148 Chapter 5Discharge of contracts and remedies for breach
shopping. However, contracts to provide transport, accommodation, catering and leisure
are not covered even if they were made exclusively by means of distance communications.
Regulation 8 provides that the supplier must inform the consumer of how to exercise the
right to cancel the contract. Notice of cancellation must be made in writing or in some other
durable medium. The Regulations specifically state that cancellation is to be regarded as
having been properly given if it is posted to the supplier, left at the supplier’s address, sent
by fax or sent by email. If notice is given to a partnership, it can be sent to, or left with, any
partner or any person who controls or manages the partnership. If it is given to a company,
it can be sent to the company secretary or left at the address of the company. If the notice of
cancellation is properly given then the contract is treated as if it had never been made.
The cancellation period begins on the day when the contract was concluded. If reg. 8 was
complied with then the cancellation period ends seven working days after the day on which
the consumer received the goods. If reg. 8 is not complied with at all then the cooling-off
period is extended by three months. If reg. 8 is complied with later than it should have been,
then the seven-day period begins on the day after reg. 8 was complied with. The same time
periods apply if the contract was to supply a service, except that the cooling-off period does
not begin until the day after the contract was concluded.
In the following circumstances there is no right to cancel:
(i) If the contract was to supply a service and the consumer was told, before the contract
was concluded, that cancellation would not be possible once performance of the contract
had begun. (For example, a contract to have a house painted could not be concluded
once work had begun if the decorator had informed the customer that this was the case
before the work began.)
(ii) If the price of the goods or services depends upon fluctuations in the financial market.
(So a consumer could not cancel a contract to buy gold coins upon discovering that the
price of gold had fallen.)
(iii) If the goods were made to the consumer’s specifications, or were clearly personalised,
or could not be returned because of the nature of the goods, or were goods which were
likely to deteriorate rapidly.
(iv) If the contract was to supply audio recordings, video recordings or computer software
and the consumer has broken the seal on the goods.
(v) If the contract was to supply newspapers or magazines.
(vi) If the contract was for gaming, betting or lottery services.
A consumer who cancels must keep possession of the goods and take reasonable care of
them. The consumer must also restore the goods by making them available for collection by
the buyer.
The Cancellation of Contracts made in a Consumer’s Home or Place of Work etc.
Regulations 2008 allow consumers to cancel contracts if they were made during a visit by
a trader to a consumer’s home or place of work, or to the home of another individual. The
regulations apply whether the visit was solicited by the consumer or not. They also apply if
the contract was made during an excursion organised by the trader away from his business
premises, or after an offer made by the consumer during such a home visit or excursion. The
Regulations apply to contracts to provide goods or services as long as they have a price of
more than £35. The trader cannot enforce the contract unless, at the time of the contract, the
consumer was given written notice of the right to cancel the contract within seven days. The
consumer must also have been given a statutory cancellation form. The consumer does not
need to use this form to cancel. However, the notice of cancellation must be in writing. Once