Breach of contract, do I have a case?

[Aldn2030]

Hi guys, I'm in a bit of a dilemma, was just hoping to get some advice before hiring a solicitor which I will do


Hi I am the owner of a small business, a carpet shop.

I was referred a customer by one of my existing clients, for Carpet at his property.
I met the customer who I will refer to as "John", at his property with samples of carpet and he chose his carpet. At his property I orally told him that, normally we take a 50% deposit, but because he has come as a referral from a very good client of mine, I'd be happy to proceed without a deposit but once I've ordered his carpet in (ordered specifically for the size of his property) that we wouldn't be able to change it later on.

I later sent him a text message with the total price, £2,500. During a follow up phone call he agreed to go ahead.
Installation was meant to take place a couple days later but this was delayed as the carpet he chose was out of stock.

So I visited him at his property again and he agreed on a different colour. I ordered his carpet in from my supplier and it cost me over £1,200.

The day of fitting came and my fitters went to his address. There, they found there was alot more furniture than they anticipated and they would have to come back on Monday with a larger team. John, told my fitters that Monday is fine. John also texted me to say that Monday is fine, though he said that Monday is the latest he could have it done.

Leading up to Monday, John indicated to me that instead of change his carpet, he may now just want to have his existing carpets cleaned, via text message.

I replied saying that it was up to him whether he wants to clean his carpet, but that I've spent alot of money ordering his carpet in, and at some point in the near future, it would have to be paid for by himself.

He is now being very unresponsive and it is quite clear he will not like to go ahead.
Do I have a case for breach of contract to recover my money that I've spent on his stock?

Although we were 2 weeks behind schedule with his installation, at no point did he specify the absolute requirement for the carpet to be laid any earlier.

[R0b]

Yes you would, have you considered taking this one on yourself? Hiring a solicitor could eat into your recoverable compensation. As the sum is under £10,000 it is likely that it will be allocated to the small claims track meaning legal costs are not recoverable. You would have to claim legal costs as part of your. compensation which would carry higher court fees.

When you say carpets being fitted Monday is that last Monday or tomorrow as in the 24th?

[Aldn2030]

Thank you for your response! Sound advice regarding the recoverable legal fees! I may take it on myself, I do have some legal background from an llb degree many, many years ago.

The only thing that is confusing me is... Because I didn't take a deposit from him, how will I satisfy the element of 'consideration'?

Monday means tomorrow (24th). I know its very very early days, but a few messages has made very strong indications that he will not go ahead, and I like to be prepared for all eventualities.

[R0b]

Consideration does not need to be cash, only something of sufficient value so in your case it is an exchange of promises e.g. You agree to order a carpet (your promise) and the Customer will pay you X once fitted (their promise).

If the customer has reneged on the contract and given an indication that he no longer wants the carpet fitted, then it may be considered a repudiatory breach of contract (suggest you look it up). You would be entitled to terminate the contract on that basis and seek damages flowing from the breach, though you have to give unequivocal notice of termination which is usually something in writing that you consider their refusal as a repudiatory breach and you're terminating on that basis with a view to seeking damages.

P.s. Even though I understand you're a small business, don't rely on oral agreements and if you did an LLB years ago you should understand why! Even if your contracts are one pagers just make sure you cover your back and get agreements documented as it will avoid the hassle like this although not against those who simply refuse to pay.

[Aldn2030]

I agree it was an absolutely terrible move to not have had a signed contract as it does complicate things. I'm a new business and I'm still learning from my mistakes, some mistakes more expensive than others.

Do I have to have to wait a certain amount of time before issuing unequivocal notice?

I have had further correspondence from the customer, quite hostile. I sent him a summary of the amount he owes, and his response was very long story short that he is not paying any money because he didn't sign any contract and didn't agree to anything (utter rubbish, we have whatsapp correspondence making arrangements for installation). But on that note he's now made it clear that he does not wish to go ahead at all.

I am comfortable to fill out a small claims court form, what should my next step be in terms of notice?