Customer cancellation rights: the 14-day rule

If you agree a job in someone’s home, or by phone or email, they can usually cancel within 14 days. Here’s what that means for you.

When the 14-day right applies

Under the Consumer Contracts Regulations, a homeowner (not a business) usually has 14 days to cancel when the contract is agreed:

  • Off-premises: away from your business premises, for example at their kitchen table after a site visit.
  • At a distance: by phone, email, text or online, without meeting face to face.

For a service, the 14 days start the day after the contract is agreed. Very small off-premises contracts, £42 or less, are exempt.

What you must tell them

Before they agree, give them the information the law requires, including their right to cancel, how to do it and the cancellation form. If you don’t, the cancellation period is extended by up to 12 months, you can’t charge for work done in that time, and for off-premises contracts it can be a criminal offence.

Starting before the 14 days are up

  1. They must ask you to start early. Get it in writing; an email reply is fine. Don’t start early on your own initiative.
  2. Tell them what it means. If they cancel during the 14 days, they pay a fair, proportionate amount for the work done so far.
  3. Once the job is finished, the right ends, but only if they asked you to start early and acknowledged they’d lose the right.

Urgent repairs: there’s no cancellation right when a customer specifically calls you out for an urgent repair. Extra work you agree on the same visit can still be cancelled.

The full rules, the information you must give and a model cancellation form are on Business Companion, Trading Standards’ free guidance for businesses. This guide is general information, not legal advice.

The templates

For starting early, and for the customer who changes their mind.

They ask you to start within 14 days

Subject: Starting your [the job] early

Subject: Starting your [the job] early

Hi [Name],

Thanks for asking me to start [the job] on [date], before your 14-day cancellation period ends. Before I do, please reply to confirm that:

• you’re asking me to start early, and
• you understand that if you cancel during the 14 days, you’ll pay for the work done up to that point, and that once the work is finished you can no longer cancel.

Once you’ve replied, I’ll book you in.

Thanks,
[Your name]
[Business name]

They cancel within the 14 days

Subject: Your cancellation: [the job]

Subject: Your cancellation: [the job]

Hi [Name],

Thanks for letting me know. I’ve cancelled [the job] as you asked.

[If no work has started: I’ll refund your payment of [amount] within 14 days.]
[If work started at your request: As agreed on [date], the work done so far comes to [amount]. I’ll refund the balance of [amount] within 14 days.]

If you’d like to book in future, just get in touch.

Thanks,
[Your name]

They cancel later, or postpone

Subject: Re: [the job] on [date]

Subject: Re: [the job] on [date]

Hi [Name],

Thanks for letting me know, and sorry to hear the timing doesn’t work. [Explain anything agreed in your terms, e.g. materials already ordered for the job.]

If you’d like to rearrange, I can offer [date or dates]. Just reply and I’ll hold one for you.

Thanks,
[Your name]

More free guides

Deposits and payment terms that get you paidClear payment wording for small jobs, deposits and stages.What to send customers after a jobThank-yous, check-ins and reminders that bring repeat work.Quote follow-up email templates for tradespeopleCopy-and-paste emails for every stage after you send a quote.Free follow-up writerWrite a follow-up for any quote in seconds.

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