Unfair contract terms guidance 
          
          
          
         Guidance for the Unfair Terms in Consumer Contracts 
         Regulations 1999 
          
         September 2008 
          
          
          
         OFT311 
                                                           
                                                           
                                                             
          
                 CONTENTS 
                 Part Page 
                 THE GUIDANCE  
                 I       Introduction                                                                          7             
                 II      Analysis of unfair terms in Schedule 2                                              13 
                     Groups 1 and 2: Exclusion and limitation clauses                                        13    
                     Group 3: Binding consumers while allowing the supplier to 
                                 provide no service                                                          37             
                     Group 4: Retention of payment on consumer cancellation                                  38    
                     Group 5: Financial penalties                                                            40    
                     Group 6: Cancellation clauses                                                           43   
                     Group 7: Supplier's right to cancel without notice                                      47    
                     Group 8: Excessive notice periods for consumer cancellation                             49   
                     Group 9: Binding consumers to hidden terms                                              50   
                     Group 10: Supplier's rights to vary terms generally                                     52  
                     Group 11: Right to change what is supplied                                              54  
                     Group 12: Price variation clauses                                                       57  
                                                                                                               
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                    Group 13: Supplier's right of final decision                                  59 
                    Group 14: Entire agreement and formality clauses                             61 
                    Group 15: Binding consumers where the supplier defaults                      65 
                    Group 16: Supplier's right to assign without consent                         66 
                    Group 17: Restricting the consumer's remedies                                67             
               III     Analysis of other terms considered potentially unfair                      69 
                   Group 18: Other terms                                                         70 
               IV      Analysis of terms breaching Regulation                                    85 
                        
                   Group 19: Regulation 7 – plain and intelligible language                      85 
               Annexes 
               A       Examples of fair and unfair terms                                             
               B       List of enforcers                                                              
               C       Index of types of term                                                        
                
                 
                                                                                                   
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                 Contacting the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) 
                 If you think that any of the standard terms in a consumer contract are unfair you 
                 should contact Consumer Direct in the first instance at the address below. The OFT 
                 cannot provide advice or assistance to individual consumers or traders.  
                 For consumer advice, information on specific consumer rights, to make a complaint 
                 against a trader or to contact your Local Authority Trading Standards Service, 
                 please call the Consumer Direct advice service on 08454 04 05 06 or visit the 
                 Consumer Direct website www.consumerdirect.gov.uk. 
                 OFT publications 
                 Further copies of this general guidance document, unfair contract terms bulletins, 
                 the explanatory OFT briefing note Unfair Standard Terms (ref: OFT143) and the 
                 other guidance documents listed below can be obtained from the OFT mailing 
                 house on 0800 389 3158, by fax from 0870 60 70 321, or email at 
                 oft@ecgroup.co.uk 
                  
                 Guidance for market sectors 
                  
                     •   Guidance on unfair terms in tenancy agreements OFT356 
                  
                     •   Guidance on unfair terms in health and fitness club agreements OFT373 
                  
                     •   Guidance on unfair terms in care home contracts OFT635 
                  
                     •   Guidance on unfair terms in consumer entertainment contracts OFT667 
                  
                     •   Guidance on unfair terms in package holiday contracts OFT668 
                  
                     •   Guidance on unfair terms in holiday caravan agreements OFT734. Also 
                         Unfair terms in holiday caravan agreements, consultation response. 
                  
                                                                                                              
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