92 Chapter 3The terms of the contract
and Services Act 1982 implies a term that the service is carried out using reasonable care
and skill. So if the tyres fitted were worn at the time of sale, the buyer would sue under SGA
1979 s. 14(2) because the tyres were not of satisfactory quality. If the tyres were fitted badly
and came off the car, causing the driver to be injured, the driver would sue under SGSA
1982 s. 13 because the tyres were not fitted with reasonable care and skill.Reasonable time of performance (s. 14)
Section 14 SGSA 1982 applies only to services which are supplied in the course of business.
It provides that if no time for completion of the service was either expressly or impliedly
fixed, then the service should be performed within a reasonable time. The length of a
reasonable time will depend upon all the circumstances of the case.Reasonable price (s. 15)
Section 15 SGSA 1982 provides that if no price for a service was expressly or impliedly fixed,
then the customer should pay a reasonable price. This section applies to all services,
whether supplied in the course of a business or not.The status of the statutory implied terms
The term contained in s. 12(1) of the Sale of Goods Act 1979 is always a condition. If this
term is breached the buyer is always therefore entitled to treat the contract as terminated
and/or claim damages. The term is a condition because if the seller does not have the right
to sell, this amounts to a total failure of consideration. The corresponding terms contained
in the SGITA 1973 s. 8 and the SGSA 1982 ss. 2 and 7 are also always conditions.
The term contained in s. 12(2) of the Sale of Goods Act 1979 is a warranty. If this term is
breached the buyer will therefore be able to claim damages but will not be entitled to treat
the contract as terminated. The corresponding terms in the SGITA 1973 and the SGSA 1982
are also always warranties.
The terms contained in ss. 13 –15 of the Sale of Goods Act 1979 are conditions. So are the
corresponding terms in the SGITA 1973 ss. 9 –11 and the SGSA 1982 ss. 3 – 5 and 8 –10. Where
the person buying or acquiring the goods is a consumer, all of these terms are always con-
ditions. However, s. 15A of the Sale of Goods Act 1979 (and corresponding terms in the
SGITA 1973 and in the SGSA 1982) provides that a buyer who does not deal as a consumer
cannot treat the contract as terminated where breach of one of these implied terms is so
slight that it would be unreasonable to allow the buyer to treat the contract as terminated.
Instead, the buyer must treat the breach of condition as a breach of warranty and therefore
cannot terminate the contract but can still claim damages. Section 15A does not apply if the
parties showed an intention that the person acquiring the goods should be able to treat the
contract as terminated even where the breach was so slight as to make this unreasonable.Example
A car dealer bought a new car from a car manufacturer and sold the car on to a consumer.
The car had a very slight defect, which was just enough to mean that it was not of satis-
factory quality, both when the manufacturer sold it and when the dealer sold it. Section 14(2)
of the SGA 1979 has therefore been breached as regards both sales. The consumer can