Unsolicited Goods and Services Act 1971

[KALKI]

This document is for private study purposes only. It is likely not to reflect the law as it stands today. It may be incomplete, and some provisions are likely to have been repealed or amended, and new ones inserted.
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An Act to make provision for the greater protection of persons receiving unsolicited goods, and to amend the law with respect to charges for entries in directories.


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Demands and threats regarding payment.

2:-

(1) A person who, not having reasonable cause to believe there is a right to payment, in the course of any trade or business makes a demand for payment, or asserts a present or prospective right to payment, for what he knows are unsolicited goods sent after the commencement of this Act to another person with a view to his acquiring them for the purposes of his trade or business, shall be guilty of an offence and on summary conviction shall be liable to a fine not exceeding level 4 on the standard scale,

(2) A person who, not having reasonable cause to believe there is a right to payment, in the course of any trade or business and with a view to obtaining any payment for what he knows are unsolicited goods sent as aforesaid:

(a) threatens to bring any legal proceedings; or

(b) places or causes to be placed the name of any person on a list of defaulters or debtors or threatens to do so; or

(c) invokes or causes to be invoked any other collection procedure or threatens to do so, shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 5 on the standard scale.


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Directory entries.

3:-

(1) A person ('the purchaser') shall not be liable to make any payment, and shall be entitled to recover any payment made by him, by way of charge for including or arranging for the inclusion in a directory of an entry relating to that person or his trade or business, unless

(a) there has been signed by the purchaser or on his behalf an order complying with this section,

(b) there has been signed by the purchaser or on his behalf a note complying with this section of his agreement to the charge and before the note was signed, a copy of it was supplied, for retention by him, to him or a person acting on his behalf, or

(c) there has been transmitted by the purchaser or a person acting on his behalf an electronic communication which includes a statement that the purchaser agrees to the charge and the relevant condition is satisfied in relation to that communication.

(2) A person shall be guilty of an offence punishable on summary conviction with a fine not exceeding £400 if, in a case where a payment in respect of a charge would, in the absence of an order or note of agreement to the charge complying with this section and in the absence of an electronic communication in relation to which the relevant condition is satisfied, be recoverable from him in accordance with the terms of subsection (1) above, he demands payment, or asserts a present or prospective right to payment, of the charge or any part of it, without knowing or having reasonable cause to believe that

(a) the entry to which the charge relates was ordered in accordance with this section,

(b) a proper note of the agreement has been duly signed, or

(c) the requirements set out in subsection (1)(c) above have been met.

(3) For the purposes of subsection (1) above, an order for an entry in a directory must be made by means of an order form or other stationery belonging to the purchaser and bearing, in print, his name and address (or one or more of his addresses); and the note required by this section of a person’s agreement to a charge must state the amount of the charge immediately above the place for signature, and:

(a) must identify the directory or proposed directory, and give the following particulars of it

(i) the proposed date of publication of the directory or of the issue in which the entry is to be included and the name and address of the person producing it;

(ii) if the directory or that issue is to be put on sale, the price at which it is to be offered for sale and the minimum number of copies which are to be available for sale;

(iii) if the directory or that issue is to be distributed free of charge (whether or not it is also to be put on sale), the minimum number of copies which are to be so distributed; and

(b) must set out or give reasonable particulars of the entry in respect of which the charge would be payable.

(3A) In relation to an electronic communication which includes a statement that the purchaser agrees to a charge for including or arranging the inclusion in a directory of any entry, the relevant condition is that:

(a) before the electronic communication was transmitted the information referred to in subsection (3B) below was communicated to the purchaser, and

(b) the electronic communication can readily be produced and retained in a visible and legible form.

3B) that information is

(a) the following particulars

(i) the amount of the charge;

(ii) the name of the directory or proposed directory;

(iii) the name of the person producing the directory;

(iv) the geographic address at which that person is established;

(v) if the directory is or is to be available in printed form, the proposed date of publication of the directory or of the issue in which the entry is to be included;

(vi) if the directory or the issue in which the entry is to be included is to be put on sale, the price at which it is to be offered for sale and the minimum number of copies which are to be available for sale;

(vii) if the directory or the issue in which the entry is to be included is to be distributed free of charge (whether or not it is also to be put on sale), the minimum number of copies which are to be so distributed;

(viii) if the directory is or is to be available in a form other than in printed form, adequate details of how it may be accessed; and

(b) reasonable particulars of the entry in respect of which the charge would be payable.

3C In this section "electronic communication" has the same meaning as in the Electronic Communications Act 2000.


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Contents and form of notes of agreement, invoices and similar documents.

3A:

(1) For the purposes of this Act, the Secretary of State may make regulations as to the contents and form of notes of agreement, invoices and similar documents; and, without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing, any such regulations may-

(a) require specified information to be included,

(b) prescribe the manner in which specified information is to be included,

(c) prescribe such other requirements (whether as to presentation, type, size, colour or disposition of lettering, quality or colour of paper or otherwise) as the Secretary of State may consider appropriate for securing that specified information is clearly brought to the attention of the recipient of any note of agreement, invoice or similar document,

(d) make different provision for different classes of descriptions of notes of agreement, invoices and similar documents or for the same class or description in different circumstances,

(e) contain such supplementary and incidental provisions as the Secretary of State may consider appropriate.

(2) Any reference in this section to a note of agreement includes any such copy as is mentioned in section 3(1) of this Act.

(3) Regulations under this section shall be made by statutory instrument and shall be subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of either House of Parliament.’’

(4) Nothing in this section shall apply to a payment due under a contract entered into before the commencement of this Act, or entered into by the acceptance of an offer made before that commencement.


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Interpretation. 6:

(1) In this Act, unless the context or subject matter otherwise requires,

'acquire' includes hire;

'send' includes deliver, and “sender” shall be construed accordingly;

'unsolicited' means, in relation to goods sent to any person, that they are sent without any prior request made by him or on his behalf.

(2) For the purpose of this Act any invoice or similar document stating the amount of any payment and not complying with the requirements of regulations under section 3A of this Act applicable thereto shall be regarded as asserting a right to the payment.

[KALKI]

Parcel delivered to my address with wrong name: am I at risk of fraud or damage to my credit rating and what do I do with the parcel?


I signed for a phone today, but, on checking parcel, although the address was mine, the name wasn't.

I told the driver who refused to take it back due to 'breach of security' and who suggested I opened it to check invoice details. I did so - the details were same as label. I tried phoning the phone company but couldn't get through as I was not the account holder.

How do I stand legally as someone is fraudulently using my address?

I could get blacklisted for credit if they don't pay their bills. What if they call round to claim the phone? I realise it isn't mine to keep, but how do I ensure my address details are removed from this persons account with the phone company? Should I keep the phone until (a) I have proof of ownership and (b) I have proof my address details have been removed? Thank you for your help.

You should send a recorded delivery letter to the company that despatched the phone explaining that you want your address removed from their records.

You should invite them to collect the phone. If they fail to do so after 90 dyas then under the unsolicited goods act the phone is legally yours to keep.

Keep a check all bank statements and credit cards for unusual activity.