A woman demanded 200 thousand UAH in moral damages for an unsuccessful shoe purchase in an online store — what the court decided

The Shevchenkivskyi District Court of Dnipro city considered a dispute between a buyer and an online shoe store that arose due to a size mismatch of the product. The woman claimed that the two pairs of shoes ordered online were actually larger than stated by the seller, so she demanded a refund of the paid money, compensation for moral damages, and reimbursement of attorney fees.

The court had to determine whether the buyer indeed received a product with a defect that gives the right to terminate the purchase agreement and whether she followed the consumer protection procedure prescribed by law. Based on the case review, the court denied the claim, citing the lack of proper evidence of the product's non-compliance with the declared characteristics.

Circumstances of case No. 932/18040/25

In September 2025, the woman purchased four pairs of shoes through an online store and paid 3600 UAH for them. After receiving the order, she concluded that two pairs did not correspond to the declared size 37. According to her, the insole length was about 25 cm, which corresponds to a larger shoe size.

The buyer contacted the seller with a complaint and a demand to return the goods but was refused. After that, she filed a lawsuit asking the court to recover from the seller 3600 UAH for the goods, 200 thousand UAH for moral damages, and 16 thousand UAH for legal assistance costs.

The case materials showed that out of the four pairs purchased, two fit the buyer in size, and the dispute concerned only the other two pairs.

What the court established

The court noted that the plaintiff claimed the actual shoe size did not correspond to the characteristics stated by the seller.

At the same time, the court stated that if it were proven that shoes marked as size 37 actually corresponded to a significantly larger size, such a discrepancy could be considered a significant defect of the product. In that case, the consumer would have the right to demand contract termination and a refund.

However, the plaintiff did not provide an expert opinion or other proper evidence confirming that the disputed shoes indeed did not match the declared size. The court found the mere claims of size chart mismatch insufficient to substantiate the stated demands.

Additionally, the court noted that the provided receipt confirmed payment for the entire order amounting to 3600 UAH, while the case materials did not contain evidence of the cost of the two pairs of shoes in dispute.

Why the court denied the refund

The court separately analyzed the provisions of Article 9 of the Law "On Consumer Rights Protection," which regulates the procedure for exchanging goods of proper quality.

The court noted that if the product does not satisfy the consumer in size, they have the right to request an exchange from the seller within 14 days. If a similar product is not available for sale, the consumer may demand contract termination and a refund.

At the same time, the case materials did not contain evidence that the buyer contacted the seller specifically with a request to exchange the shoes. Instead, she immediately demanded contract termination and a refund. According to the court, in the absence of evidence of a significant defect, this method of protection did not comply with the procedure prescribed by law for cases when the product does not fit in size.

Court conclusion

The Shevchenkivskyi District Court of Dnipro city concluded that the plaintiff did not prove the fact of the shoes' non-compliance with the declared characteristics, did not provide proper evidence to support her claims, and did not confirm contacting the seller with a request to exchange the product.

In view of this, the court fully denied the claim, including demands for refund of the product cost, compensation for moral damages, and reimbursement of legal assistance expenses.

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