1. Purchases made at a merchant’s usual place of business.
If you go shopping at the mall and then decide the next day that you spent too much money and want to return your purchase, the Rule does NOT apply. Although many retail establishments accept returns, they are exempt from the Cooling-Off Rule and are not legally required to do so.
2. Purchases made through the mail or by telephone.
If a salesperson contacts you by phone, gives you the product information by phone, and you complete the purchase by phone, the Rule does NOT apply.
3. Purchases of less than $25.
Regardless of where you make the purchase, if it is less than $25, the Rule does NOT apply.
4. Purchases of motor vehicles, insurance, real estate, and securities.
Once you sign the contract, it’s yours. Many an unhappy consumer has taken a car they couldn’t really afford back to the lot thinking the Cooling-Off Rule applied only to find they were sadly mistaken.
5. Retail transactions that begin at a place of business and are completed in your home.
For example, if you order carpet at a carpet store but don’t sign the contract until someone visits your home to measure floor space, the Rule does NOT apply. Once you have ordered the carpet, you are obligated to fulfill the terms of the sale.
6. Arts or crafts purchased at fairs.
If you visit an arts-and-crafts fair at your local shopping mall, state fair, school, etc., the Rule does NOT apply. The merchant is not legally obligated to accept your merchandise return.
Now let’s look at circumstances where the Cooling-Off Rule DOES apply.
Other than the exceptions listed above, under the Cooling-Off Rule, you have three business days to cancel any purchase of $25.00 or more that you have made somewhere other than the merchant’s usual place of business:
- In your home. For example, Tupperware, Avon, Mary Kay, etc.
- Rented facilities. For example, hotel rooms, convention centers, fairgrounds, restaurants
- Sales presentation in your home
If you invite a salesperson to demonstrate a product in your home and you make a purchase, your purchase is protected under the Cooling-Off Rule.