Please help, signed a contract for photo experience but need to cancel

DottyJane · 13 April 2009 at 9:59PM

Hi,

Not sure if im posting in the right place.

My friend was told she'd won a competition from Double Take Studios for a makeover day and photo session. She was told there would be no obligation to buy photos just a fun day out.

We went on Saturday and it was a nightmare, the studio wasnt particularly nice just a house with a couple of grubby rooms for make up and the studio. The make up was nice and then we had some pics taken, this all finished up at 4pm we then had to wait over an hour just to see the pics, by this time i had a banging headache and just wanted to go home! They take you into a room with a sales consultant who shows you the pics and tells you how beautiful they are etc. Some of them were lovely but then I found out the prices, just for 10 photo's on CD and printed it was £600! After playing myself and my friend off against each other we both said we liked them but couldnt afford them, this is after another 45 minutes looking thru the pics and the sales girl saying how lovely they are. So then she says oh dont worry we do finance! I said I was dubious as didnt think id pass but she said oh dont worry we can just try. Stupidly by this point i thought let her just check the finance and il fail and then il be able to leave! I did fail the finance but then she made me feel bad and said dont worry after all this we dont want u to go home empty handed we use another finance co called ezi pay.

Anyway I could keep going on but it ended with us being there 2.5hours after the shoot finished in a boiling hot room being pursuaded to buy them so ended signing up for a £600 finance package (paying £60 deposit). Now I realise this was really stupid but now I dont know what to do there is no way I can afford this but the order form iv got from them says "I understand this is a legally binding agreement and non cancellable".

Do I not get any cooling off period or anything? Cant believe I've just signed £600 in the heat of the mo just because I wanted to get out of there - dont even get the pics for 6/8 weeks!

Does anyone know what my rights are and what I should do?

Thank you very much

DJ x

V.Lucky · 13 April 2009 at 10:02PM

I think as you went to them the agreement is non cancellable. Might be worth phoning Trading Standards or whatever they are called these days to double check in the morning.

Best of luck, sounds like a real hard sell timeshare type of sale.

jamsandwhich · 13 April 2009 at 10:05PM

Ring your local trading standards first thing in the morning -I am not 100% sure but I believe that any contract is subject to at least a seven day cooling off period, put in place to save people from doorstep salesmen/women!

McKneff · 13 April 2009 at 10:32PM

You have both been very gullible. Your friend probably didnt even enter a competion. This sort of sales tactic is normal these days, i'm sure it should be made illegal - its downright lying. I would have a word with trading standards if i were you.

McKneff · 13 April 2009 at 10:34PM

jamsandwhich wrote: »

Ring your local trading standards first thing in the morning -I am not 100% sure but I believe that any contract is subject to at least a seven day cooling off period, put in place to save people from doorstep salesmen/women!

i think the difference here is 'doorstep selling' it may not be so in this case because the OP went to a different place voluntarily to accept the offer.
Not 100% sure and i sincerely hope I am wrong, but check wih TS
regards

so2006 · 13 April 2009 at 10:48PM

I am sure there is a cooling off period with all contracts.

I would first look up the finance company, and see if they are authorised to give credit etc.

maninthestreet · 13 April 2009 at 11:35PM

If this is a credit agrement, then there is a 7 day cooling-off period under the CCA.

bookworm1363 · 14 April 2009 at 12:15AM

maninthestreet wrote: »

If this is a credit agrement, then there is a 7 day cooling-off period under the CCA.

No soory, that is not correct, consumers have a cooling-off period during which they may cancel an agreement if they have signed anywhere other than on trade premises - including in their own home, over the telephone or online, in this case as signed on the premises, it doesn't apply.

The hard sell may be in breach of both the UTCCR and the CPUT Regs however.

Contact TS and report them. As someone else said, there was no "winning" competition and that is also a breach of consumer regs.

You have to act fast though as the goods are personalised ones, they can not be resold and therefore it weakens your case if you delay.

I would write a very strong letter to them stating that you felt you were both misled and coerced into taking a financial burden you can't actually afford, that you plan to report them to TS and the OFT for their breaches of the consumer regulations unless they immediately cancel the credit agreement. It's a long shot, but if you pt the fear of the trading authorities in them, they might cancel rather than having TS sniffing into their practices.

McKneff · 14 April 2009 at 9:02AM

Good post, Bookworm

hollydays · 14 April 2009 at 10:11AM

http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/consumer/article.html?in_article_id=481550&in_page_id=5

The owner says any telesales staff telling people they have won a competition will be fired.

phlogeston · 14 April 2009 at 11:03AM

so2006 wrote: »

I am sure there is a cooling off period with all contracts.

No there isn't. Unless the law specifically allows otherwise there is NEVER a cooling off period with a contract.

Exceptions are finance, door step selling, distance selling, time share (to name a few).

Please help, signed a contract for photo experience but need to cancel

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