Double glazing consumer rights

Your double glazing consumer rights protect you from the moment you sign. Most contracts signed in your home carry a cancellation period of 14 days, though made-to-measure windows can be an exception. Once the work is done, the law requires it to be carried out with reasonable care and skill, and the windows to be as described and of satisfactory quality. Paying part of the cost by credit card adds a further layer of protection.

Cancelling a double glazing contract

Under the Consumer Contracts Regulations, a contract you sign away from the firm’s premises, such as at your kitchen table or online, normally comes with a cancellation period of 14 days. You can cancel within it without giving a reason.

However, the regulations exclude goods made to the consumer’s specifications, and made-to-measure windows can fall into that exception. So the right to cancel isn’t automatic. Many installers offer their own cooling-off period anyway, and trade bodies often require one. Read the cancellation terms before you sign, and ask the firm to put them in writing.

In addition, if you ask for work to start within the cancellation period, you may have to pay for what has been done.

Double glazing consumer rights when the work goes wrong

Under the Consumer Rights Act, the windows must be of satisfactory quality, fit for purpose and as described, and the installation must be carried out with reasonable care and skill. If they aren’t, you can ask the firm to put it right. They should repair or replace the faulty work within a reasonable time and without significant inconvenience to you.

Steps to take

1. Contact the installer in writing, describing the fault and what you want done. Keep photos.
2. Check your paperwork: the contract, the guarantee and the FENSA certificate.
3. Use the guarantee. If the firm has closed, an insurance-backed guarantee may still cover the work.
4. Escalate. If the firm belongs to a trade body or a dispute scheme, use its complaints process. Citizens Advice can refer the matter to Trading Standards.
5. Small claims court is the last resort for an unresolved dispute.

Paying by credit card

Under section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act, if you pay for something costing more than £100 and not more than £30,000 with a credit card, the card provider shares responsibility with the firm for misrepresentation or breach of contract. Paying just the deposit by card can be enough to bring the whole purchase within it. That’s valuable if the installer stops trading before finishing.

Protecting yourself before you sign

• Get a written quote with a full specification, and check it matches the contract.
• Keep the deposit modest, and pay the balance only when the job is finished.
• Check the installer’s FENSA or CERTASS registration and the guarantee; see choosing a double glazing installer.
• Never sign on the first visit under pressure.

Next steps

Know what the work should cost before anyone quotes: see uPVC windows for typical prices, then compare quotes to put several on the same basis.