Hoaxes Home Internet Ads Nigerian Rollover Search Terminology Types

Types - Unfair Contracts And Scams.

For more information on unfair contracts, scams and hoaxes please see the links further down and to the right of this page.

One of the most prevalent forms of unfair contract is the misuse of an automatic rollover clause, but there are many other ways that unscrupulous companies can take advantage of the unsuspecting consumer. Clauses like the automatic rollover can be extremely benign offering nothing more than a guarantee of continuity of service or they can be very sinister with strict cancellation periods, variations in rates and penalties for early cancellation even after the first term has expired - see refences at Cleanaway Case 1 and NPower UK. We show below some of the main pitfalls to beware of when signing a contract.

Rollover Clauses

Ensure that the rollover clause is equitable and beware of clever attempts to hide the true nature of the clause. See the Cleanaway Case 1 for a great example of a cleverly written rollover clause. A clever misleading rollover clause can guarantee the writer either repeat business or an exhorbitant fee when a customer leaves their service. Misleading rollover clauses can really boost the profitability of a company but they do nothing to help with customer referrals or word of mouth accolades. Contract writers using these types of clauses place more priority in keeping existing customers by deception than by good service.

Unilateral Variation Clauses

Unilateral contract variation clauses allow one party, usually the company providing the service, to vary contract conditions at will. Believe it or not, there are many of these types of contract being written and signed every day.

Some companies may have these unilateral variations in their contracts as a matter of course, and rarely act upon them. When they do act upon the clause and provide variations to the contract, the variations may be completely justifiable.

Other companies write these clauses into their contracts with the intention of acting on them at the earliest opportunity. These companies use the initial low priced contract as bait to win over a customer, and then begin to vary the contract to their advantage almost immediately. By signing a contract allowing for the company to vary conditions at will you could quite easily end up paying double the original contract price or more.

See Cleanaway Case 1 for an example of unilateral variation clauses.

Also see Choice article on unilateral variations.

Exit fees and penalties

Check your contracts thoroughly for exit fees, cancellation fees and penalties. Often these fees bear no relationship to the costs incurred by the company when you cancel your contract, and they are in fact simply a deterent so that you won't cancel your contract. Cancel your contract too early and you get a hefty penalty, leave it too late and the rollover clause comes into effect locking you in for another term.

Monthly administration fees

Have you ever considered what percentage of the remaining capital your monthly administration fees may represent? Sometimes you may be tempted by an offer of consumer goods at 0% interest for 2 years. If the loan is for say $1200.00 and you are paying $50.00 per month that deal doesn't sound too bad does it? But what about that $5.00 per month administration fee that was in the fine print? In your first month of the contract the administration charge represents an annual charge of 5%, but with each monthly payment the capital goes down by $50.00 and so your administration charge as a percentage goes up. After 6 months you are still paying $5.00 per month admin charge, but the loan is now only $900.00. That admin charge now represents 6.67%. After a further 6 months the capital is down to $600.00 so the admin charge now represents 10% p.a. interest. A further 6 months and your admin charge represents 20% p.a. on the remaining capital. The following months it will represent 24%, 30%, 40%, 60% and 120% p.a. Interest fee? Yeah right!

Click-Wrap online contracts

Click-wrap contracts are the little pop-up windows that will not allow you to proceed to an online site until you click the "I agree" button on the entry page. Often these click-wrap contracts attempt to remove your statutory rights such as saying that the goods have no warranty. Contract terms such as these may be illegal and you should check with your consumer watchdog such as the ACCC or Fair Trading offices in Australia.

Abridged contracts

Sometimes consumers are expected to sign an abridged version of a contract, with the full version being available "on request". Signing a contract of this type is not wise until you have read, understood and kept a copy of the full contract.

More information on scams, hoaxes and unfair contracts



Have your say - Contact us

This form should be used to make first contact if you would like to publish details of an unfair contract, a hoax or a scam. If you have been stung by unscrupulous operators please feel free to share the experience so that others will be wary. We will contact you for supporting evidence before the case is published. We are not a mediator. We simply help you to warn others about your experience.

Please also contact us if you find any errors in the information presented, or if you would like to see other information added to this site. We are not able to reply to all submissions and we thank you in advance for taking the time to contact us. Please be assured that all submissions are reviewed for suitability and all suitable submissions will add to the relevance of this site's content.

Please complete the form and click submit. All fields are required.
If you wish to have your name or your company name and web site published as the provider of the article please include the details at the end of the article.

NOTE: Before submitting this form...

