer Rights Act 2015). The same holds in the Netherlands; Belgium allows the period to be shortened to one year for second-hand goods, but not excluded.
If a fault appears within six months of delivery in the UK, the goods are taken not to have conformed on that day (s.19(14)), and the trader has to prove otherwise. In the Netherlands that period is one year, in France twelve months for second-hand goods, in Belgium two years.
Not fully in the UK: someone buying second-hand goods at a public auction they can attend in person is not treated as a consumer (s.2(5)). France has the same exception; Belgium and the Netherlands do not.
Vintro Pro keeps the photos, the description and the sale date for every piece. If a customer comes back with a complaint, you see at a glance what you sold, and when.
Free up to 10 pieces, no card number and no end date.