Returning an unwanted gift? The buyer may now find out

 Gift-givers could be notified when loved ones return their unwanted presents bought online because of data protection laws, it has emerged.

While the pilgrimage to take back garish jumpers and superfluous socks is a new year’s tradition as familiar as taking down the Christmas tree, some retailers now say they are obliged to tell a buyer when an item is returned because of General Data Protection Regulation rules.

In some cases, people are being advised to inform the buyer first, before the company lets them know.

A father returning a child’s coat to Boden, the clothing retailer, was told that the original buyer would be informed “due to data protection regulations”.

A representative added: “You may, therefore, want to let them know... I realise this can sometimes be a little sensitive, so I apologise if this causes any problems.”

Boden said it had a contract with the original buyer to inform them of any changes on their account.

Eleven of 30 retailers approached by The Mail on Sunday said they would have to inform buyers.

However, the Information Commissioner’s Office said retailers were not legally obliged to do so. Data protection law did not “set many absolute rules” and whether and how firms complied would depend on how they used the data.