Sec. 42-135a. Notice in sales agreement. Notice of cancellation. Duties of seller.
Sec. 42-134a. Definitions. As used in this chapter:
(1) “Home solicitation sale” means a sale, lease, or rental of consumer goods or services, whether under single or multiple contracts, in which the seller or his representative personally solicits the sale, including those in response to or following an invitation by the buyer, and the buyer's agreement or offer to purchase is made at a place other than the place of business of the seller. The term “home solicitation sale” does not include a transaction: (A) Made pursuant to prior negotiations in the course of a visit by the buyer to a retail business establishment having a fixed, permanent location where goods are exhibited or the services are offered for sale on a continuing basis; (B) in which the buyer has initiated the contact and the goods or services are needed to meet a bona fide immediate personal emergency of the buyer, and the buyer furnishes the seller with a separate dated and signed personal statement in the buyer's handwriting describing the situation requiring immediate remedy and expressly acknowledging and waiving the right to cancel the sale within three business days; (C) conducted and consummated entirely by mail or telephone and without any other contact between the buyer and the seller or its representative prior to delivery of the goods or performance of the services; (D) in which the buyer has initiated the contact and specifically requested the seller to visit his home for the purpose of repairing or performing maintenance upon the buyer's personal property. If in the course of such a visit, the seller sells the buyer the right to receive additional services or goods other than replacement parts necessarily used in performing the maintenance or in making the repairs, the sale of those additional goods or services shall not come within this exclusion; (E) pertaining to the sale or rental of real property, to the sale of insurance, to the sale of newspapers or to the sale of securities or commodities by a broker-dealer registered with the securities and exchange commission; (F) made pursuant to a home party plan sales and demonstration; or (G) in the case of consumer goods, other than magazine sales or subscriptions, where the purchase price, whether under single or multiple contracts, does not exceed twenty-five dollars.
(2) “Consumer goods or services” means goods or services purchased, leased, or rented primarily for personal, family, or household purposes, including courses of instruction or training regardless of the purpose for which they are taken.
(3) “Seller” means any person, partnership, corporation, limited liability company or association engaged in home solicitation sales of consumer goods or services.
(4) “Place of business” means the main or permanent branch office or local address of a seller.
(5) “Purchase price” means the total price paid or to be paid for the consumer goods or services, including all interest and service charges.
(6) “Business day” means any calendar day except Saturday, Sunday or any legal holiday designated, appointed or recommended under section 1-4.
(P.A. 76-165, S. 1, 8; P.A. 95-79, S. 163, 189; P.A. 25-111, S. 36.)
History: P.A. 95-79 redefined “seller” to include a limited liability company, effective May 31, 1995; P.A. 25-111 redesignated existing Subsecs. (a) to (f) as Subdivs. (1) to (6), redesignated existing Subsec. (a)(1) to (7) as Subdiv. (1)(A) to (G) and amended redesignated Subdiv. (6) to redefine “business day” to exclude Saturday or legal holiday designated, appointed or recommended under Sec. 1-4, effective July 1, 2025.
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Sec. 42-135a. Notice in sales agreement. Notice of cancellation. Duties of seller. No agreement in a home solicitation sale shall be effective against the buyer if the agreement is not signed and dated by the buyer or if the seller shall:
(1) Fail to furnish the buyer with a fully completed receipt or copy of all contracts and documents pertaining to such sale at the time of its execution, which contract shall be in the same language as that principally used in the oral sales presentation and which shall show the date of the transaction and shall contain the name and address of the seller, and in immediate proximity to the space reserved in the contract for the signature of the buyer, or on the front page of the receipt if a contract is not used, and in boldface type of a minimum size of twelve points, a statement in substantially the following form:
YOU, THE BUYER, MAY CANCEL THIS TRANSACTION AT ANY TIME PRIOR TO MIDNIGHT OF THE THIRD BUSINESS DAY AFTER THE DATE OF THIS TRANSACTION. SEE THE ATTACHED NOTICE OF CANCELLATION FORM FOR AN EXPLANATION OF THIS RIGHT.
(2) Fail to furnish each buyer, at the time such buyer signs the home solicitation sales contract or otherwise agrees to buy consumer goods or services from the seller, a form completed by the seller in duplicate, captioned “NOTICE OF CANCELLATION”, which shall be attached to the contract or receipt and easily detachable, and which shall contain in twelve-point boldface type the following information and statements in the same language as that used in the contract:
“NOTICE OF CANCELLATION
Seller: (Seller's name inserted by seller)
Date of Transaction: (Date of transaction inserted by seller)
You have the right to cancel this contract or sale by following the instructions in this notice. Your deadline is midnight on (date of the third business day after the date of the transaction, as inserted in boldface type by seller) to cancel. You have until this deadline to sign, date, and send this notice of cancellation to the Seller by email, fax, or mail to the contact information listed below.
