Cancellation rights trap.

[Richard Burns]

Thoughts and Feedback welcomed !!!
Buying from business premises - on-premises contracts explained - https://www.hants.gov.uk/business/tradingstandards/consumeradvice/goodsandservices/buyingonpremises

Difficult to say because of the phrase "immediately"; what is the time period of immediate in this case.
If you ring the customer and say "that will be £50" and they respond "hmm, well it is more than I thought but OK" then this is not immediate as they have said something before OK!!
If you send an email and the customer responds next day to say yes, was this immediate? they may not have received it until they checked emails next day or they may have deliberated for a day.
Probably, despite my also thinking that these were off premises contracts, it does seem as if when the consumer has time (how much time?) to think without the trader present then it becomes on premises.
Thank you.

 

[Wilko]

That ref. is an interesting read, but I'd like to find another supportive ref. as this is just one view. Agree with your concerns about definition of immediate. If they replied and agreed on the same day the quote was emailed to them that might well be considered immediate (so "off premises"). If they reply a week later, its probably not immediate (so "on premises"). Nightmare (expletive deleted) ...

 

[Pete E]

I think the moral of the story is that anybody running their own business would do to get legal advice on such matters and get all their ducks in a row ....

Also, as a business, is there any form of insurance that can protect you in such cases? Perhaps even legal insurance to cover legal advice and solicitors/court fee's ect?

Another area that would bare checking is the laws that surround payments and cancelation rights ect if the Customer pays by credit card..

I know as a consumer in many circumstances I have much more consumer protection if I pay for an item by credit card, but not sure how it works as regards "services"???

 

[curly]

I haven't read all the posts however I know about this law, it is to stop pikes "fixing" your grannies roof and charging her thousands. If you do a written quote on the computer just add a new page with the following and forget it

Acceptance of Quotation Job Total __________ PLEASE COMPLETE THE FIRST SECTION ONLY AND RETURN TO: name address and email address I/We hereby accept the quotation dated _________________ from Curly Decorating for work to take place at the address given below. I/We have read and accept the Terms & Conditions stated in the quotation letter. Customer Details Name _____________________________ Address _____________________________ _____________________________ ——————————————— Signed _____________________________ Date ________________ ____________________________________ Notice of Right to Cancel (Please cut and KEEP this part of the form) If you wish to cancel the contract you MUST DO SO IN WRITING WITHIN FOURTEEN DAYS of the date of ac-ceptance and deliver personally or send this (which may be by electronic mail) to the person named below. If send-ing by email you do not have to copy this form – a simple statement including your name and address and date will suffice. Please Note: if you have requested that services or goods be supplied prior to your statutory fourteen day cooling off period, you will be required to pay for the service and goods provided. Complete, detach and return this part of this form – ONLY IF YOU WISH TO CANCEL THE CONTRACT – to: name address email address I/We hereby give notice that I/We wish to cancel My/Our contract Name _________________________________________ Address _________________________________________ _________________________________________ Signed _________________________________________ Date ____________________

 

[baldelectrician]

If this gets moved to the arms I will upload files that I use.

I had trading standards send me them, which I altered to be company specific.
They then checked the altered ones prior to me using them.

On a side note- I record all my calls. In circumstances like these I send the client an email (whilst on site) asking them to accept the terms and conditions as well as the info on my website.

 

[snowhead]

it is to stop pikes "fixing" your grannies roof and charging her thousands.

The problem is it doesn't stop those types, they're gone after the job with no traceable address.

 

[baldelectrician]

I have just put a bit in the downloads section

 

[buzzlightyear]

if a customer rings me up ,and ask me to do a job the same day.
I tell them, if you except the price .I will do the job there and then .
and most do , so no get out clause for them .

 

[elsparko]

 

[Wilko]

I have just put a bit in the downloads section

I've made a cut and paste of parts of it :
... The cancellation period will expire after 14 days from the day of the conclusion of the contract ... To meet the cancellation deadline, it is sufficient for you to send your wish to cancel the contract before the end of the cancellation period ... If you cancel this contract, we will reimburse to you all payments received from you, including the costs of delivery ...

So, you do a week's work, supply and fit £1000 of kit get paid say £2000 and you've given them 2 weeks after that to cancel the contract for no reason and you're going to pay them back £2000.

Can that be right?

 

[Richard Burns]

I've made a cut and paste of parts of it :
... The cancellation period will expire after 14 days from the day of the conclusion of the contract ... To meet the cancellation deadline, it is sufficient for you to send your wish to cancel the contract before the end of the cancellation period ... If you cancel this contract, we will reimburse to you all payments received from you, including the costs of delivery ...

