Karaca Refused My Return Despite Its 15-Day Return Policy

On July 26, 2026, I purchased an Emsan Sedir Elegance 84-piece, 12-person cutlery set as a gift from the Karaca store at Istanbul Tema World Mall. Since the person I intended to give it to did not like the product, I went to the Karaca store in Akbatı on July 27, 2026, to return it. At the Akbatı store, I was told that my credit card transaction was still in the authorization phase, so they could not process the return and that I would need to come back in a few days. Even though I clearly stated that I was leaving the country that same day and would not be able to return, no viable solution was offered to me, and I was forced to exchange the item against my will. After the exchange was completed, I reviewed the return policy printed on the back of the receipt and noticed that while it stated products could be returned within 15 days, it made no mention of any exceptions for transactions in the authorization phase. In other words, my return request was denied based on a reason not included in Karaca’s written return policy. The problem I encountered wasn’t just that the refund wasn’t processed, but also that the written policy didn’t match the store’s actual practice, and I was given conflicting information. In addition, the attitude of the gray-haired gentleman—who I assumed was the store manager—was extremely rude and condescending. When I mentioned that this was the first time I’d heard that a transaction in the authorization stage couldn’t be refunded, he responded by saying, “There’s a first time for everything—now you’ve learned it,” and began arguing with me. As a customer, I cannot accept being treated in such a condescending manner. I paid 4,999 TL for this product. My expectation is that customers are not given conflicting information and that the same return policy is consistently applied across all stores. While I was told at the Tema World AVM store that I could return the product within 15 days, I encountered a completely different policy at the Akbatı store. I demand that Karaca’s written return policy be aligned with store practices, that employees provide customers with accurate and consistent information, that the customer communication demonstrated in this incident be evaluated by management, and that a suitable and concrete solution be offered to me to address the inconvenience I have experienced.