En espaņol
Many home improvement contracts are covered by the Maryland Door-to-Door Sales Act (Title 14, Subtitle
3, Commercial Law Article, Annotated Code of Maryland). The Act covers sales of goods or services in which
the seller or a representative of the seller personally solicits the sale, including in response to an
invitation by the buyer, and the buyer's agreement or offer to purchase is made at a place other than the
seller's place of business. The Act requires the seller to provide to the buyer a copy of the contract in
the same language as that principally used in the oral sales presentation, which shows the date of the
transaction, and contains the name and address of the seller.
What are my rights under the D-to-D Sales Act?
The Door-to-Door Sales Act gives consumers certain rights, including the right to cancel the contract
without any penalty or obligation, by sending a notice of cancellation to the seller by midnight of the
third business day following the sale. If you cancel the contract, the seller must return your deposit
within 10 business days following receipt of the cancellation. The contract must contain a statement that
is in immediate proximity to the space reserved in the contract for the signature of the buyer which, in
boldface type of a minimum size of 10 points, is in substantially the following form:
"You, the buyer, may cancel this transaction at any time prior to midnight of the 3rd business day
after the date of this transaction. See the attached notice of cancellation for an explanation of this
right."
Notice of Cancellation
Each home improvement contract that is covered by the Door-to-Door Sales Act is required to contain a
Notice of Cancellation attached to the contract. This notice informs the buyer of the right to cancel the
contract and explains where to send the notice to cancel the contract and the date by which the Notice of
Cancellation must be received in order to cancel the transaction. If the contract does not contain a Notice
of Cancellation then the buyer may cancel the contract by notifying the seller in any manner and by any
means of the intention to cancel the sale.
When is a home improvement job NOT covered?
The Door-to-Door Sales Act does not cover a home improvement project made:
- pursuant to prior negotiations at a retail business with a fixed permanent location where consumer
goods are exhibited or consumer services are offered for sale on a continuing basis; or
- In which the buyer has initiated contact and the goods or services are needed to meet a bona fide
personal emergency of the buyer and the buyer gives the seller a separate dated and signed personal
statement in the buyer's handwriting that describes the situation that requires immediate remedy and
expressly acknowledges and waives the right to cancel the sale, and the seller in good faith makes a
substantial beginning of the performance of the contract.
Enforcement
The Door-to-Door Sales Act is enforced by the Attorney General's Consumer Protection Division. For more
information or to file a complaint, please visit
the Attorney General's
website. Residents of Howard and Montgomery Counties can also report violations to the County Office of
Consumer Protection - Howard
County or Montgomery County
websites.
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