Now that the Christmas gifts have been unwrapped, many people are headed to stores to either spend their holiday cash or return some of their gifts that didn’t quite fit the bill.
The Mall at Bay Plaza was packed with New Yorkers looking to make returns, leaving some shoppers surprised.
“I didn’t expect it to be a long line like this, if not I would have picked something else other than Pandora,” said holiday shopper Zoila Roman.
The Department of Consumer Protection wants to remind consumers of what to look for when making those returns.
State law does not require stores to accept returns, but the retailer is required to clearly state if they do not. If the return policy is not listed, retailers are required to accept the return of the item within 30 days of purchase if it is unused and undamaged with a receipt.
According to the National Retail Federation, this holiday season set record levels for spending. However, a family-owned kiosk at the Mall at Bay Plaza said that less shoppers showed up at his store than in years past – and says online retailers are to blame.
“The toys customers are going to online businesses, Amazon, or other vendors,” said kiosk owner Muhammad Bhuioan.