Consumer Rights Act 2022

General right to withhold payment: service contract

91. (1) Subject to subsections (2) and (3), where a trader fails to comply with an obligation imposed on the trader by this Part in relation to a service contract, the consumer shall have the right to withhold payment of any outstanding part of the price payable under the contract until the trader fulfils the obligation.

(2) Where the failure of the trader to comply with an obligation imposed on the trader by this Part relates to a lack of conformity of the service with the service contract, the part of the price withheld by the consumer under subsection (1) shall be proportionate to the decrease in the value of the service received by the consumer compared with the value of the service if it had been in conformity with the service contract.

(3) Where the failure of the trader to comply with an obligation imposed on the trader by this Part relates to a failure to supply the service (other than a short-term interruption of the supply referred to in section 78 (7)), the part of the price withheld by the consumer under subsection (1) shall be proportionate to the price payable for the period during which the service was not supplied by the trader.

(4) The consumer shall exercise the right to withhold payment under subsection (1) by means of a statement to the trader expressing the consumer’s decision to withhold payment until the trader has fulfilled the trader’s obligations under this Part.