Table of Contents
BEST IELTS Reading General Test 165
IELTS GENERAL READING TEST 165 – PASSAGE – 1
IELTS GENERAL READING TEST – 165
READING PASSAGE – 1
How you are covered by the law when buying online
The law gives you rights when you buy goods or services without face-to-face contact.
It covers:
• online shopping
• television shopping, e.g. from shopping channels
• mail order shopping, e.g. from a catalogue
• shopping by phone and fax
The law says that:
• you must be given clear information about the goods or services before you buy
• you must get written confirmation of this information after you have made your purchase
• there is usually a ‘cooling-off’ period where you can cancel your order for any reason
• you can get a refund if items aren’t delivered on the agreed delivery date
• If no delivery date is given, you can get a refund if items aren’t delivered within 30 days of placing your order.
IELTS Reading General Test
The usual rules that apply to shopping in person also apply to distance selling.
So items must be:
• as described
• of satisfactory quality
• fit for purpose
Cooling-off period
If you buy something without face-to-face contact, you will usually have a ‘cooling off’ period of seven working days. It lets you cancel the order for any reason and get your money back. If you decide to cancel your order within the ‘cooling off’ period, you must tell the trader in writing. You don’t have this cancellation right:
• when a new service starts immediately, e.g. paying for access to a website
• if the item is personalised or made to order
• if the item is perishable, e.g. food or flowers
• for publications such as the daily press and periodicals
• where the security seal has been broken on a CD, DVD or computer software
• if you buy something from an online auction like eBay – this is known as a private sale
IELTS Reading General Test
Questions 1-10
Do the following statements agree with the information given in the text?
Write TRUE, FALSE OR NOT GIVEN.
1. The same law applies to things you buy on the phone and things you buy on the Internet.
2. The person who sells you something online should write to you about it.
3. You can ask for your money back if things you’ve bought online don’t arrive on time.
4. The seller has to give a delivery date for things you buy online.
5. Different rules about the quality of products apply when you buy in person.
6. The ‘cooling-off’ period only applies to face-to-face purchases.
7. The length of the ‘cooling off’ period is normally fixed.
8. You need to have a good reason for cancelling an order in the ‘cooling-off’ period.
9. You must inform the seller of your reason for cancelling an order.
10. The ‘cooling-off’ period applies to fresh goods and newspapers.
IELTS Reading General Test
Read the text below and answer Questions 11 – 16.
Buying things online: the ‘cooling off’ period
A. Under the distance selling regulations, you are quite within your rights to change your mind at any time, return the goods and get a full refund including any delivery charges you have paid. This must happen within 30 days from cancellation, whether or not the goods have been sent back. Any related credit agreements will also cease to exist.
B. You may be required to bear the cost of returning the goods, but only if this was made clear when you agreed to buy them. If the goods are faulty, then under the separate Sale of Goods laws, the supplier will always be responsible for the cost of returning them.
C. In all other cases, your only obligations are to make the goods available for collection and to take reasonable care of them while they are in your possession. This is called a duty of care, and it lasts for a period of twenty-one days. Where you have agreed to return the goods, your duty of care continues until you do this and could be for as long as six months.
IELTS Reading General Test
D. Under a distance selling contract, a supplier cannot make refunds subject to the goods being returned unopened in their original packaging. One of the principles of the distance selling regulations is to give you a chance to examine the goods at home, not having had a chance to do so in the shop. It would be impossible for you to do this without opening the box or bag and making sure it’s what you wanted.
E. Also, you need to ensure that things are of good quality and work properly. Having said this, you will still be under a duty to take reasonable care of the goods while in your possession, and may be subject to certain instructions such as not to wear shoes outdoors, or remove hygiene seals.
F. However, for goods and services paid for specifically in a distance selling context, you are automatically protected against fraudulent use of your payment card — whether this is a credit or debit card. So if you see that you have paid for goods you didn’t buy, you can ask the card company for the money back.
IELTS Reading General Test
Questions 11-16
Choose the correct heading for sections A-F from the list of headings below. Write the correct number (i-ix) in boxes 11-16 on your answer sheet.
List of Headings
i. When will the payment be taken?
ii. What if I get charged for something I didn’t order?
iii. Do I have to send things back?
iv. What if I have damaged the packaging?
v. What if I saw the goods in a shop, then bought them on the shop’s website?
vi. Who pays for sending things back?
vii. What happens if you don’t have a credit card?
viii. Can I get my money back?
ix. What if I need to try things out?
IELTS Reading General Test
11. Section A
12. Section B
13. Section C
14. Section D
15. Section E
16. Section F
ANSWERS ARE BELOW
IELTS Reading General Test
ANSWERS
1. TRUE
2. TRUE
3. TRUE
4. FALSE
5. FALSE
6. FALSE
IELTS Reading General Test
7. TRUE
8. FALSE
9. NOT GIVEN
10. FALSE
11. viii
12. vi
13. iii
14. iv
15. ix
16. ii
IELTS Reading General Test