The Office of Fair Trading v Foxtons Limited [electronic resource]
Language: English Publication details: 2009Subject(s): Online resources: Summary: [2009] EWHC 1681 (Ch), 10 July 2009. The case relates to unfair terms in contracts under the Unfair Terms in Consumer Contracts Regulations 1999. The estate and letting agent Foxtons (F) provided the service of letting agents to various landlords under standard form terms of agreement. Several terms in the standard forms are considered to be unfair by the Office of Fair Trading and relief is claimed in respect of two contracts. As F stopped using some of these terms just before the hearing, the judge had to decide if the old terms were fair and address questions arising in relation to the new terms. The judge also had to determine the appropriate form of relief to apply. "Held": The renewal commission element of Foxtons' old terms and new terms is unfair as it is not made clear to the landlord at the time of signing the initial contract. The third party renewal commission terms present in the old terms are unfair. The sales commission clause is unfair. All provisions are unfair for the purposes of the Regulations. There will be further debate concerning the relief to be granted and a further hearing if the parties cannot agree on the point.| Item type | Current library | Call number | Copy number | Status | Barcode | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Journal article | Virtual Online | ONLINE PUBLICATION (Browse shelf(Opens below)) | 1 | Available | 147997-2001 |
[2009] EWHC 1681 (Ch), 10 July 2009. The case relates to unfair terms in contracts under the Unfair Terms in Consumer Contracts Regulations 1999. The estate and letting agent Foxtons (F) provided the service of letting agents to various landlords under standard form terms of agreement. Several terms in the standard forms are considered to be unfair by the Office of Fair Trading and relief is claimed in respect of two contracts. As F stopped using some of these terms just before the hearing, the judge had to decide if the old terms were fair and address questions arising in relation to the new terms. The judge also had to determine the appropriate form of relief to apply. "Held": The renewal commission element of Foxtons' old terms and new terms is unfair as it is not made clear to the landlord at the time of signing the initial contract. The third party renewal commission terms present in the old terms are unfair. The sales commission clause is unfair. All provisions are unfair for the purposes of the Regulations. There will be further debate concerning the relief to be granted and a further hearing if the parties cannot agree on the point.