Guides › Home Improvements and Traders › Cancelling Home Improvement Work Within 14 Days
Cancelling Home Improvement Work Within 14 Days
If you agreed building, decorating or other home improvement work at your home, by phone or online, you generally have 14 days to cancel, starting the day after you agree the contract. If the trader did not give you the required cancellation information, the period can extend to 12 months plus 14 days. Exceptions include made-to-measure items and urgent repairs you asked for.
At a Glance
Your Rights
What the rules say, with a link to the official source for each.
Cancelling
14-Day Cancellation
If you arranged work at your home, by phone or online you generally have 14 days to cancel from the day after you agree the contract; you pay a proportionate amount for work started during the period only where you asked for it to start. source
Missing Cancellation Information
If the trader fails to give you the required cancellation information, the cancellation period can extend to 12 months plus 14 days (Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013 reg 31), and you bear no cost for services supplied during the cancellation period if the trader did not give the required cancellation information (reg 36). source
Exceptions
Exceptions to the 14-day right include made-to-measure items and urgent repairs you ask for (for example emergency plumbing). If you agreed the work at the trader's premises, whether you can cancel depends on whether a contract has been made and the work has started. source
Time Limits to Know
Miss a deadline and you can lose a right. Check the dates on your own paperwork.
- 14 daysCancel an at-home, phone or online contract for building or decorating work14 days starting the day after the contract is made
- 12 monthsExtended cancellation period if the trader did not give required informationUp to 12 months plus 14 days
- 14 daysRefund after agreed cancellationWithin 14 days once agreed
Steps to Take
Step 1 of 5
Check where you agreed the contract: at home, by phone or online gives you the 14-day right.
Step 2 of 5
Check whether the trader gave you written cancellation information.
Step 3 of 5
Tell the trader in writing that you are cancelling, within the cancellation period. Our free letter templates can write it for you.
Step 4 of 5
If you asked for work to start during the 14 days, you may have to pay a proportionate amount.
Step 5 of 5
If the trader will not refund within 14 days of agreeing, get free advice from the Citizens Advice consumer service.
(Tap the numbers to reveal steps)
Where to Go If It Is Not Put Right
Your options, in order, and when each one applies.
Citizens Advice Consumer Service (0808 223 1133)
Free advice, template letters and reporting to Trading Standards.
Card Provider Claim (Section 75 / Chargeback) Then Financial Ombudsman Service
You paid by card; if refused escalate to FOS.
County Court Small Claims
After other routes fail; usually up to 10,000 pounds, within 6 years.
Good to Know
Small things that make your complaint stronger.
Work agreed at the trader’s own premises is a normal contract without the 14-day right.
Want Help?
If you would like one of our team to look at your problem, our initial case review is free. We cannot guarantee any outcome and we do not give legal advice.
Lead reviewer
Luke Marley
Founder and Lead Reviewer
Luke founded CPUK in 2026 after seeing how hard it is for ordinary people to get problems with companies put right. He oversees our guides and checks them against official sources.
Research by Katie Burt, Co-founder and Operations Lead (17 years in the care sector, including managing services for vulnerable adults), and the CPUK Research Team. Researched with AI-assisted research tools, then checked and corrected by our team.
Last checked: 12 October 2026. We are not paid by the companies we write about. Adverts never affect our guidance. Read our editorial policy.
Sources and official links
- citizensadvice.org.uk/consumer/getting-home-improvements-done/cancelling-building-or-decorating-work Checked 12 October 2026
- legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2013/3134/regulation/31 Checked 12 October 2026
- citizensadvice.org.uk/consumer/somethings-gone-wrong-with-a-purchase/getting-your-money-back-if-you-paid-by-card-or-paypal Checked 12 October 2026
- citizensadvice.org.uk/law-and-courts/legal-system/small-claims/deciding-whether-to-make-a-small-claim Checked 12 October 2026