What does the law stateabout charging a fee to a consumer for missing/cancelling service appointments?
Get Legal Help Today
Compare Quotes From Top Companies and Save
Secured with SHA-256 Encryption
What does the law stateabout charging a fee to a consumer for missing/cancelling service appointments?
We sell satellite service and our service agreement that is signed prior to installation states that the customer must cancel appointment within 3 hours prior of scheduled installation time or they will be subject to a $175 charge, since we have to dispatch equipment and sub-contractors who still charge us for a trip charge once they have left. Many customers cancel at the door and the contract states we will charge the credit card on file if they cancel without appropriate notice. We have never charged anyone yet, but would like to know what the law says about having this business practice?
Asked on November 17, 2010 under Business Law, California
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 13 years ago | Contributor
As long as the cancellation fee is disclosed to customers in advance, in some resonable way (e.g. not buried in tiny small print in obscure language, or only on your website on a rarely visited page) it is enforceable. If it's one of the terms of your service that you can show customers are--or at least, reasonably should be--aware of when they contract for your services, then it is an enforceable term. If it's in your service agreement, fairly prominently, and the agreement is signed in advance, then you should have good grounds to charge this fee, the same way many doctors and dentists will charge a fee if a patient cancels with too little notice, or a hotel can charge a night's stay if a customer doesn't cancel 24 hours in advance. It's all about showing that it was a known (or should be known) term which people were made aware of prior to signing.
IMPORTANT NOTICE: The Answer(s) provided above are for general information only. The attorney providing the answer was not serving as the attorney for the person submitting the question or in any attorney-client relationship with such person. Laws may vary from state to state, and sometimes change. Tiny variations in the facts, or a fact not set forth in a question, often can change a legal outcome or an attorney's conclusion. Although AttorneyPages.com has verified the attorney was admitted to practice law in at least one jurisdiction, he or she may not be authorized to practice law in the jurisdiction referred to in the question, nor is he or she necessarily experienced in the area of the law involved. Unlike the information in the Answer(s) above, upon which you should NOT rely, for personal advice you can rely upon we suggest you retain an attorney to represent you.