Cancellation Charge

[Dukeydogg]

Hi!

Hoping someone can help me with my query.

I have recently cancelled my wedding (booked for 31/12/12) at a local Country House & hotel. I was under the impression that because i cancelled more than 6 months in advance i wouldnt have to pay anything.

However, they have responded to me today with a copy of the booking form that states a 25% charge is payable. I noticed though that only my Fiance had signed the booking and t+c.

I would really like to contest this charge, as i really dont have 25% to pay over.

Is there anything i can do?

Many Thanks

:-)

[CleverClogs]

Re: Cancellation Charge

I would contend that you cannot be bound by any terms you have not seen. Whether or not your intended an be bound by the terms may be another matter, but I dare say the cancellation fee may be held to be unfair and/or unreasonable especially as six months notice had been given.

[labman]

Re: Cancellation Charge

I'd agree with CC, but it would be useful to see the contract on which they're relying if you could post it up with ALL personal information removed, along with the T&C's. :beagle:

[Dukeydogg]

Re: Cancellation Charge

I dont know how to put anything on here im afraid!! Can you explain. I have it in a PDF and Jpeg.

:-)

[Hurricane Puffrose]

Re: Cancellation Charge

Hiya dukey

when you post up your attachments, click on Go Advanced, and there is the attachment option in there. if you upload it in Jpeg, a seperate window pops up so you can pick from your files, and attach them there.

hope this helps

[Dukeydogg]

Re: Cancellation Charge

Yay!! Got there in the end!!

This is what i have received, along with their invoice!!

[teaboy2]

Re: Cancellation Charge

Any chance you can make the image larger? As its to small to read the actual printed terms on it.

[Dukeydogg]

Re: Cancellation Charge

Now your asking! Lets see if this works!!

[teaboy2]

Re: Cancellation Charge

Yes thats much better.

Looking at the highlighted bit about cancellation fees, i would say a court would find it unfair, as they have not stated what costs they would have incured that such a fee would cover. They are therefore making a financial gain from you the other party. If however it covered the costs of preparing the venue (if such preparation had occured which i doubt since it to far away form the big day itself) then it would be seen as fair to recover such costs under the contract if cancelled.

The would be killer is section 14 "This contract is confirmation of a verbal agreement and deemed to be binding, even if unsigned by one party" - I say would be as in contract law they require an uneqivical written or verbal communication of acceptance, that means your signiture or a recording of you agreeing the terms verbally (which they most likely don't have) for the contract to be binding on you. As you never signed and your OH did then your not legally a party to the contract as you can not been deemed to have accepted it nor can your OH signiture be deemed as your acceptence.

Infact in the OFT's Annexe of unfair terms under Group 4, a very similar term where a cancellation fee of 30% value of the order, is deemed unfair. -

Original term
The Company reserves the right to charge a cancellation fee, the
minimum being 30 per cent of the order value, this does not represent a
penalty and serves to liquidate the company's costs.
Action taken
Term deleted.

You will finding reading the OFT guidance on unfair contract terms very useful particularly section 4, 5 and 6 i believe.

Guidance - http://www.oft.gov.uk/shared_oft/rep...rms/oft311.pdf
And the Annexes - http://www.oft.gov.uk/shared_oft/rep...311annexes.pdf

You can then write a letter based on the OFT guidance on unfair terms to the venue in question pointing out to them that the term is highly likely an unfair contract term under the Office of fair trading unfair contract terms guidance and therefore likely in breach of the Unfair Terms in Consumer Contracts Regulations 1999.

[labman]

Re: Cancellation Charge

For what it's worth, I've just Googled the following:

cancelling a wedding 6 months in advance fee payable

On the first page, all places would expect to keep the deposit, but no more than that. I would imagine this would have continued had I gone on to pages 2 onwards. Thus, unless the deposit is 25%, their terms would seem unusual.

My big concern here is that it is not, I believe, necessary for you to sign. A contract can exist between the hotel and your fiancee, without you being party to it.

However, in addition to Teaboy's post above, the following legal bumph may be of use to support any effort to reclaim some money:


The following, taken from the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations may also apply here:

Prohibition of unfair commercial practices
3.— (1) Unfair commercial practices are prohibited.

(2) Paragraphs (3) and (4) set out the circumstances when a commercial practice is unfair.

(3) A commercial practice is unfair if—
(a)it contravenes the requirements of professional diligence; and
(b)it materially distorts or is likely to materially distort the economic behaviour of the average consumer with regard to the product.

Also:

Misleading actions

5.—(1) A commercial practice is a misleading action if it satisfies the conditions in either paragraph (2) or paragraph (3).
(2) A commercial practice satisfies the conditions of this paragraph—

(a)if it contains false information and is therefore untruthful in relation to any of the matters in paragraph (4) or if it or its overall presentation in any way deceives or is likely to deceive the average consumer in relation to any of the matters in that paragraph, even if the information is factually correct; and


(b)it causes or is likely to cause the average consumer to take a transactional decision he would not have taken otherwise.

(4) The matters referred to in paragraph (2)(a) are—

(g)the price or the manner in which the price is calculated;


Offences relating to unfair commercial practices

9. A trader is guilty of an offence if he engages in a commercial practice which is a misleading action under regulation 5 otherwise than by reason of the commercial practice satisfying the condition in regulation 5(3)(b).



Penalty for offences
13. A person guilty of an offence under regulation 8, 9, 10, 11 or 12 shall be liable—
(a)on summary conviction, to a fine not exceeding the statutory maximum; or
(b)on conviction on indictment, to a fine or imprisonment for a term not exceeding two years or both.

[bluebottle]

Re: Cancellation Charge

This is a common try-on. You have given them at least six months to re-let the facilities and, as such, they must take proper and reasonable steps to mitigate any loss they have allegedly suffered. They have plenty of time in which to find another booking to replace yours. Also, case law is very clear that they are not entitled to be better off than they were before. In short, any charges must only put them back in the same position they were, financially, before any cancellation. I agree with other LBs who have posted. You should resist any attempt by the hotel to extort money from you.

[Guest]

Re: Cancellation Charge

HI
I have seen several agreements on the web containing similar clauses.

Unfortunately I do not think that that the rules of contractual breach apply , because it is not a contractual breach, it is a contractual term.

I do think however that the UTCCs are applicable.

“A contractual term which has not been individually negotiated shall be regarded as unfair if, contrary to the requirement of good faith, it causes a significant imbalance in the parties’ rights and obligations arising under the contract, to the detriment of the consumer”

The fact that the written contract is supposed to be a confirmation of the agreement, (it was already verbally made), rather than the agreement itself would leave it open to challenge, in that all the terms on it where not individually negotiated or even seen.

It would then just be up to the court to decide if the rest of the requirements of the above applied personally I think the OP would have a good argument, and it would be unenforceable.( not that i think it would get that far)

Peter

[Guest]

Re: Cancellation Charge

Hi Again
Just had another look at the contract, there are several terms on ther that would be unenforecable in my opinion, to be frank i would have cancelled this on reciept of this rubbish.

Did you make these arrangements over the phone or did you do it at the venue?

Peter