UK Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013 (and the not-yet-commenced DMCCA subscription regime)

The clocks it starts

• Ordinary cancellation period (14 days)Regulation 30: the cancellation period ends 14 days after the day the contract was entered into for a service or digital content contract, and 14 days after the day the consumer acquires physical possession for goods.Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013, reg 30 — reg 30 — the cancellation period ends 14 days after the day the contract is entered into (services and digital content) or after the day the consumer acquires physical possession (goods)Notice period
• Extended cancellation period where you were not told (12 months)Fatal if missedRegulation 31: where the trader did not give the information about the right to cancel required by reg 10(1) or reg 13(1), the cancellation period is extended by 12 months. In a subscription trap the trader has usually not given it properly, so this is your real deadline. If the trader supplies the information within those 12 months, reg 32 restarts a fresh 14 days from the day you receive it.Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013, reg 31 — reg 31 — where the trader did not give the information on the right to cancel required by reg 10(1) or 13(1), the cancellation period is extended by 12 monthsLimitation period
• Trader must reimburse (14 days)Regulation 34(1): reimbursement without undue delay and in any event not later than 14 days after the day on which the trader is informed of the cancellation, using the same means of payment and with no fee. (Period: 14 days. We need the start date to work out your exact deadline.)Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013, reg 34 — reg 34 — the trader must reimburse all payments received, without undue delay and in any event within 14 days, using the same means of paymentResponse due
• Limitation period (6 years, 5 in Scotland)Six years from the accrual of the cause of action under s.5 of the Limitation Act 1980 in England, Wales and Northern Ireland; five years in Scotland under the Prescription and Limitation (Scotland) Act 1973.Limitation period

What it entitles you to, beyond money

• Cancel by any clear statementRegulation 33: the model cancellation form, or any other clear statement of the decision to cancel. You do not have to use the trader's app, its chat, or its telephone line. Email it, keep it, and note the date.regs 27-38 — the right to cancel a distance or off-premises contract within 14 days
• No charge for what was supplied, where you were not toldRegulation 36(6) removes any liability to pay for a service supplied during the cancellation period where the trader failed to give the reg 10(1) or reg 13(1) information, or where the consumer did not make an express request for the service to begin. Regulation 37 does the same for digital content. Traders offer a pro-rated refund by reflex; where this applies the right figure is all of it.reg 36(4)-(6) — the consumer pays for a service supplied during the cancellation period only where they made an express request and were given the reg 10/13 information; reg 37 — the equivalent rule for digital content
• Payments taken by a default option are recoverableRegulation 40(2)-(3): consent inferred from a default option that the consumer had to reject is not express consent, and the consumer is entitled to have the payment refunded.reg 40 — an additional payment requires the consumer's express consent; consent given by a default option the consumer must reject is not express consent, and the payment is recoverable
• Cancel the continuous payment authority with your bankA continuous payment authority on a card can be cancelled by instructing the card issuer, and the issuer must act on that instruction — it may not tell you to take it up with the merchant. A direct debit is covered by the Direct Debit Guarantee, which entitles you to an immediate refund of any payment taken in error.

What the other side will say

Each of these is a refusal this regime lets a counterparty attempt, paired with the answer to it. Reading them before you write is worth more than any amount of polish on the letter itself.

Where to take it next

1. 01Written cancellation and refund demandCancel by email, cite reg 33 for the method, reg 34 for the 14-day reimbursement deadline, and reg 36(6) if you were never given the cancellation information. Say plainly that further charges will be treated as unauthorised. Give a deadline and keep the correspondence.Claim direct·typically 14 days
2. 02Cancel the payment authority with your bank, and dispute the chargesInstruct the card issuer to cancel the continuous payment authority; it must act. For a direct debit, invoke the Direct Debit Guarantee. Dispute the charges taken after cancellation — a credit-card payment over £100 also engages s.75 of the Consumer Credit Act 1974 against the issuer.Claim direct·typically 14 days
3. 03Citizens Advice consumer service and Trading StandardsReports made to the Citizens Advice consumer service are passed to Trading Standards, which is the enforcement route for the DMCCA unfair commercial practices regime alongside the CMA. It is free and it is how local enforcement actually finds out about a trader.Regulator·typically 30 days·official page
4. 04Competition and Markets AuthoritySince 6 April 2025 the CMA can determine for itself that a trader has breached the unfair commercial practices regime and impose a penalty of up to 10% of global turnover, and can direct redress — without going to court first. It cannot resolve your individual complaint, but it prioritises by the pattern of complaints it receives, and it opened its first direct-enforcement cases on price transparency in December 2025.Regulator·typically 120 days·official page
5. 05County Court small claims track, or Simple Procedure in ScotlandClaims up to £10,000 in England and Wales go to the small claims track with no costs risk beyond the issue fee, which is recoverable. In Scotland, Simple Procedure handles claims up to £5,000. Money Claim Online makes issuing straightforward.Small claims·typically 150 days·official page