Custom-Made Furniture Arrived Late, Wrong-Sized, or Damaged? Recovering Your Money in Hong Kong

The three most frustrating custom-furniture outcomes are familiar: the promised date passes by weeks; the piece finally arrives and the measurements are off; or it is installed and a wardrobe door falls off days later. Then the trader says "custom work has tolerances" or "pictures are for reference only". This guide is not about choosing a workshop. It is about what the law looks like when a custom order goes wrong, how to build your evidence, and how to recover money.

Why a Custom Order Is Part Sale, Part Service

A ready-made sofa is a plain purchase. A made-to-measure cabinet is the finished item plus measuring, cutting, craftsmanship and installation. According to the public legal education site CLIC, the Sale of Goods Ordinance requires goods to match the seller's description (section 15) and be of satisfactory quality, including appearance, finish, safety and durability (section 16), and fit for any particular purpose you told the seller about.

For the service side, the Supply of Services (Implied Terms) Ordinance applies. CLIC explains that services must be carried out with reasonable care and skill (section 5), within a reasonable time if the contract fixes none (section 6), and for a reasonable charge if no price was fixed (section 7). The protection is aimed at consumers who are not contracting in the course of a business.

Why does the split matter? Because the label you give your complaint points to different provisions: a size that differs from the order is a mismatch with the description; rough joints and a collapsing door are quality and workmanship; lateness is a time question. One caution: whether a particular order is treated as a sale, a service, or both is decided on its facts and contract terms. The framework above helps you organise your thinking; it does not guarantee a particular outcome. If in doubt, get legal advice.

What the Order Should Say Before You Pay

Many disputes are lost at the very start: "about this big, white, two weeks". In a Consumer Council press release from 2018, consumers ordering custom furniture were advised to have the trader measure the home accurately, review the sketch carefully, and make sure the order records:

• materials and colour
• measurements
• accessories (hardware, sliding-door tracks, handles)
• price and payment method
• delivery date
• warranty period

The same release advises keeping the receipts or order contracts that clearly list what was agreed. It also recounts a real case: a consumer paid HK$10,600 for a bookcase, wardrobe and bed unit, and a few days later the wardrobe's sliding door suddenly fell off. The company called it an installation problem and asked her to return the fallen door before arranging a replacement.

On dimensions, the Consumer Council's May 2025 press release is the one to read. A consumer paid HK$24,300 for a custom leather three-seater with chaise, specifying seats of 26 inches and a chaise of 30 inches within 120 inches overall. What arrived had 24-inch seats and a 31-inch chaise. The trader pointed to a "plus or minus 2 inches" tolerance printed on the invoice and refused to remake it. The Council urged traders not to use disclaimers or tolerance ranges as a shield. Two lessons: a tolerance clause that first appears on the invoice becomes the dispute itself, and asking for precise dimensions to be written into the order before you pay closes that door in advance. How much weight a tolerance clause carries still depends on the full order and the facts — a Council appeal to traders is not a guaranteed win.

Late Delivery and the First Step

If the order states a delivery date, that date governs. If it does not, section 6 means the work should be done within a "reasonable time". There is no fixed formula: it depends on how complex the piece is, normal lead times in the trade and any explanation the trader gave. So leaving the date off the order makes "how late is late" harder to argue.

The practical first step is simple:

1. Chase in writing (WhatsApp or email), politely but clearly, quoting the agreed date.
2. Give a reasonable window to respond — a few working days — and state the new date you expect.
3. If the trader explains (for example a material shortage), keep the reply; if there is no explanation and no new date, keep chasing and escalate.

That follows the same principles as our guide to writing a demand letter: state the facts, say what you want, set a deadline. How late is late enough to cancel and recover a deposit depends on the contract terms and how serious the delay is — it does not become automatic the day after the deadline — so read the contract before deciding to cancel.

What to Do on Delivery Day

Delivery day matters most. According to CLIC's note on rejecting goods, a buyer who keeps goods for a reasonable time without telling the seller they are rejected may be treated as having accepted them (section 37); a buyer who is entitled to reject needs to make clear that the goods are not accepted and remain at the seller's risk, and is not bound to return them to the seller (section 38). The Ordinance also gives the buyer a reasonable time to examine the goods (section 36).

So work through this in order:

• Measure against the order, item by item, with a tape measure rather than by eye.
• Photograph and film while the delivery team is still there: the whole piece, tape readings, damaged areas, panels and joints.
• Do not sign for something plainly wrong or damaged; if you must sign, write "not inspected" or the specific problem on the delivery note.
• Notify the trader in writing the same day, saying what differs from the order, with photos attached.

The Consumer Council likewise advises contacting the trader promptly, photographing the problem and keeping invoices and records. If the fault only shows after a few days — a door that falls off, say — photograph and notify in writing immediately; do not wait.

Evidence and Where to Claim

The evidence list is the product of the steps above:

• the order, quotation, design sketch and payment records (FPS or bank transfer receipts count)
• chat or email with the trader: chasing the date, reporting the problem, their replies
• delivery-day photos and video, plus your own measurement notes
• where useful, a written opinion or quotation from another tradesperson on the fault and the cost of a remake

Our evidence preparation guide covers how to organise it. If your arrangement was only spoken, the same reasoning applies as in verbal renovation agreement disputes: write down what you remember item by item, then try to get written confirmation.

On where to claim: for an informal first attempt you can complain to the Consumer Council, but it has no power to force a trader to pay. If the trader will not engage, the binding route is the Small Claims Tribunal. According to the Judiciary, it hears money claims up to HK$75,000, proceedings are informal, and parties cannot be represented by lawyers. A refund, the cost of a remake or a price reduction can all be set out in the claim.

For a sense of what a well-prepared claim looks like, see our case of a renovation balance recovered after sign-off — the direction is reversed (the contractor was the claimant), but the tribunal looks at the same kind of material: signed confirmations, documents and message records. For the claim form itself, see our claim form guide and Small Claims Tribunal guide. If the custom piece was part of a wider renovation, compare our contractor dispute guide.

For how we approach similar repair and renovation disputes, see our repair dispute use case; if you want someone to walk through documents and forms with you, see what our filing assistance service covers.