Consumer complaints and withdrawal letters in Poland
A consumer who buys online, by phone or away from business premises in Poland may withdraw within 14 days without giving a reason (art. 27 of the Consumer Rights Act), and the trader repays within 14 days. Since 1 January 2023 faulty goods bought by a consumer are claimed under the rules on goods not conforming to the contract (niezgodność towaru z umową), no longer under the Civil Code warranty. The seller is liable for non-conformity that shows within two years of delivery. The consumer first asks for repair or replacement, and moves to a price reduction or withdrawal when that fails or the defect is serious enough to justify it at once. The seller answers a complaint within 14 days, and silence counts as acceptance. A telecoms provider has 30 days under the Electronic Communications Law, which replaced the Telecommunications Law in November 2024.
The documents are in Polish, as a Polish business expects, and each has a page describing it in English. For faulty goods there is the non-conformity complaint and, if repair or replacement fails, the notice of price reduction or withdrawal; an online purchase is undone with the notice of withdrawal from a distance contract. Others cover a telecoms complaint and ending a telecoms contract, an electricity or gas supplier, a package holiday, flight compensation under Regulation (EC) No 261/2004, ending a gym membership or subscription, and a receipt for equipment left for repair.
If the business does not respond, UOKiK, the competition and consumer authority, will not take up an individual case; it acts for consumers' collective interests. Free help with a single dispute comes from the municipal or county consumer ombudsman (rzecznik konsumentów), approached with the request for help. An unauthorised card or account payment is disputed from this page; other banking letters are among the money documents. Each document is filled in online and downloaded as a finished PDF, or downloaded blank, and none of it is legal advice.
The documents
12 forms available to fill out or download.
Receipt for equipment taken in for repair (Poland)
A record of taking in a phone, computer, bike or appliance for repair, issued to the customer by the workshop or drawn up by the customer for the workshop to sign: the job number, the workshop's and customer's details, the item with its serial number, accessories, visible condition, the fault reported, the estimated cost and time, and a rule that more expensive work needs the customer's consent. At collection it proves the condition the item was left in.
Complaint about a package holiday (Poland)
A complaint about a trip organised by a Polish travel agency, under the Package Travel Act: the contract number, the trip and dates, the price, the travellers, the failures to perform as agreed — hotel, meals, transport, programme — when and to whom they were reported on the spot, and a demand for a price reduction and for damages or compensation for a spoiled holiday (art. 50). It lists the evidence and the account for payment.
Complaint about an unauthorised payment transaction (Poland)
A complaint to a Polish bank or other payment provider when money has left an account or card through transactions the customer did not make: the account or card, the disputed transactions with dates and amounts, when they were discovered and the card blocked, the police report, and a demand for a refund by the end of the next business day (art. 46 of the Payment Services Act). It reminds the bank that it must prove authorisation.
Request to the local consumer ombudsman for help with a dispute (Poland)
A request to the Polish municipal or county consumer ombudsman (rzecznik konsumentów), who helps free of charge with individual disputes with businesses — the ones UOKiK does not handle: the business's details, the facts and the correspondence so far, the outcome wanted and the kind of help to underline — advice, an approach to the business, or a claim brought for the consumer (art. 42 of the Competition and Consumer Protection Act).
Notice ending a subscription or membership (gym, subscription) — Poland
Notice ending a contract for an ongoing service in Poland — a gym or pool membership, a course, a subscription, a service plan: the contract and customer numbers, the service, how it ends to underline — with the contract's notice period, immediately for important reasons, or without notice for an open-ended contract that sets none — withdrawal of consent to recurring payments, and a demand to refund fees taken in advance. It relies on rules the terms and conditions cannot exclude.
Claim for compensation for a delayed or cancelled flight (EU 261)
A passenger's claim to an airline, in Polish, for compensation under Regulation (EC) No 261/2004: the flight number and date, the route, the booking reference, the scheduled and actual arrival times, the disruption to underline — a delay of 3 hours or more, a cancellation, or denied boarding — the 250, 400 or 600 euro due, expenses and the account. It reminds the airline that only extraordinary circumstances, which it must prove, release it.
Complaint about a telecoms service (Poland)
A complaint about a phone, internet or TV service under Poland's Electronic Communications Law, which replaced the Telecommunications Law in November 2024: the contract and service, the period complained of, what went wrong — an outage, poor quality, a wrong invoice — the refund or compensation claimed and how the answer should come. It reminds the provider that it has 30 days, and that no answer in that time means the complaint is accepted.
Notice terminating a telecoms contract (Poland)
Notice ending a contract with a Polish phone, internet or TV operator: the customer and contract numbers, the service and number, the basis for ending it to underline — a contract rolled over after the promotional term, an open-ended one, early termination, or a change of terms by the operator — the date wanted, and the return of equipment and any overpayment. It states the one-month notice for a rolled-over contract under the Electronic Communications Law.
Complaint to an electricity or gas supplier (Poland)
A household customer's complaint to a Polish electricity or gas supplier — about an inflated bill, an estimated reading, the wrong tariff or an interruption: the customer, contract and meter numbers, the invoice and billing period, the meter reading, what is wrong, the demand and the account for an overpayment. It reminds the supplier that a complaint not dealt with in 14 days is upheld, and that one filed after a disconnection notice holds off the disconnection until it is decided.
Notice of withdrawal from a distance contract (Poland)
A consumer's notice withdrawing, without giving reasons, from a contract made online, by phone or away from business premises in Poland (art. 27 of the Consumer Rights Act): what was bought, the order number, when the contract was made and the goods received, and a demand for every payment back, delivery included, within 14 days. It covers what the statutory model form does and reminds the reader of the deadline for sending the goods back.
Notice of price reduction or withdrawal for non-conforming goods (Poland)
A consumer's notice for when the seller refused to repair or replace goods that do not conform to the contract, did not do it in reasonable time, the repair did not work, or the defect is too serious to wait (art. 43e of the Consumer Rights Act): the choice between reducing the price and withdrawing from the contract, the amount and the account for the refund. It reminds the seller to repay within 14 days and to take the goods back at its own cost.
Complaint about goods that do not conform to the contract (Poland)
A consumer complaint under the Polish rules on goods not conforming to the contract, which replaced the Civil Code warranty between shops and consumers on 1 January 2023: the item, when it was bought and for how much, the proof of purchase, what is wrong and when it showed, and a demand for repair or replacement. It reminds the seller that it is liable for 2 years from delivery and that no answer within 14 days means the complaint is accepted.