Can I Return It?

Every legal system, including halacha (Jewish law), has its letter of the law, its spirit of the law, and the gray areas in-between. Commercial dealings are one area of life in which those gray areas occur frequently. Take, for instance, the act of returning an already purchased item.


There may be many factors why a person chooses to return a purchased item. The most obvious is because the product is defective. According to halacha, there is no time limit for returning a genuinely defective item – a defect that was always there and was unnoticed by the buyer at the time of purchase. Once the defect is noticed, however, the item should not be used.


The gray area occurs on issues such as what defines a “defect,” and how is the true meaning of a no-questions-asked return policy properly interpreted. For instance, is there a problem with buying an item with the intention of using it once or twice or for a limited time and then returning it? What about returning a school bag that is frayed after two years of use in order to receive a new bag without charge?  In neither case is the item defective, but in both cases the company policy permits the return. The question is, does halacha?


In Jewish law, there is an important concept known as G’neivat Da’at — meaning misleading and deceptive behavior. Open return policies are introduced by marketers in order to encourage people to shop in their stores and feel free to purchase something on a trial basis if they are uncertain. It is disingenuous to pretend that one is trying out an item that they have every intention of returning. Being honest about one’s intention is a major aspect of Jewish law, and returning an item after two years of heavy use as if one is dissatisfied is certainly an act of questionable definition. Allowed by policy yes, the intention of the policy – perhaps not.


(Please note that while halachically a return on a flawed item has no time limit, most stores today have specifically stated and limited return/exchange policies.)