Legal Question in Consumer Law in Washington

Early termination of a contract

We agreed to a two-year commitment w/DTV in Dec�05.We had varies problems with equip. which lead us to be without service frequently and for long periods of time.Although they agreed to continue to send equipment and technicians to fix the problems,we found that the amount of trouble caused to us(hours on the phone, missed work for appointments, time waiting for repairs and not having TV to watch)to be unsatisfactory.We offered a last chance for them to resolve the problem,but they did not respond,therefore we cancelled our service.We are now being charged an early cancellation fee.We did cancel,but we feel they did not fulfill their commitment first. In addition,they started our contract over upon sending us a replacement receiver for a faulty one(the replacement didn�t work properly either)This receiver was activated on 12/2/06 and we canceled the next day(I believe)and the equipment was returned.They are using the activation date as the beginning of a new two-year commitment.Do we have any legal rights to end a contract when service was unsatisfactory?Also, I've seen contracts where the consumer has a certain amount of days to look over the contract and decided to cancel(usually at least 3 days)..are there any laws around this?


Asked on 1/10/07, 11:09 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Elizabeth Powell ELizabeth Powell PS Inc

Re: Early termination of a contract

The law that you are thinking of where you have a 3-day right of recission applies to in-home sales.

Typically that's cosmetics or some kind of party that happens at your house, and the contract where you purchase something spells out your rights. It does not apply when the sale is at the place of business of the seller's such as a car dealer.

Here, you don't specify whether a salesperson came to your house or not.

You need to read your contract, carefully. See what it says. That's what you agreed to.

Sometimes a court will find that a contract is unconscionable - which means that it is so one-sided as to be unenforceable. In that case, the court can void the contract so that your liability under that contract ends.

Another, more economical option for you might be to contact the Washington State Attorney general's consumer protection division and file a complaint.

The AG will require that the company respond and explain themselves to the AG. If the AG feels that several consumers have been taken advantage of, they can elect to file suit against the provider. They have the resources to do this without requiring you to pay attorney fees to get relief.

I haven't seen your contract, so there isn't a lot more I can add. I hope this helps you sort it out -

Powell

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Answered on 1/11/07, 1:01 am


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