Contract cancellation - deposit return

[stevegaskin]

Yesterday we agreed to buy a door from a double glazing company who had been invited to our home, and paid a £75 deposit by debit card. I asked if there was a cooling off period and was told that I had 7 days. Typically we signed the contract without reading the small print! On subsequently reading it , it appears that although they comply with the 7 day cooling off cancellation rules, they have added the following caveat:
"Without predudice to the clause above (cancellation information), in the event of the customer requesting the Company to cancel the contract prior to commencement of manufacture the Company may in it's absolute discretion agree to such cancellation provided the Company is reimbursed by the customer for any costs and expenses incurred and for anticipated gross profit which would have been yielded by the contract. The Company reserves the right to cancel the contract if, in the opinion of the Company the installation cannot be satisfactorily carried out"

This seems to say that not only would I not get my deposit back if I cancelled, but they could choose to charge me for both expenses and loss of profit! Surely this cannot be right?

On reflection, it seems that the door will not be suitable (subject to confirmation), and therefore I may need to cancel the contract.

Where do I stand?

 

[Witch consumer]

Cancel then take the contract to consumer direct or a solicitor at citizens advice, the only amount they can charge is their costs, not including losses, the 7 day cancellation period stands and I doubt they can prove any losses within a day

 

[trickygj]

Even if you made an appointment over the phone for someone to come round to your property, this is still classed as adoorstep sale.

If you sign a contract made during a sales visit to your home, place of work or during an excursion arranged by the company, the Cancellation of Contracts made in a Consumer's Home or Place of Work etc. Regulations 2008 give you a seven-day cooling-off period during which you can cancel any contract. Any credit agreement you took out to pay for the goods or services would automatically come to an end when you cancel too. Whether you have a written contract or not the salesperson must tell you, in writing, about your cancellation rights.

If you think a doorstep salesperson has broken the regulations, contact your local Trading Standards department.

The cancellation notice must be easy to read and it must:

1)have a date on it
2)mention your right to cancel within seven days, tell you how to cancel, and who you need to write to
3)a tear off slip which you can use to cancel
4)make it clear the tear off-slip can be used to cancel if you want to
5)include the trader’s name
6)include details so the trader can recognise the contract – for example a contract or trader reference number
7)give a name and address for the notice to be sent to
8)explain the notice is delivered when posted or emailed
9)make it clear that if you agreed in writing to get goods or services within the cooling-off period, you will have to pay for what has been provided
10)if the sale was bought on credit, explain that the credit agreement will also be automatically cancelled if you cancel the sale.

If the cancellation notice doesn’t say all the things it should or the trader doesn’t give you one at all, legally this means there’s no contract between you and the trader. If you don’t want to go ahead with the sale, you don’t have to. You won’t owe any money and you can ask for any money back you’ve already paid, including a deposit.

The Unfair Terms in Consumer Contracts Regulations 1999, Schedule 2(1) (d) regards as possibly unfair when the seller is permitted to withhold a sum of money in the event of the consumer failing to complete the contract if at the same time the consumer is not to receive the same amount in the case of seller cancelling the contract and Schedule 2(1)(e) when a consumer is required to pay a disproportionately high sum in compensation.


You need to act quickly with an appropriate letter of cancellation. If not sure Let me know and i will email one.

 

[stevegaskin]

Thanks trickygj for your response. My issue isn't about cancellation as such, I have been provided with the relevant cancellation procedure. It is the additional clause that concerns me which I quoted in my post - e.g.

"Without predudice to the clause above (cancellation information), in the event of the customer requesting the Company to cancel the contract prior to commencement of manufacture the Company may in it's absolute discretion agree to such cancellation provided the Company is reimbursed by the customer for any costs and expenses incurred and for anticipated gross profit which would have been yielded by the contract. The Company reserves the right to cancel the contract if, in the opinion of the Company the installation cannot be satisfactorily carried out"

My worry is that not only will I not get my deposit back, but they will try and charge me for costs incurred n loss of profit. I'm trying to establish the legality of this clause!

 

[trickygj]

The Cancellation of Contracts made in a Consumer’s Home or Place of Work etc. Regulations 2008 is an act of parliament. It clearly states the procedure should you wish to cancel within 7 days. See below section 15

No contracting-out of contracts to which these Regulations apply

15.—

(1) A term contained in a contract is void if, and to the extent that, it is inconsistent with a provision for the protection of the consumer contained in these Regulations.

(2) Where a provision of these Regulations specifies the duty or liability of the consumer in certain circumstances, a term contained in a contract is inconsistent with that provision if it purports to impose, directly or indirectly, an additional or different duty or liability on the consumer in those circumstances.

It is not for the company to add terms to its contracts to try and overide the statute. It is my opinion that they have no legal right to withold any monery if you cancel immediately.

Hope that helps.

 

[Shaz 59]

On the 2/4/15 we were pressurised into signing a contract to have a double glazed door fitted. We told the rep that we would not sign anything until we had obtained further estimates and had time to think about it, but he was so persuasive and we couldn't get him to leave and he somehow managed to get us to not only sign a contract but also to pay a deposit. He told us there was a 30 day cooling off period and led us to believe we would get our deposit back if we changed our minds. The following day we had a phone call to arrange for the surveyor to come round, but put him off telling him we were getting further estimates. We have been given no paperwork about cancelling but on reading the small print it looks like if we do cancel we will lose our deposit and incur costs, as follows :-

A deposit as set out overleaf is payable by the customer upon entering into the contract. Save as otherwise provided by law the deposit is not returnable to the customer in the event that the customer should terminate or purport to terminate the contract for whatever reason unless so ordered by the Ombudsman.

You may cancel this contract if you want to but you may incur costs if the contract is cancelled by you. Products which are made to measure and made for your specific requirements are exempt from the right to cancel under the consumer contracts regulations 2013 hence there is no cancellation period.

If you wish to cancel your order we may apply a charge to cover costs we have incurred at the time of cancellation, for example if we have not commenced manufacture of the product or ordered components. Our cumulative costs will usually be approximately 20% of the value of the contract. These cover costs of marketing, sales and administration.

We have called the company today telling them we do not wish to proceed and asked what the procedure was and were told they would have to get back to us as they didn't have our paperwork to hand. This seems like they are just trying to delay things and we are still waiting on the call.

It is apparent that we have been given false information. Any advise on this matter would be much appreciated as we feel totally lost about what to do next and exactly what our rights are.

 

[bella tutbout]

Good afternoon, guys! I want to create an individual contract to work. But this whole topic is very difficult for me, I do programming, but in the field of business and law I am not strong enough. Can you tell me about it?

 

[melerk1]

Yes, the topic is not easy to understand for people who are not very close to it) however with the contract builder you can figure it out because it is quite important and very interesting. With contract builder you can optimize your workflow and it will be easier for you to work and continue to run your business