Tado Unfair Rental Billing

tekton23

Hi,

Tado (the smart thermostat people) are trying to bill me for a third year of rental, even though I want to cancel. They issued their 3rd year invoice the day before the third year term was due to start.

I then contacted them to enquire about buying the kit outright. They were slow to respond, so I asked again. They then sent both responses at the same time, a few days later. This corresponded with me going away for a three week holiday.

When I cam back I bought a new tado and then contacted them to cancel the rental agreement. They are saying that as the cancellation was only made after two months into the third year's cycle, they will not cancel the agreement and I owe them for the full year!:mad:

Is this fair? What can I do? Do I just have to pay and grin and bear it?

Shocked they respond like this given I have been a loyal customer for two years and have just bought a whole new system from them also!

T23

matelodave

You should have been prepared to finish the agreement and given them notice before the renewal was due. It's not their fault that you left it to the very last minute and then went off on holiday.

This is what their support website says
"Is there a minimum contract period?

If you rent tado° there is a minimum contract period of 12 months and is renewed automatically for another year, if not canceled 30 days before the end of the contract year." So you failed to cancel.

Have you looked at the T&C's to see what you signed up for? Is it an annual fee or a monthly one? Did you go through their process https://support.tado.com/hc/en-gb/articles/202458555-My-tado-devices-are-rented-Can-I-purchase-my-rented-devices-switch-from-rent-to-buy-

You should have got a discount towards the cost of the new system.

tekton23

The process hasn't been great, but they have been very slow to respond so the process has been drawn out for this long.

Isn't the onous on them to remind before billing for a whole new year. Invoicing the night before the new year's contract starts does not seem fair to me.

I wonder if I can sell the rented kit, on the basis that it can be used for ten months.

tekton23

...and their offer for me to buy the kit I had been renting was at too high a price. It is far cheaper to buy a new latest version Tado via eBay.

matelodave

The onus is on you to diarise any renewal dates especially if there's a notice period involved. I've no doubt you had to sign an agreement and that would have had T&C's.

I'm guessin that the kit you've been renting belongs to TADO and so isn't yours to resell.

tekton23

I disagree, this is poor behaviour on Tado's part. I have just bought a new system, they have been slow to respond, they gave no warning of the new invoice and they should concede and at least charge fees for what's properly due.
Easy for them to cancel the contract 2 months in, at no cost to themselves. What loss do they have to account for if the contract is cancelled after 2 months? None! At worst I should be asked to pay for the 2 months and that should be it.

tekton23

Has anyone had any luck reducing money owed in this sort of situation? Do they have the right to charge for the rest of the year?

System

tekton23 wrote: »

Has anyone had any luck reducing money owed in this sort of situation? Do they have the right to charge for the rest of the year?

It's covered in the terms and conditions that you agreed to when you signed up for the rental:

The contract for the rental of the devices of the Supplier shall be concluded for a period of 12 months and will be automatically extended for additional 12 months unless it is terminated by giving a 4 weeks' notice prior to the end of the contract term. The foregoing shall be without prejudice to the right to extraordinary termination for an important reason.

Whether the above constitutes an unfair contract term is something for a lawyer to given an opinion on.

http://www.which.co.uk/consumer-rights/advice/i-think-theres-an-unfair-term-in-my-contract-what-can-i-do