Complaint (warranty claim)
Exercising rights over defective goods
A complaint, in the Czech and Slovak sense, is a customer exercising their statutory rights over a defect in goods or a service. The customer reports the defect, the seller assesses it, and within a statutory deadline resolves it by repair, replacement, a discount, or a refund.
The rules in Slovakia and Czechia
In Slovakia act no. 108/2024 Z. z. on consumer protection has applied since 1 July 2024, replacing act no. 250/2007 Z. z. The detailed rules on complaints moved out of the consumer protection act and into the Civil Code. The seller has 30 days from the defect being reported, and may exceed that only for an objective reason outside their control, informing the consumer in writing about the extension and its grounds.
In Czechia the seller must likewise resolve a claim without undue delay and within 30 days of it being raised, under the consumer protection act together with the defective performance rules in Civil Code no. 89/2012 Sb. If the seller misses the deadline without having expressly agreed a longer one in advance, the consumer gains the right to withdraw from the contract and get their money back.
What the system has to handle
A complaint is a process with a deadline, and the deadline runs from an event. A shop that manages claims in email and a spreadsheet will therefore get it wrong sooner or later — not from bad faith, but because nobody is watching which case reaches its thirtieth day tomorrow.
- The date raised recorded automatically, not typed in later.
- A warning before the deadline lapses, not after.
- Correspondence held on the case, not in one employee's mailbox.
- A link to the original order, document, and delivery.
- A record of resolution that can be found and resent at any time.
A complaint is a commercial opportunity
A complaint is the one moment a customer watches closely how a company behaves in an unpleasant situation. Fast, clear handling restores trust more effectively than any discount, and it is one of the few levers on a shop's public ratings.
A process where the customer has to chase three times, by contrast, reliably shows up in reviews and gets paid for twice. Running claims on the order itself, with states and deadlines, belongs in a custom e-shop or a CRM, not in a mailbox. The wording of the complaints policy is a lawyer's job — the system's job is making sure it is met.
Want claims tracked with states and deadlines?
Explore custom e-shopsFrequently asked questions
Can the 30-day deadline be extended?
Only on specific grounds. In Slovakia an objective reason outside the seller's control is required, with written notice to the consumer. In Czechia a longer period must be expressly agreed in advance; missing the deadline without that agreement gives the consumer the right to withdraw.
How does this differ from the 14-day right of withdrawal?
A complaint concerns defective goods. Withdrawal within 14 days is the right to return goods without giving a reason, including perfectly sound ones. They are separate rights with separate deadlines and procedures.
Do I need a written complaints policy?
Consumers must be informed of their rights and the procedure. The document's wording is a legal question for a lawyer; the shop's task is to make it available and, above all, to actually follow it.