§ 45. Can the shop cancel the purchase because you are late with payment?
Yes, if your breach is serious enough, or you do not pay within an extra deadline the shop has set, they can cancel the purchase. But if you have already paid everything, or the item has been handed over to you, the shop loses the right to cancel.
Machine-translated from Norwegian. The Norwegian text is the one that applies. Read the original in Norwegian.Norsk English العربية Polski Українська
The text of the law (unofficial translation)
The seller (selger) may cancel the purchase (heving) because of late payment or other breach of contract (kontraktsbrudd) on the part of the consumer (forbruker) if the consumer's breach of contract is material. The seller cannot cancel after the entire purchase price (kjøpesum) has been paid.
The purchase may also be cancelled if the consumer does not pay the purchase price within a reasonable additional deadline (tilleggsfrist) for performance of the contract (oppfyllelse) that the seller has set. While the additional deadline is running, the seller cannot cancel, unless the consumer has said that he or she will not perform within the deadline.
If the consumer has already taken over the item, the seller may only cancel if a reservation has been made to that effect or the consumer rejects the item.
What does this mean?
Two important limits on the shop's right to cancel:
1. You have paid everything: If you have transferred the full amount, the shop cannot cancel, even if you were slow.
2. You have received the item: If the sofa has been in your living room for a while, the shop cannot suddenly cancel and take it back — unless they had an express written retention of title (salgspant).
Example
Håkon buys a TV for NOK 10,000 on an instalment plan. The TV is delivered to his home. He loses his job and cannot pay the instalments. The shop threatens to come and collect the TV. Because Håkon has already taken it over and the shop does not have retention of title, they cannot cancel the purchase. They must use ordinary debt collection (inkasso) to recover the money.
Common mistakes
- Shops threatening to "come and collect" items they do not have retention of title to
- Saying on the phone that you refuse to pay — then the shop no longer has to wait out the additional deadline
What should you do?
Keep track of the deadlines you are given. If you let them pass, you risk the shop lawfully cancelling the order and selling the item to someone else.