Question by Clanger: Does an email agreement to meet a client for a fee (for dog training) count as a legally binding contract?
I agreed on email to meet a client for dog training at her house at a set time/date. When I turned up at the house, noone was home. The client has since admitted to forgetting about the appointment but is refusing to pay the agreed fee of £100. I made a 50mile round trip to visit the client and wasted 2 hours of my day.
Where do I stand legally? Is she legally obliged to pay me?
No fee has been paid yet. The full amount is still outstanding.
She agreed to the fee on her company email. Does this mean that I could pursue the company as well as her as an individual?
Best answer:
Answer by jgold49
Was a fee paid?
Give your answer to this question below!
2 Comments
Clive
on 6th Aug, 11 09:08pm
A telephone call can form a binding contract, the email merely gives provides evidence for your claim.
A court may not award the full amount, so I would invoice the full amount and send a ‘Without Prejudice’ letter offering to accept a lesser amount if paid within (say) 15 days, otherwise you will issue a county court summons.
Under English Law, there are only four types of contract that have to be in writing:
Sale of Land; Sale of Shares; Transfer of an interest in a ship; I have forgotten the other one.
acegunner
on 6th Aug, 11 10:08pm
I believe that as the dog training wasn’t carried out the person in question could refuse to pay, unless you had an agreement that she would pay if she missed the appointment. I believe she should pay-up as she obviously wasted your time and you incurred costs(petrol). But legally she may get away with it.
Next time ensure some-one agrees to a payment for a no- show or a late cancellation, that should help to avoid your time and money being wasted in the future.
I hope this ladies conscience gets the better of her and she pays up, Good luck…,,,