You have plenty of rights of redress, provided you are willing to put in a bit of effort to claim them. However, you do not have the right to a refund in every situation and there are times when you may have to rely on the goodwill of the retailer.

Consumer champion Helen Dewdney, who runs website thecomplainingcow.co.uk, sets out how to save your seasonal cheer if the following things go wrong.

You are sent a faulty item. Under the Consumer Rights Act 2015 you are entitled to goods that are free from defects, of satisfactory quality, match the description and last for a reasonable length of time.

If in breach, you're entitled to a full refund up to 30 days from purchase. After that, your rights are reduced, although you should still be offered a repair or replacement instead. In both cases, you should not have to pay return postage if you bought online.

A delivery was damaged. Your contract is with the retailer, not the courier, so complain to them. “Some stores may fob you off. Don’t let them get away with it because it’s their responsibility,” Dewdney says.

You change your mind. If you bought something online you have a 14-day cooling-off period from the day after you received the goods. You then have a further 14 days to send it back.

Whether you have to pay return postage will depends on the retailer’s terms and conditions (unless the item is faulty, of course).

If you bought the item in store then it will depend on the retailer’s policy. Stores are not obliged to refund or exchange items, purely because you change your mind. Many will do so anyway as a sign of goodwill.

A named or next day delivery arrives late. If you paid extra for delivery on a certain date, including next day delivery, you are entitled to the refund of the additional charge if the item did not arrive at the specified date and time.

You are given a faulty gift. If you can get hold of the proof of purchase and the item was bought within the previous 30 days, you can take it back for a full refund. If you don’t have a receipt, the store may still take it back but you're on much weaker ground. “It will give you the current price, which may be lower if it is now on sale.”

You receive a gift you don’t like. With luck, the giver will have enclosed a gift receipt, which means you can take it back and get a refund or a voucher. The retailer is free to choose which options are available. Dewdney says: “With no gift receipt, it depends on the retailer.”

The sooner you return it to the better, although some shops do extend their returns deadlines until the end of January, to cover the Christmas period.

I didn’t want the gift card I’ve just been given. If you’ve been given, say, a PlayStation gift card when you’d rather snuggle up with a good book, you have several options depending on the card. You could re-gift it to somebody who will appreciate it, use it to buy a present for somebody else, or try to sell it online.

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Don’t hang around, though, most gift cards are only valid for a limited time period, plus there is the danger of the retailer going into liquidation. In that case you may end up with nothing at all. “The rule is, get it spent,” Dewdney says.

The key to getting your money back is to act quickly and make sure you have a rough idea of your rights.

Dewdney said quoting the law shows you mean business. “You don’t need to know all the details, just where to look for them and what to quote, such as referring to the Consumer Rights Act.”

She added: "Be polite, objective and succinct. Outline the issues and what you want as a solution. Is it a refund? Or is it an apology, for example?"

Putting your complaint in writing also gives you evidence if you need to take the matter further. Set a deadline by which you expect a satisfactory response and what you will do if you don’t get one, such as sharing your experience on relevant review sites and forums, going to the relevant ombudsman, or taking your case to the small claims court.