is a contact legally binding if the personal details on it are incorrect?

SarahSK

I'm new here so apologies if this is the wrong place to post this.

My uncle passes away a few weeks ago, as his only living relatives my brother and I have had to organise the funeral.
It was all arranged with the funeral director but there seemed to be some confusion as to who would be paying for it, it turned out that my uncle had no money, a lot of debt and nothing worth much, so there is no money to pay for the funeral.
I told the funeral director that I would pay (my brother is not in a situation to) and the he had me sign the contract.
I did not realise you only have 30 days to pay the bill and have tried to arrange a payment plan of 3 months with the funeral director but he said it is not possible and it must be paid within 30 days.
However, upon reading the contract properly I have realised that the details filled out (by the funeral director) are my brothers (his name and address) but it is my signature at the bottom of the page, does this mean that the contract is not valid?

I am in no way looking for a way to avoid paying the bill, I absolutely intend to pay, but I'm hoping that if the contract is questionable I can use it to get some leverage in obtaining a realistic payment timeframe.

Thank you in advance.

HappyMJ

SarahSK wrote: »

I'm new here so apologies if this is the wrong place to post this.

My uncle passes away a few weeks ago, as his only living relatives my brother and I have had to organise the funeral.
It was all arranged with the funeral director but there seemed to be some confusion as to who would be paying for it, it turned out that my uncle had no money, a lot of debt and nothing worth much, so there is no money to pay for the funeral.
I told the funeral director that I would pay (my brother is not in a situation to) and the he had me sign the contract.
I did not realise you only have 30 days to pay the bill and have tried to arrange a payment plan of 3 months with the funeral director but he said it is not possible and it must be paid within 30 days.
However, upon reading the contract properly I have realised that the details filled out (by the funeral director) are my brothers (his name and address) but it is my signature at the bottom of the page, does this mean that the contract is not valid?

I am in no way looking for a way to avoid paying the bill, I absolutely intend to pay, but I'm hoping that if the contract is questionable I can use it to get some leverage in obtaining a realistic payment timeframe.

Thank you in advance.

Just pay it in 3 instalments.

The funeral director might insist it's fully paid within 30 days but as long as you've made at least a third of the payment before 30 days they are hardly going to start court action if you've made it clear you'll pay in two more instalments. Be aware though they might charge you a late fee or even late interest if it's written in the contract.

bris

Yes the contract is legal. Even without paperwork.

SarahSK

Thank you for replying.

Do you know to whom the contract would be legally binding?

I'm concerned that if i just pay as much as i can within the 30 days they will pursue my brother for the rest of the money.

marliepanda

SarahSK wrote: »

Thank you for replying.

Do you know to whom the contract would be legally binding?

I'm concerned that if i just pay as much as i can within the 30 days they will pursue my brother for the rest of the money.

To you. You signed it.

macman

There is no requirement for a written contract. You made a verbal contract as well. That is of course harder to prove, but it's not invalid.
Your argument is bizzarre. If you believe there is no contract, there is nothing to pay. All you are arguing about is the payment terms of the contract you agreed.

paddyrg

A contract is an agreement written down. You had an agreement, the other thing is a bit of paper with ink on it which either party may use to illustrate that there was an agreement. If you cannot honour the agreement (the funeral director has honoured their side), they have every right to chase you. They would be foolish, though, to do so if you had already provided a third of the money and actually do provide the rest. They may be able to add a small amount of interest, but it may be more hassle than it's worth.

unholyangel

OP for future reference, usually when a contract says nothing of when an amount is due, its 30 days from the date of the invoice as standard.

SarahSK

Thank you again for the replies.

I am not trying to dispute the agreement made and i have every intention to pay in full, but i thought i would be able to negotiate a payment timeframe as i assume most people don't have a few thousand pounds just lying around to pay for these things, especially just after christmas, it cant be uncommon to need a couple of months to pay it off.

I will just pay what i can and hopefully pay it off in two months and hope they don't do anything before i've paid it off.

Thanks again.

thescouselander

How about getting a credit card to pay for the funeral and then cancelling it once the debt is cleared? You might even be able to find one at 0% interest.

paddyrg

Honestly, in their position, I wouldn't instigate any court or similar action at this stage. If you don't have the money, but are paying it off as fast as you can, that's not going to change with a court judgement, they are better off just grumbling about it but accepting the money. The final payment from what you say is under 60 days overdue, really not worth the grief of chasing through court.

So, carry on, let them grumble, pay it off with humility when you say you will (ie a third of the total each month) and stick to that, and it'll blow over quickly.

I'm sorry for your loss, by the way. It's easy to be slightly off guard at such a time, and you clearly have a lot of love and respect with your family - that is absolutely priceless.