§ 10. You are not bound by telephone sales (telefonsalg) until you have accepted in writing

If a seller calls you without you asking for it, and you say "yes" on the phone, you are not bound by the contract. The seller must send you a written confirmation, and you must accept in writing before the contract applies. If you do not reply, you have no contract. The exceptions are newspaper subscriptions (abonnement) and sales by voluntary organisations (frivillig organisasjon).

The Right of Withdrawal Act (angrerettloven)·LOV-2014-06-20-27

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The text of the law (unofficial translation)

Before a contract is concluded as a result of the trader (næringsdrivende) having made an unsolicited offer by telephone, the trader shall confirm the offer in writing on a durable medium (varig medium) after the telephone call has ended. The consumer (forbruker) is not bound until the offer has been accepted in writing, which the trader shall inform about in the confirmation mentioned in the first sentence. The trader shall be able to document the consumer's acceptance.

The first paragraph does not apply to the sale of newspaper subscriptions or sales by voluntary organisations. The Ministry (Departementet) may by regulation (forskrift) require registration in the Register of Non-Profit Organisations (frivillighetsregisteret) under the Register of Non-Profit Organisations Act (frivillighetsregisterloven) in order to be regarded as a voluntary organisation.

Source: Lovdata — Angrerettloven (the Right of Withdrawal Act) § 10

What does this mean?

§ 10 protects you against a very common pressure scenario: a seller calls without warning, talks enthusiastically, and before you know it you have "said yes" to something. The law says that this spoken yes does not bind you.

This is how the rule works:

  1. The seller must call unsolicited. This means that it was the seller who contacted you — you did not call them. If you yourself called to order something, the rule does not apply.
  2. After the call, the seller must send a written confirmation. This must be on a "durable medium" — typically email, text message or post. The confirmation must state clearly that you are not bound until you have accepted in writing.
  3. You must actively accept in writing. If you do not reply to the confirmation, you have no contract. Silence is not acceptance. You do not even need to say "no" — you can simply not reply.
  4. The seller must be able to document your acceptance. If you later disagree, the seller must prove that you actually accepted in writing. A spoken "yes" on the phone does not count.

The exceptions are newspaper subscriptions and sales by voluntary organisations. These can enter into contracts orally. The reason is that these parties have traditionally run calling campaigns, and the legislature has chosen to make an exception for them.

Examples

Anne is at home one evening when an electricity supplier calls. The seller talks eagerly about how much she can save and asks if she wants to switch. Anne says "yes, that sounds good". The seller says "great, you will get a confirmation by email". The confirmation arrives the next day. Anne has changed her mind and leaves the email unread for three weeks. The electricity supplier sends several reminders. Anne never replies. She has no contract. The electricity supplier cannot demand that she pays a termination fee or that she switches — because she never accepted in writing.

Kari gets a call from Røde Kors (a voluntary organisation). They ask if she wants to become a regular donor with NOK 200 a month. She says yes and gives her account number on the phone. Here § 10 does not apply, because sales by voluntary organisations are exempt under the second paragraph. Kari's spoken acceptance is binding. She can still terminate the agreement later under the general rules — voluntary donations normally have no minimum contract period (bindingstid).

Common mistakes

  1. You think you are bound because you "said yes" on the phone. You are not in the case of unsolicited telephone sales. A spoken yes has no legal effect. You must accept in writing.
  2. You reply to the confirmation "to be polite". If you reply "yes please" or "ok" by email or text message, you are bound. Be careful what you write back. If you do not want the contract, do not reply.
  3. You think that "silence is acceptance" if you do not reply by a deadline. That is not correct. The seller cannot write "we consider you bound if you do not reply within 14 days". You must actively say yes in writing.

What should you do?

When a seller calls:

Frequently asked questions

What if the seller calls back and pressures me?
You do not need to answer questions or explain yourself. You can simply say "I have changed my mind" and hang up. The seller has no contract to rely on.
Does this also apply if a seller sends me a text message that I reply "yes" to?
Yes, then you have accepted in writing. A text message counts as a durable medium. Be aware of what you reply.
What about "Opting out of telephone sales"?
You can register in the Do-Not-Call Register (Reservasjonsregisteret) at the Brønnøysund Register Centre (Brønnøysundregistrene). Then most sellers are not allowed to call you at all. This is a separate rule under the Marketing Control Act (markedsføringsloven), not the Right of Withdrawal Act.
Related sections
All §§ in the Right of Withdrawal Act →
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