Canceling a Contract

Can a contract that I signed be canceled or is it too late?

Most contracts that have been signed cannot be canceled if the consumer changes his mind. The agreement is binding between both the buyer and the seller, therefore the consumer should clearly understand the details of the contract and obligations involved prior to signing the contract. It is much easier and safer to evaluate all alternatives before signing a contract than to try to get out of a contract after signing it. Read and understand everything in the contract and always ask for a copy of the contract.

Where consumers have been deceived or defrauded, a "cooling off" period or cancellation period may be provided under certain circumstances and only in certain kinds of transactions. These may include:

• contracts for home improvements that involve a mortgage against the home
• door-to-door sales
• contracts for future services
• campground time share and certain unseen real estate

Yes. A bill collector or collection company may call your place of business. This is regulated by the Federal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, which ensures that individuals are treated fairly by debt collectors.

The collector is prohibited from stating to anyone else that money is owed, using postcards or any symbol on an envelope indicating a debt collection, and when requested, from communicating more than once with a debtor unless reasonably necessary to verify what was previously asked. The collector is prohibited from harassing, abusing, or oppressing the debtor, making false or misleading statements or representations or using any other unfair practices.

I continuously get low interest credit card offers in the mail. Are these a good deal?

Yes and No. The most important thing to remember about these offers is to read them very carefully...especially the small print. These offers are usually introductory where companies try to lure customers away from other companies. Therefore they offer a very low rate for a short period of time (3 to 6 months) and then the rate increases to a substantially higher rate. In other cases, the low rate applies only to transferred balances or only to cash advances.

If this can be used to your advantage, such as paying a medical bill or for a vacation at a reduced interest rate, it may be a good deal. If not, it may be best not to take advantage of this offer. In some cases, if late payments are made (sometimes just one) the interest rate may double or triple. This could then cost more than the credit you currently hold. Taking advantage of too many credit offers without canceling others, may, in fact damage your credit rating. Be smart. Read the credit contracts carefully and then decide what your best options are.

A store refused to accept a purchase when I returned it. Can the store do that?

Yes. The store can do that. No store is required to accept returned merchandise if a sign is posted at the point of sale stating that fact. A sign such as "all sales final" or "no refund" makes it very clear that you must accept what was purchased. The absence of such a sign indicates that a refund policy does exist. Some stores will offer an exchange but no refund. This law does not apply to the sale of food, perishable goods, custom made items, goods which have been custom altered at the request of the consumer, or goods which cannot be resold by the merchant because of any law, rule or regulation adopted by a government body.