Is it permissible for the buyer to return the item to the seller after using it, or not?
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
The questioner : In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
His EminenceThe Shaykh : There is a man who has a spare parts shop. Another man came to him and took a part from him, wanting to repair his car with it. He returned it after using it. The shop owner said, “I do not accept this part because it is stained with oil and so on,” on the basis that no one else would buy it and he would lose money.
The Shaykh : Did he buy a spare part from him?
The Shaykh : Yes, that is correct.
The Shaykh : Then did he install it in the car?
The questioner : No, he returned it on the basis that it was not installed, whereas it was originally meant to be installed. The shop owner refused to take the part back. So he says, “This is a complaint against him because he did not accept the part, and they gave him compensation.” This man asks, “Do I consider that I wronged him, or something like that?”
The Shaykh : Was there a condition between them that if he bought this part, he would install it in the car, and if it was installed, he would keep it, otherwise he would return it to him?
The questioner : I do not know.
The Shaykh : If there was a condition between them
The questioner : The condition was that it would be installed.
The Shaykh : ... If there was a condition between them that if it was installed in the car, he would keep it, and if not, he would return it, then he has the right to return it, and the shop owner has no right to refuse to accept the return; rather, it is obligatory for him to accept the return.
As for if there was no condition between them, and the car owner saw this part and thought it would fit his car, so he bought it without a condition, then the shop owner who sold it has the right to refuse the return.
The questioner : He is going to lose the part now, the shop owner.
The Shaykh : Will he lose it or not?
The questioner : Because it is installed. A person before him took the same part, and after him, and all of them were installed and none were returned.The Shaykh : In any case, my answer is clear, and the application is up to you. As long as he took it on the basis that he wanted to install it in the car, and if it was installed he would keep it, otherwise he would return it, then the owner of the part who sold it has no right to refuse to accept it. And if he did not stipulate a condition, then it belongs to him, and the shop owner who sold it is not obligated to accept it. But better than this is that they reconcile and say, “Take it, and I will guarantee the loss if there is any loss in it.”
His EminenceThe Shaykh : There is a man who has a spare parts shop. Another man came to him and took a part from him, wanting to repair his car with it. He returned it after using it. The shop owner said, “I do not accept this part because it is stained with oil and so on,” on the basis that no one else would buy it and he would lose money.
The Shaykh : Did he buy a spare part from him?
The Shaykh : Yes, that is correct.
The Shaykh : Then did he install it in the car?
The questioner : No, he returned it on the basis that it was not installed, whereas it was originally meant to be installed. The shop owner refused to take the part back. So he says, “This is a complaint against him because he did not accept the part, and they gave him compensation.” This man asks, “Do I consider that I wronged him, or something like that?”
The Shaykh : Was there a condition between them that if he bought this part, he would install it in the car, and if it was installed, he would keep it, otherwise he would return it to him?
The questioner : I do not know.
The Shaykh : If there was a condition between them
The questioner : The condition was that it would be installed.
The Shaykh : ... If there was a condition between them that if it was installed in the car, he would keep it, and if not, he would return it, then he has the right to return it, and the shop owner has no right to refuse to accept the return; rather, it is obligatory for him to accept the return.
As for if there was no condition between them, and the car owner saw this part and thought it would fit his car, so he bought it without a condition, then the shop owner who sold it has the right to refuse the return.
The questioner : He is going to lose the part now, the shop owner.
The Shaykh : Will he lose it or not?
The questioner : Because it is installed. A person before him took the same part, and after him, and all of them were installed and none were returned.The Shaykh : In any case, my answer is clear, and the application is up to you. As long as he took it on the basis that he wanted to install it in the car, and if it was installed he would keep it, otherwise he would return it, then the owner of the part who sold it has no right to refuse to accept it. And if he did not stipulate a condition, then it belongs to him, and the shop owner who sold it is not obligated to accept it. But better than this is that they reconcile and say, “Take it, and I will guarantee the loss if there is any loss in it.”