  • We do not offer legal advice. We are not an authority on contract law and we will not respond to questions about the law.
  • We publish facts only. We do not publish hearsay. Be prepared to offer us proof of your claims.
  • We are mostly interested in contracts that are written and operated within the law, but written in such a way that any reasonable person would question the ethics of the contract writer, or contracts that exploit loopholes in the law for unfair gains.
Your Name:
Email:
Information:
Please enter the characters shown in the image.
The possible characters are letters from A to Z in capitals and the numbers from 0 to 9.
This is to verify that the form is being used by a real human and not a spammer's computer.
   

Other Pages On This Site about scams and unfair contracts
Abridged     Arbitration     Blank Check     Blank Cheque     Cases     Cheques     Cleanaway     Clickwrap     Comfort Letter     Conditions     Confidentiality Agreement     Consensus Ad Idem     Consideration     Consumer     Contact     Contract Law     Contract Rollover     Contracts     Damage Control     De Facto     De Jure     De Minimis     De Novo     Due Diligence     Employment Contracts     Ex Gratia     Ex Parte     Ex Post Facto     Exclusion Clause     Exempli Gratia     Exemption Clause     Express Terms     Fees     Grants     Hoaxes     Holden     Id Est     Implied Terms     Incorporate     Injunction     Inter Alia     Internet Ads     Joint And Several Liability     Jurisdiction     Known Risks     Lawyers     Liability     Liquidation     Mala Fides     Mediation     Misrepresentation     Nemo Dat Quod Non Habet     Nigerian     Non Compos Mentis     Non Est Factum     Npower     Parent Company     Pari Passu     Partnership     Pensioner Vs Refugee     Prima Facie     Pro Rata     Pro Tanto     Pro Tempore     Proxy     Quid Pro Quo     Quorum     Ratification     Repudiation     Resources     Restrictive Covenant     Rollover     Scams     Search     Solicitors     Subject To Contract     Terminology     Trademark     Types     Uberrima Fides     Underwriter     Unenforceable     Unfair Terms     Universal Utilities     Unilateral Variation Clause     Void     Warranties     Warranty     Without Prejudice    
Site Main Pages
HOME
Advise When Site Updates
Contact Us
Contract Rollover
Hoaxes
Home
Internet Ads
Nigerian
Search
Terminology
Types
Recommended Links
Couplings Information
Gearboxes Information
Hobby Engineering Supplies
Jokes and Trivia
Miniature Bearings Australia
Shafting Information
Small Parts and Bearings Online
Stainless Selection
Catalogs
Wikipedia
World Time
Other scams and unfair contracts Pages
Abridged
Arbitration
Blank Check
Blank Cheque
Cases
Cheques
Cleanaway
Clickwrap
Comfort Letter
Conditions
Confidentiality Agreement
Consensus Ad Idem
Consideration
Consumer
Contact
Contract Law
Contract Rollover
Contracts
Damage Control
De Facto
De Jure
De Minimis
De Novo
Due Diligence
Employment Contracts
Ex Gratia
Ex Parte
Ex Post Facto
Exclusion Clause
Exempli Gratia
Exemption Clause
Express Terms
Fees
Grants
Hoaxes
Holden
Id Est
Implied Terms
Incorporate
Injunction
Inter Alia
Internet Ads
Joint And Several Liability
Jurisdiction
Known Risks
Lawyers
Liability
Liquidation
Mala Fides
Mediation
Misrepresentation
Nemo Dat Quod Non Habet
Nigerian
Non Compos Mentis
Non Est Factum
Npower
Parent Company
Pari Passu
Partnership
Pensioner Vs Refugee
Prima Facie
Pro Rata
Pro Tanto
Pro Tempore
Proxy
Quid Pro Quo
Quorum
Ratification
Repudiation
Resources
Restrictive Covenant
Rollover
Scams
Search
Solicitors
Subject To Contract
Terminology
Trademark
Types
Uberrima Fides
Underwriter
Unenforceable
Unfair Terms
Universal Utilities
Unilateral Variation Clause
Void
Warranties
Warranty
Without Prejudice
Site Summary:

Privacy Policy

unfaircontracts.info is your one stop resource for all types of information on unfair contracts and scams. Scams and contracts discussed include Nigerian bank account scams, automatic contract renewals, internet advertisement "get rich quick" type scams and much more.

This site is not a point of sale. It is designed to provide information only and to hopefully point you in the right direction with your unfair contracts and scams enquiries.

User input is encouraged and forms are provided throughout the site to enable users to make corrections or provide additional data.

© Copyright unfaircontracts.info/. All rights reserved.