| Summary: | The objective of this thesis was to examine the extent to which a common set of rules on cancellation rights is appropriate or advisable and whether it is possible. The right to cancel is given to the consumer on the assumption that he may need to be protected in certain selling situations such as doorstep or distance selling or when purchasing certain products such as timeshare and credit. The potential justifications for the right to cancel arise from one or more factors affecting the consumer's freedom to choose, including information asymmetry, situational monopoly and complexity of the contract. This work attempts to match the consumer protection policy objectives to the legislation and also examines the need for, and impact of, internal market harmonisation. The differing rules are subject to detailed analysis, particularly with respect to the provisions on the requirement to inform the consumer of the right, the length of the cancellation period and the effect of cancellation on the obligations of the contracting parties. The generalisation of the right given in certain marketing situations and in respect of specific products as a result of European intervention is criticised as sometimes ignoring the strength or weakness of the justification for regulation. The conclusion is that whilst the UK should be able to progress with harmonisation of some of the technical aspects of the right and the duration of the cancellation period, other key aspects should remain subject to differing rules to reflect the different reasons for intervention.
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