Contract Law in Oxfordshire

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1 Trading Standards, County Hall, New Road, Oxford OX1 1ND Issue 1 Builders and allied trades Helping builders find out what their rights and obligations are. Oxfordshire is fortunate in having a thriving building trade, and there is no shortage of work for any professional involved in building maintenance, such as plumbing, electrical work etc. The vast majority of traders carry out their work to a high standard. But occasionally, even the best firm comes across problems with a contract. We hope you find this information useful in helping you find out what your rights and obligations are if you are in business. Civil law When you provide a service, be it building an extension or rewiring the electrics in a house, you are entering into a contract with your client, which is automatically regulated by various consumer laws. The Supply of Goods and Services Act 1982 (as amended) Under this law, consumers are entitled to expect you to: carry out work using reasonable skill and care do the work at a reasonable price, unless a specific price is agreed complete the work within a reasonable time, unless a specific time-scale is agreed

2 provide parts, materials and goods that are of a satisfactory quality, fit for their purpose, and correctly described. The Sale and Supply of Goods to Consumers Regulations 2002 In addition, this law lays down certain remedies that the consumer can expect if goods supplied as part of a service are not satisfactory (ie defective, not durable, not fit for their purpose or incorrectly described, amongst other things). Consumers can expect you to: repair or replace any faulty goods, material or components used as part of a service that you have supplied you must provide this remedy without 'significantly inconveniencing' the consumer, i.e. taking too long to carry out the repair or to provide a replacement if a repair or replacement is impossible, unreasonable, or 'disproportionate' to the nature of the complaint, then the consumer may be able to claim a partial or full refund, again depending on the circumstances. You can get more detailed information on your rights and obligations from Quotations and estimates There can be a lot of confusion surrounding the difference between an estimate and a quote, and the two words are often interchanged. However, the law considers them to have important differences in their meaning. Estimate - a rough guess as to the work that needs doing and the approximate cost

3 Quote - a fixed price for the job - if you exceed this price, the consumer may not be under an obligation to pay the extra (unless additional work that could not be foreseen is necessary) Written contracts Although there is no legal obligation to provide a written contract, we would recommend this to both consumers and traders, especially for building work. Even for minor jobs, a clear written agreement, with a detailed schedule of the work, timescales, drawings and costings could help avoid confusion later on and avoid a dispute. For a small fee, you can get packs of pre-printed contracts that you can adapt yourself from Cancellation rights From 1st October 2008, when you enter into a contract with the consumer (whether written or verbal) in the consumer s home, place of work, the home of another individual, you must give the consumer a right to cancel the contract. You must give the consumer a cooling-off period of seven days and written notice of their right to cancel the contract (whether the contract is a written contract or an verbal contract). A Notice of the Right to Cancel must be given at the same time the contract is made. The notice must be in a specified format with a detachable slip. Please see for more information. Subcontractors Usually, a contract exists between you and your client. If you subcontract with another firm to do elements of the job, the law will probably still consider you

4 to be responsible to your client for the quality of the subcontractor's work, and for any goods and materials they use in the process of the job. Criminal law Whereas the civil law deals with individuals and their contracts, criminal law is enforced by organisations such as Trading Standards, Customs and Excise, the Police, The Health and Safety Executive, etc. We have powers to investigate breaches of the criminal law, and can issue cautions or prosecute traders who breach the criminal law through the criminal courts. We would much rather help you get it right first time though! Descriptions Unfair Commercial Practices - The Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008 Your communications or your conduct when dealing with customers must not be unfair or mislead, specifically in relation to; the characteristics of the product you are supplying; the benefits of the product, the fitness for purpose i.e. waterproof the specification i.e. thickness the need for a service, repair, replacement or repair Logo or statements of sponsorship or approval i.e. stating you are CORGI registered when you are not; The nature, attributes and rights of the trader i.e. any qualifications that you have or any connections to other companies.

5 The consequences of non compliance are fines of up to 5,000 per offence in the Magistrates Court and up to 2 year imprisonment and or un limited fines in the Crown Court, depending on the seriousness of the offence. If you fail to comply with a Code of Conduct to which you belong, this is also a breach of the Regulations and the local authority can seek an Order to ensure compliance with the law. Companies Act Where an individual or partnership trades under a name which is not their own, the Business Names Act will apply. The Act requires that the name of the owners of the business and an address where documents may be served should be displayed at the premises and should also appear on business documents. An example of this may be; Windrush Builders Proprietor: Mr William Bloggs Address: 49 Rose Road Anytown Prices All prices given to consumers for services must be clear and not misleading. When supplying consumers, prices should indicate whether they include VAT and if not, at what rate it will be added. Call-out charges If a charge is to be made for a call-out, this must be made clear to the customer before they agree to any work. It must also be stated whether this applies to parts of an hour and when it will apply. The charge must then be calculated accurately.