Buying certain types of goods may entail placing an order, paying a deposit and then waiting for the goods to be delivered to our house.
Usually this is necessary, when we either need to buy goods that are not ‘in stock’, or those that need to be made to measure according to our needs, or else are too bulky for us to carry. In such situations we should be careful how much deposit we accept to pay, and must also take a number of precautions to avoid possible problems.
Once a deposit is paid, the sale is confirmed and we are committed to proceed with the sale. Should we have second thoughts about the goods we ordered, we might lose our deposit and sometimes even more. Some contracts do not allow us to cancel the order but oblige us to continue with the purchase and therefore pay the goods in full when these are delivered to us. Hence, it is crucial that we are convinced of what we want and need. Ideally we check with the supplier whether we may claim our deposit back if something happens and we need to cancel the order. If an opt-out from the contract is possible, it is necessary that we have everything in writing in the contract of sale.
The best way to prevent change of mind situations is shopping around. In cases of products that we won’t be using for a while there is no need to order them years or months before. New models may be created which will provide us with a vaster range of products to choose from. There is also the possibility that our circumstances change and hence our needs may change too.
How much deposit we should pay is a matter of agreement with the seller. There is no law that stipulates the amount or percentage of deposits. In practice, usually it is the supplier who suggests the amount of deposit to be paid. However, we can re-negotiate this amount if we think that it is too much, especially when compared to the total price of the product ordered.
Another thing we need to agree on is how the rest of the payment will be made. Are we going to pay by instalments? Or is the full balance payable upon delivery? Ideally we should not accept to pay the full amount on the day of delivery, but leave a small percentage of the total amount to be paid after we had time to carefully inspect and check out the delivered goods.
It is also important to agree on the date of delivery, and this should be written black on white on the contract of sale. A description of the goods ordered should also be included in the contract. The reason being that if the supplier does not adhere to the terms of the contract, then we may have a right to ask for our deposit back and cancel the sale. The trader may also be liable to any other reasonable costs that we may have incurred as a direct result of the seller’s breach of contract.
Even though we are convinced of the product we want to buy, we should always try and negotiate to pay the least possible amount of deposit. We must keep in mind that we are paying money for something which is still not in our possession and hence various problems can crop up. One of the worst possible scenarios is that of the seller going out of business. If this happens we may find it difficult to either get the goods or our money back. Usually in these circumstances the seller owes money to a number of people so our claim would be one of many. There are rules for priority to be given to the various debts in the case of a business going into liquidation, and generally the individual consumer is low in this list. There could also be problems with the actual order, such as for instance a different product being delivered or arriving with missing components. As consumers we should bear in mind that when such situations happen our strength very often depends on how much money we still owe to the trader. Hence the advice is to cling to our money until what we have ordered is delivered and carefully checked out.
When facing problems after paying a deposit, as consumers we should always check what our legal rights are, and whenever necessary seek the assistance of the Office for Consumer Affairs.