getting out of an advertising contract?
Discussion
Asking for a friend.
Self employed guy with a small business was approached by a local advertising company, think radio/tv in other local business venues. He signed on the day and emailed them the day after asking to cancel (high pressure sales in his home, not happy with the terms after thinking about it)
Got sold a crap deal which equates to 5-6x more than he is used to spending on advertising for the year. The guy spoke about how amazing they are, payment options, exclusivity etc. The deal he signed is crap and overpriced, also states it cannot be cancelled and verbal promises do not apply. The contract does state it is for 5x venues but the venues are not listed.
At this point, he is in a one way street to s
tsville.
However, theres no start date on the contract, they have asked for the first payment 33%. The contract does say exclusivity and we know a competitor does also advertise and but we aren't sure if it would be in the same venue (several over the county)- I have advised him to approach competitor and find out) Also no work has been completed, they asked for creative brief which has not been given.
Is the lack of work done, the request to cancel within 24 hours and no start date enough to get out of the contract, or does he have to approach the competitor to see where they advertise and see if thats a get out?
I already think he's up stcreek, apart from paying and becoming the biggest pain in the arse for their marketing team is there much he can do?
Self employed guy with a small business was approached by a local advertising company, think radio/tv in other local business venues. He signed on the day and emailed them the day after asking to cancel (high pressure sales in his home, not happy with the terms after thinking about it)
Got sold a crap deal which equates to 5-6x more than he is used to spending on advertising for the year. The guy spoke about how amazing they are, payment options, exclusivity etc. The deal he signed is crap and overpriced, also states it cannot be cancelled and verbal promises do not apply. The contract does state it is for 5x venues but the venues are not listed.
At this point, he is in a one way street to s
tsville.However, theres no start date on the contract, they have asked for the first payment 33%. The contract does say exclusivity and we know a competitor does also advertise and but we aren't sure if it would be in the same venue (several over the county)- I have advised him to approach competitor and find out) Also no work has been completed, they asked for creative brief which has not been given.
Is the lack of work done, the request to cancel within 24 hours and no start date enough to get out of the contract, or does he have to approach the competitor to see where they advertise and see if thats a get out?
I already think he's up s
tcreek, apart from paying and becoming the biggest pain in the arse for their marketing team is there much he can do? I would send them an email straight away saying that the agreement was misrepresented. Explain that because of this you would like to cancel the contract with immediate effect and that you don't accept any charges. Ask for details of the trade body, or ombudsmen with responsibility for their services or an ADR service that they may be a member of. Finally explain that you are prepared to defend your interests robustly.
Then send them a letter via recorded delivery to the owner of the business stating these same points.
There will be little point in debating it with them as they will be very experienced at dealing with people who want to cancel once they realise what they are committed to. They will likely make all kinds of threats - don't take the bait.
Just deal with the facts, don't make threats back, just ask them politely but firmly that you would like your complaint to be reviewed by an independent third party. Make it clear you won't pay anything unless instructed to by an independent arbitration service or a judge.
If you maintain this approach you will likely go onto the "too difficult" pile and they should leave you alone (once their normal, low cost intimidation methods haven't worked).
Then send them a letter via recorded delivery to the owner of the business stating these same points.
There will be little point in debating it with them as they will be very experienced at dealing with people who want to cancel once they realise what they are committed to. They will likely make all kinds of threats - don't take the bait.
Just deal with the facts, don't make threats back, just ask them politely but firmly that you would like your complaint to be reviewed by an independent third party. Make it clear you won't pay anything unless instructed to by an independent arbitration service or a judge.
If you maintain this approach you will likely go onto the "too difficult" pile and they should leave you alone (once their normal, low cost intimidation methods haven't worked).
EddieSteadyGo said:
I would send them an email straight away saying that the agreement was misrepresented. Explain that because of this you would like to cancel the contract with immediate effect and that you don't accept any charges. Ask for details of the trade body, or ombudsmen with responsibility for their services or an ADR service that they may be a member of. Finally explain that you are prepared to defend your interests robustly.
Then send them a letter via recorded delivery to the owner of the business stating these same points.
There will be little point in debating it with them as they will be very experienced at dealing with people who want to cancel once they realise what they are committed to. They will likely make all kinds of threats - don't take the bait.
Just deal with the facts, don't make threats back, just ask them politely but firmly that you would like your complaint to be reviewed by an independent third party. Make it clear you won't pay anything unless instructed to by an independent arbitration service or a judge.
If you maintain this approach you will likely go onto the "too difficult" pile and they should leave you alone (once their normal, low cost intimidation methods haven't worked).
Thanks! Will pass on the adviceThen send them a letter via recorded delivery to the owner of the business stating these same points.
There will be little point in debating it with them as they will be very experienced at dealing with people who want to cancel once they realise what they are committed to. They will likely make all kinds of threats - don't take the bait.
Just deal with the facts, don't make threats back, just ask them politely but firmly that you would like your complaint to be reviewed by an independent third party. Make it clear you won't pay anything unless instructed to by an independent arbitration service or a judge.
If you maintain this approach you will likely go onto the "too difficult" pile and they should leave you alone (once their normal, low cost intimidation methods haven't worked).
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