Not for profit committee run village social club Broadband termination

HEW1

We are a not for profit committee run village social club. Unfortunately, after over 100 years trading, we have had to close the club. Most committee members have left and due to lack of finances and support the club has had to close.

1 year ago we entered a 4 year contract with OneCom for phone and broadband this was required as a phone line was needed to enable the alarm to work and to allow us to take online payments.

As we have had to close the business we will longer need the services provided and want to know if we can terminate the agreement on the grounds that the club will be no longer trading and there are no committee members.

After many hours of trying to get to the correct department we have managed to advise  OneCom that the services are no longer required they have come back with a hefty termination fee to get out of the contract which cannot be paid (no funds/no business).

Can anyone please advise what can be done to close this successfully.  Thank you

MyRealNameToo

HEW1 said:

We are a not for profit committee run village social club. Unfortunately, after over 100 years trading, we have had to close the club. Most committee members have left and due to lack of finances and support the club has had to close.

1 year ago we entered a 4 year contract with OneCom for phone and broadband this was required as a phone line was needed to enable the alarm to work and to allow us to take online payments.

As we have had to close the business we will longer need the services provided and want to know if we can terminate the agreement on the grounds that the club will be no longer trading and there are no committee members.

After many hours of trying to get to the correct department we have managed to advise  OneCom that the services are no longer required they have come back with a hefty termination fee to get out of the contract which cannot be paid (no funds/no business).

Can anyone please advise what can be done to close this successfully.  Thank you

Was the social club run as an incorporated entity or non-incorporated? 

If there was either internet or mobile signal there were other options than a phone line for payments but too late for that. 

Ultimately whoever entered into the contract with them is liable for the early termination costs. If you're an incorporated entity you can tell them there is no money in the corporation and if they want to chase it they are free to do so but will just be wasting money. If you were unincorporated then it's likely certain members/officers are the contracting parties personally and so they remain personally liable for the costs.

If there were any articles of the association then whilst named members may be liable for individual bills it can be possible that others should share in the cost ultimately. 

QrizB

Was the social club being run as a limited company (eg. a CLG), as a charity, a friendly society, a community benefit society, an unincorporated association, or as  something else?

See eg. here for examples of all those:

https://www.sydneymitchell.co.uk/news/sports-and-social-clubs-it-time-incorporate-your

What name is on the contract with OneCom?

Who owns the property? Do they still need an alarm service and would they be willing to take over the contract?

Vitor

If the club is an unincorporated association, and no individuals personally guaranteed the contract, you could simply stop engaging, given there's no operating entity to pursue.

Ectophile

Vitor said:

If the club is an unincorporated association, and no individuals personally guaranteed the contract, you could simply stop engaging, given there's no operating entity to pursue.

If it's unincorporated, then OneCom will have the name of the person who signed the contract.  That person cannot say that they were signing on authority of a company.  That's why many social organisations (including charities) are run as companies.

onomatopoeia99

As others have advised, you need to state the legal nature of this "club".  Given it was taking online payments by your description it is unlikely to simply a club with no legal basis, but it might be.