So, you do a week's work, supply and fit £1000 of kit get paid say £2000 and you've given them 2 weeks after that to cancel the contract for no reason and you're going to pay them back £2000.

Can that be right?

The conclusion of a contract is when both parties have agreed terms i.e. when the customer says yes go ahead and you agree. So for the job to start the contract must already be concluded.

 

[Wilko]

Thank you Richard !
I thought I was going nuts - oops, too late perhaps

 

[Stevesplatto]

In a previous life I had to contend with this nonsense. The problem was that the contract was usually signed in the customer's house. If he came to the office to sign it he didn't have the right to cancel within 14 days, but mostly it was signed at his house. I had to give him the Notice of Right of Cancellation, and also a duplicate which he signed and gave back to me, so I had proof he had received the original. I then explained that I couldn't start work for 14 days. The customer invariably wanted me to start immediately, so I gave him a 3rd copy which had a waiver typed on it, saying he understood the regulations but nevertheless wanted the work done right away, and waived his right of cancellation. If he signed that 3rd copy I took it away with me and started work. There is a doubt over this practice, ie asking a customer to waive their rights of cancellation when it might be construed that they were acting under pressure (the exact situation the regs are designed to counteract) but I am happy to say I never had a problem. This may be because I was fortunate that no-one ever wanted to cancel, or, if they did, they realised they had signed a waiver and assumed they couldn't then cancel. At the end of the day, you are indeed supposed to issue these Notices if the work is agreed at the customer's home, and you run the risk of cancellation as happened in the OPs case. If you don't issue them, then you are seen as at fault and the customer wins again...that is the situation in Scotland, but I do believe these regs are the law throughout the UK and are EU based legislation. After following the law rigidly for a year, and thus amassing tons of extra paperwork, I simply gave up issuing the Notices, on the basis that if you didn't tell folks of the right to cancel, they probably wouldn't know about it...but the OP sadly has encountered some tricky beggar who knew the law and deliberately used it to avoid paying.

I'm now thinking this is the only one I've had and for short notice work (most of my work) there doesnt seem to be a proven way to deal with the 14 day requirement. can't see a proven way round this..

 

[Stevesplatto]

If this gets moved to the arms I will upload files that I use.

I had trading standards send me them, which I altered to be company specific.
They then checked the altered ones prior to me using them.

On a side note- I record all my calls. In circumstances like these I send the client an email (whilst on site) asking them to accept the terms and conditions as well as the info on my website.

That would be really useful mate. I've started to send emails (used to confirm by sms)
s

 

[elsparko]

so i could have someone come and build me a house and then not pay them for it? seems legit

 

[Stevesplatto]

If you do appeal, look at second paragraph here.

You don’t automatically get a cooling-off period if:

• you have something specially made - for example, made to measure curtains, windows or a conservatory (some traders voluntarily offer a 7 day cooling-off period for these products, but they don’t have to)
• you invite the business into your home for urgent repairs or maintenance - for example, when you ask a plumber to come and mend a burst pipe

You said you were brought in to do remedial work that was possibly left in a dangerous state and that his wife's condition made it urgent. You may have a get-out on that clause. Worth taking legal advice.

Sounds like he was screwed over by the first guy and then decided to take it out on you. He must have done his research when trying to get compensation from him. Then decided against it because of the first guys reputation.

A good solicitor would bring all this out. Problem is that costs. and with no guarantee of success its a risk.

Thanks for sharing your experience. I'm sure many on here appreciate that. And good luck with whatever action you take.

I think that's exactly what happened! Unfortunately I cant afford to go the appeal route and I want done with it.
Maybe a custard pie?

 

[Stevesplatto]

I have read this op a few times to get my head round it.
Cancellation rights? BUT you never cancelled you were sacked. This is an absolute disgrace, the law is an ---.!

I know, that's really what happened!

 

[elsparko]

when i was in wholesaler i noticed a notice

"all special orders are non refundable"

just put no refund for work carried out, if some asshat tried sending me back cuttings of cable after they cancel a job half way through id be blackening eyes

 

[Stevesplatto]

If this gets moved to the arms I will upload files that I use.

I had trading standards send me them, which I altered to be company specific.
They then checked the altered ones prior to me using them.

On a side note- I record all my calls. In circumstances like these I send the client an email (whilst on site) asking them to accept the terms and conditions as well as the info on my website.

That would be very useful. So trading statndards will do a company specific notice on request?

 

[Stevesplatto]

if a customer rings me up ,and ask me to do a job the same day.
I tell them, if you except the price .I will do the job there and then .
and most do , so no get out clause for them .

Thatswhat happened!