14 day cooling off period

hey, i moved into my new student house last week, i didnt get to see the house before i moved in because i lived in leeds, and the house was in bath, and i was rather desperate to find a place.

now im moved in, my housemates are alot older than me and dont go out drinking, basiclly, we have nothing in common, both of the housemates are very un-hygenic and never clean up after themselves. My gfrend stopped at the weekend and said if i dont like the place, you have a 14 day cooling off period in which you can decide not to go through with the contract.

does anybody know anything about this, has i would like to move out, i have already found a house to move into

Reply 1

Olix

Yea i think that would have like a month or something, but be aware the Uni may not offer you somewhere else so you'll have to find a place for yourself

Hope that sorta helps

Reply 2

robcryer

sorry, its not with the uni, its just a house that i found on the internet

Reply 3

shuvle

call:

http://www.consumerdirect.gov.uk/

Reply 4

daspirit

Guy, you dont need to worry. Just hold on for just few days as you get to look for another more comfortable place. Or you can talk try to talk with your fellow roomates so that they will change their ways.
Hope this a kind of helps.

Am daspirit girl

Reply 5

robcryer

I can talk to the housemates, i dont dislke them, I'd just prefer to live with other people around my age, who like to go out drinking and have a good time.

Reply 6

alenax

Yeah that's fair enough, sounds like the law is on your side, plus I think it's classed as distance selling?

Reply 7

Paeony

There's no cooling off period with a tenancy agreement - once it's signed, you're committed. It's not covered by distance selling regulations as that covers products that you may not have seen before purchase - you (presumably) saw the house before you moved in and had a period in which to decide whether to take the room or not, so that doesn't apply here. Plus it's a whole different area of law to standard consumer rights - it's not like buying a pair of shoes ...

The only way to get out of a tenancy agreement once you've signed it is to try to come to some mutual agreement with the landlord. If s/he is feeling generous, or if they know they can fill the room, then they might let you break the contract. They aren't under any obligation to do this though, and could (in the worst case scenario) demand that you pay the rent until the end of the contract. However, if you make an effort to find a new tenant then they should be more amenable to helping you.

Don't go in all guns blazing shouting about fourteen day and month long cooling off periods, as it's simply not true and you'll look like a fool, as well as antagonising the landlord. This is why you should never sign a tenancy agreement that you're in the least bit unsure about, as it's not so easy to break them.

Reply 8

alenax

Ahh, shows what I know! That's really helpful for me as well as I'm possibly about to move into a new flat. Thanks :smile:

Reply 9

Persipan

I agree with what Paeony said (as usual!) - although distance selling regulations might possibly apply (if you didn't meet the landlord at all before moving in, and conducted all your dealings by phone/post/e-mail), any 'cooling off period' would apply from when you agreed to the contract, not when you moved in. My brief skim-reading of issues surrounding the distance selling regulations would suggest a seven day period, so unless you agreed to the contract less than a week ago, you're probably out of luck, and even then it would only apply if there was no provision in your contract excluding cancelling after moving in. (Do go and get specialist advice, if you want more info.)

Reply 10

robcryer

thanks 4 the help guys.

i might go down the avenue of searching for a new person to take my room, then they cant complain, although i would feel a bit tight letting the room out to some1, and then they have the same issues has me.