(Instructions for seller: To determine the third business day, start counting on the day following the day when the transaction took place and do not count Saturdays, Sundays, or days designated as legal holidays in Connecticut.)
There is no penalty if you cancel. You do not have any legal obligations under the contract if you cancel. If you cancel, the seller must return to you any payments made by you, any property you traded in, and any negotiable instrument executed by you, such as a personal check, money order or promissory note. The seller has ten days after it receives your cancellation notice to return those items to you. Any security interest arising out of the transaction will be cancelled, such as a legal claim or a lien on your property.
If you cancel, you must make available to the seller any goods delivered to you under this contract or sale. The goods must be in substantially as good condition as when you received them. The seller can pick them up from your residence. If you make the goods available to the seller and the seller does not pick them up, after twenty calendar days have passed since you sent this notice to the seller, you may keep or dispose of the goods. If you do not make the goods available to the seller, you will still have to fulfill your contractual obligations.
The seller may also tell you how to return the goods to the seller at the seller's own expense and risk, such as by mailing them to the seller. You do not have to agree to return the goods to the seller yourself, but if you agree to do so but fail to send the goods to the seller, you will still have to fulfill your contractual obligations.
To cancel this contract or sale, you must sign and date this notice, and send it either by email, by fax, or by regular mail to:
(Seller's name inserted by seller)
Email: (Seller's business electronic mail address inserted by seller)
OR
Fax: (Seller's fax number inserted by seller)
OR
Regular mail: (Address of seller's place of business inserted by seller)
I hereby cancel this transaction.
Dated:
Signed:”
(3) Fail, before furnishing copies of the “Notice of Cancellation” to the buyer, to complete both copies by entering the name of the seller, the address of the seller's place of business, the date of the transaction, the seller's business electronic mail address and the date, not earlier than the third business day after the date of the transaction, by which the buyer may give notice of cancellation.
(4) Include in any home solicitation sale contract or receipt any confession of judgment or any waiver of any of the rights to which the buyer is entitled under this chapter, including specifically such buyer's right to cancel the sale in accordance with the provisions of this section.
(5) Fail to inform each buyer, orally, at the time such buyer signs the contract or purchases the goods or services, of such buyer's right to cancel.
(6) Misrepresent in any manner the buyer's right to cancel.
(7) Fail or refuse to honor any valid notice of cancellation by a buyer and within ten business days after the receipt of such notice, to (A) refund all payments made under the contract or sale; (B) return any goods or property traded in, in substantially as good condition as when received by the seller; (C) cancel and return any negotiable instrument executed by the buyer in connection with the contract or sale and take any action necessary or appropriate to terminate promptly any security interest created in the transaction; and (D) cancel and return any contract executed by the buyer in connection with the transaction.
(8) Negotiate, transfer, sell, or assign any note or other evidence of indebtedness to a finance company or other third party prior to midnight of the fifth business day following the date the contract was signed or the goods or services purchased.
(9) Fail, within ten business days of receipt of the buyer's notice of cancellation, to notify such buyer whether the seller intends to repossess or to abandon any shipped or delivered goods.
(10) Fail, when providing a digital copy of the agreement by electronic mail or any other electronic delivery method, to include the following statement, immediately adjacent to the body of the message, in at least twelve-point type or, if the body of the message is in larger size type, the same size type as the body of the message:
PLEASE REVIEW IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT YOUR RIGHT TO CANCEL THIS AGREEMENT IN THE “NOTICE OF CANCELLATION” BEING PROVIDED TO YOU.
(P.A. 76-165, S. 2, 8; P.A. 78-331, S. 36, 58; P.A. 03-167, S. 4; P.A. 25-111, S. 39.)
History: P.A. 78-331 made technical correction; P.A. 03-167 replaced reference to agreement of the buyer with reference to home solicitation sale being effective against the buyer and made technical changes for the purpose of gender neutrality; P.A. 25-111 amended Subdiv. (1) by replacing “ten” with “twelve” before “points”, substantially revised Subdiv. (2) including by replacing “ten-point” with “twelve-point” before “boldface” and modifying contents of cancellation notice, amended Subdiv. (3) by adding provision re seller's business electronic mail address, added Subdiv. (10) re provision of digital copy of agreement by electronic delivery method and made technical and conforming changes in introductory language and Subdivs. (2) and (3), effective July 1, 2025.
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