Citizens Advice helps someone with a fashion purchase woe every seven minutes
From tatty clothes to delivery delays and retail scams, Citizens Advice is arming consumers with expert advice after receiving almost 18,000 complaints about fashion buys last year.
According to the charity’s Consumer Service, 82% of complaints about clothes, shoes and accessories related to online orders (14,487), while 14% were bought in-store (2,569).
Women’s clothing caused the most headaches, making up almost half (48%) of all complaints (8,508), while men’s clothing made up 20% (3,523).
The number of people reporting these issues last year surged by 21% compared with 2024, meaning thousands more were left stressed and out of pocket after battling with retailers and sellers.
The top five issues shoppers faced with fashion purchases in 2025, according to the Citizens Advice Consumer Service, were:
Faulty goods - 3,222 complaints (18% of all complaints)
Delivery failure or delay - 2,360 complaints (13%)
Trouble returning unwanted goods - 2,079 complaints (12%)
Breach of contract - 1,562 complaints (9%)
Poor customer service 1,085 complaints (6%)
Retail scams
Of last year’s complaints, one in 13 involved scams. Citizens Advice has supported shoppers with issues after thinking they were buying items from UK-based companies, due to their advertising. Instead, people receive poor quality items that aren’t as pictured, and when they try to return them, they’re asked to pay expensive fees to send them to an address overseas.
Hannah’s story: ‘I knew immediately this wasn’t going to be resolved without a fight’
Hannah, a mum in her 30s from the East Midlands, was Christmas shopping online when she saw a jacket she had liked for a while was advertised at half price. The company selling the jacket claimed it was based in London’s Covent Garden, and given Hannah thought it was a good deal, she bought the item for £35 on her debit card.
Hannah said: “The jacket took a few weeks to come and when it did, it was a totally different material and colour, and not as premium as it was pictured. The pockets were different and it had massive plastic buttons, but the one in the photograph had nice metal ones. It even smelled cheap.”
Upon receiving the jacket, Hannah emailed the company to complain and request a refund.
She added: “The service felt very different to any other clothing company I’d dealt with. They asked for pictures of the jacket I’d received and I thought - this company sent the item to me, surely they should know what it looks like. They also emailed me on Boxing Day.
“They said I could return the jacket if I sent it to China at my own expense, it left me fuming. I looked up the cost of shipping and it was about £15. The website clearly stated it was a UK business, which was deceptive.”
The company offered a partial refund for Hannah to keep the jacket if she didn’t want to pay to return it. She reported the incident to the Citizens Advice Consumer Service, and was able to get a full refund through her bank, which covered the cost. Eventually, the company did issue a refund itself.
Jane Parsons, Consumer Expert at Citizens Advice, said: “Shopping should be simple and stress-free, but every year we hear from thousands of frustrated people who have a tough time trying to resolve issues with retailers and sellers.
“Consumers face all kinds of problems from receiving faulty items, to waiting weeks for deliveries and poor customer service. Plus, the ever-increasing use of AI makes it easier for scammers to trick people into buying items that look nothing like the images advertised.
“It’s important consumers know what steps to take before they part with their cash or after there’s an issue. It can make all the difference in avoiding a trap or getting a refund.”
When sellers turn out to be based overseas, UK consumer laws are far harder to enforce so it can be difficult to recover your money. As part of Citizens Advice’s national Consumer Awareness campaign, Jane shares her top tips to help spot and avoid these scams:
Research before buying from a company you haven’t used before - check reviews on search engines and third-party websites
Watch out for heavily discounted, too good to be true prices and huge closing down sales
Be mindful of the targeted shopping adverts in your social media feeds - this is often how customers are drawn in
Consider whether images used to advertise an item were created by AI. This can be difficult, but look for overly airbrushed images, inconsistent textures or distortions on the face and body
Check the company’s website delivery information. Overseas stores offer shipping to the UK in a much longer timeframe than a genuine UK brand would
If you’ve been caught out by this type of scam and you paid by debit or credit card, you may be able to use a ‘chargeback scheme’ or a ‘section 75’ claim to get a refund
Mike Andrews, National Coordinator of the National Trading Standards eCrime Team, said: “Online retail scams leave shoppers out of pocket and understandably frustrated. What appears to be a genuine retailer can turn out to be a fake website, a misleading advert or goods that never arrive. Criminals are increasingly using professional-looking sites and convincing promotions to exploit people’s confidence in well-known brands.
“We would encourage consumers to pause before buying online - check the retailer using a URL checker from a reputable website like Get Safe Online, be cautious of offers that seem too good to be true, avoid buying directly through social media adverts and always pay by card or a secure payment platform.”
John Herriman, Chief Executive at the Chartered Trading Standards Institute (CTSI), said: “CTSI is very pleased to support this national campaign, because the challenges consumers face when returning faulty goods or seeking redress have become far too widespread.
“Every day, Trading Standards teams see members of the public being denied their basic rights - leading to unnecessary financial loss and eroding confidence in the marketplace. This growing detriment demands urgent attention. By highlighting the scale of the problem and working with partners across the consumer protection landscape, we aim to drive the action needed to ensure consumers are treated fairly and the law is upheld.”
Citizens Advice has lots of information online about what to do if something’s gone wrong with a purchase. Shoppers can contact the charity’s Consumer Service for further support and to report a scam.
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Notes to editors:
National Consumer Awareness is a campaign led by Citizens Advice in collaboration with the Consumer Protection Partnership (CPP).
Between January 1st-December 31st 2025, the Citizens Advice Consumer Service received 17,744 complaints about ‘clothing and footwear’. Between January 1st-December 31st 2024, it received 14,620 complaints. This means there was a 21% increase in complaints in 2025.
The ‘clothing and footwear’ category includes: clothing and shoes for women, men and children; bespoke clothing; sportswear; protective clothing; bags and suitcases; handbags and accessories and fabric and haberdashery.
Of the 17,744 complaints received in 2025, 13,613 involved items purchased through trader websites and apps, 843 were online marketplaces (non auction), and 31 were internet auctions = 14,487 (82%) of all complaints related to online orders.
‘Trader websites and apps’ includes social media apps and resale apps - although the large majority of complaints relate to retailers’ websites and apps.
Of last year’s complaints, one in 13 (8%) involved scams.
In 2025, Citizens Advice gave advice on issues with ‘clothing and footwear’ purchases to one person every seven minutes.
This calculation is based on the number of complaints and the service’s opening days. The service was open for 253 days in 2025. 17,744 / 253 = 70.13. 70.13 / 8 working hours per day = 8.77. 60 minutes / 8.77 = 6.84. (The service is closed on weekends) = one complaint every seven minutes, on average.
‘Clothing and footwear’ complaints are categorised by the item complained about, the issue that arose and the purchase method.
Citizens Advice is the people’s champion - supporting people across England and Wales through: the national charity Citizens Advice; the network of independent local Citizens Advice charities; the Citizens Advice consumer service; and the Witness Service.
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