3 contract given to 17 year old!

macman

Because a child cannot in law make a binding contract. The contract is therefore null and void.

cgk1

macman wrote: »

Because a child cannot in law make a binding contract. The contract is therefore null and void.

As I understand it, this isn't quite right - a child under the age of 7 cannot form a contract in any circumstances, however a minor can. *but* the problem for a business is that a minor can cancel a contract at any time for any reason (there are a couple of exceptions but they aren't relevant here) prior to reaching majority and for a 'reasonable'' amount of time afterwards. The problem here is that the child in question is now an adult, so it would be upto a court to decide if they could cancel it because it was part of a reasonable time frame.

That's a long-winded way of saying 'It's a shame they didn't tackle this when you was still 17 as she could have told the phone company to take a running jump'.

grumbler

cgk1 wrote: »

... a child under the age of 7 cannot form a contract in any circumstances, however a minor can.

And what is the definition of 'minor'?
What I see at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minor_%28law%29#United_Kingdom is:

In England and Wales and in Northern Ireland a minor is a person under the age of 18

Is 'under 7' some special subgroup of minors?
Can a 8 y.o. form a part of a financial contract?
Was the statement quoted in the post #8 incorrect?:

grumbler wrote: »

If a 17-year-old gets a credit card and doesn't pay for it will it go on a future credit report?

Yes, if the minor has been legally emancipated therefore allowing him or her to enter into financial contracts.

cgk1

have no idea why they pick 7 but that's the cut-off for the age where *no* contract can be formed.

Can a 8 y.o. form a part of a financial contract?

Finance is a complex area but from what I can understand a 8 year could form a contract *but* it's completely unenforceable. It's not that a minor can't form a contract that's a problem it's that you can't chase them if they decide to walk away from it. It's discussed in some detail here:

http://www.netlawman.co.uk/info/entering-contract-minor.php

wayne2786

jesus christ! there are some rude people on this site.

Are teenagers not aloud to make mistakes? i made the exact same mistake when i was 16 (although i got a parent to take out the contract in my name) im 25 now.

simple thing to do, she has been cut off i presume so she cant make any more calls.

1. take the sim card of her
2. give her a pay as you go sim
3. make a repayment plan to pay back the bill
4. once paid off give her back the sim but have the account set to a limit, say only aloud to go £10 over her phone allowance.

Its not hard, give the OP a break, teenagers make mistakes, is that not what growing up is all about?

wayne2786

and also in regards to the catalouge, their could be loads of reasons why she was declined, it may have nothing to do with the phone bill. try not worry yourself, just pay back what is owed and be done with it.

ILW

I would seriously advise against the catalogue, getting into a habit of buy now, pay later debt at 18 can be a pretty dodgy start to adult life.

MrsTinks

hongkongfooey1970 wrote: »

I think her inability to get credit will probably be a good thing in the end. I wouldn't want her getting into a mess like I used to be in!



She's not likely to be going anywhere soon anyway! She's still in college and has moderate learning difficulties so her job prospects aren't the best.

Some might argue that the same could have been said about Richard Branson who has severe dyslexia... didn't hold him back so don't think any moderate LD will hold your daughter back either!

Personally I think if she ran up the debt she needs to deal with it - and not by finding loopholes to avoid it - instead let this be her most important financial lesson at her young age! By all means help her pay back a fair amount - ie no excessive charges etc

To be honest I think it's a great thing she didn't get a catalog account... my word... imagine the mess she could be in a few months from now!!!

wayne2786

MrsTine wrote: »

Personally I think if she ran up the debt she needs to deal with it - and not by finding loopholes to avoid it - instead let this be her most important financial lesson at her young age!

exactly, just pay it back, shes still young, dont worry to much about her credit rating at the moment, just pay it back (set up a payment plan) and move on with your lifes!

hongkongfooey1970

wayne2786 wrote: »

jesus christ! there are some rude people on this site.

Are teenagers not aloud to make mistakes? i made the exact same mistake when i was 16 (although i got a parent to take out the contract in my name) im 25 now.

simple thing to do, she has been cut off i presume so she cant make any more calls.

1. take the sim card of her
2. give her a pay as you go sim
3. make a repayment plan to pay back the bill
4. once paid off give her back the sim but have the account set to a limit, say only aloud to go £10 over her phone allowance.

Its not hard, give the OP a break, teenagers make mistakes, is that not what growing up is all about?

There really are - I agree!

She no longer has the phone or sim - both have been taken off her. She is now on pay as you go and will be staying that way for a long time yet

Thanks to the others for bringing up the legal restrictions surrounding this and yes, maybe we should have done soemthing before she turned 18. Oh well, you live and learn, we all make mistakes (except maybe the self-rightous posters on here!)