A Guardian consumer champion column recounts the case of a Bournemouth reader, JS, who bought a £435 wheelchair from a Lifestyle & Mobility store for her disabled daughter, only for her daughter to die suddenly in hospital before the chair was ever used. Despite the chair never having left the boot of her car, the retailer has refused to offer a refund or accept a return, prompting the reader to appeal to the Guardian for help after unsuccessfully trying to sell the item privately.

The store told the Guardian it only issues refunds when products are faulty or mis-sold, and that it is "regrettably familiar" with such circumstances, though it insisted it takes "no pleasure" in applying this policy. However, its own terms and conditions allow for discretionary goodwill refunds, and when asked twice why it would not exercise this discretion given the exceptional circumstances, the company did not respond. The columnist notes that buying online instead would have entitled the reader to a statutory 14-day cooling-off period and could have saved up to £100, but she had chosen to buy in person to support a local store.