Gone wrong / Cancel the contract or Keep the contract

Cancel the contract or keep it?

The cooling off rule may let you cancel a home repair contract signed at home until midnight of the third business day, unless an exclusion applies. Cancel if you are covered and have doubts. Keep it if the job and price hold up.

Updated November 4, 2026. Sources are listed at the foot of this page.

Find your line

• If you signed at home for $25 or more, as of November 2026Cancel the contractThe right runs to midnight of the third business day, if no exclusion applies.
• If you invited them over and then signedCancel the contractThe rule text includes sales that follow a buyer's invitation, subject to its exclusions.
• If you called for a repair and were sold extras during the visitCancel the contractExtras beyond necessary replacement parts fall outside the repair exclusion. Ask in writing.
• If you asked for a repair and paid only for itKeep the contractA repair or maintenance visit you requested is excluded from the rule.
• If you called in an emergency and handwrote a signed, dated waiverKeep the contractThe emergency exclusion may apply if its conditions are met. State law may add rights.
• If the deadline has passed and the work looks rightKeep the contractThe three-day window has closed, so your contract and state law now govern.

How do canceling and keeping compare under the federal rule?

Sources for this table: 16 CFR 429.0, 16 CFR 429.1, FTC Cooling-Off Rule page

Which facts tip the decision the other way?

• It was an emergency call: the exclusion needs all of these: you started the contact, a real and immediate personal emergency, and your separate dated, signed, handwritten statement waiving the right. An emergency alone settles nothing either way.
• Your state adds rights: state law may give more than the federal rule, so check state rules.
• You got no notice of cancellation: the seller must give one. Ask for it in writing, and raise it with a state or local consumer office.
• Work has already begun: ask in writing what would be owed. Nothing found here settles that, so a lawyer may help.
• The real problem is the work, not the signing: read call back or new plumber.

What happens to money you already paid?

If the rule covers the sale and you cancel in time, the seller must refund you within 10 business days of getting your notice. This is general information, not legal advice. Send your notice in a way that lets you prove the date, and keep a copy.

No national deposit rule was found. Some states do set limits, as of November 2026. On home improvement contracts, California's cap is $1,000 or 10 percent of the price, whichever is less. Maryland's home improvement commission caps a deposit at one third of the price. New York sends progress payments to escrow or a bond, and no cap was found. See deposit or none.

No dated figure for cancellation fees was found. If a firm names one, ask where the contract and the law allow it. A push to sign now for a discount is a warning sign in the FTC's advice.

Who answers if the seller will not honor the cancellation?

The seller carries the first duty: to give the notice and to refund. The FTC's order for any contractor dispute starts with the firm, then moves to the attorney general or local consumer office, then to dispute resolution.

Contract rules vary by state, and the names of the offices vary too. California requires a written contract over $500 in combined labor and materials, as of November 2026, and changes need a signed change order. New York requires a written contract by state law. Your state may differ.

If you paid by credit card and the firm will not refund, a card dispute may be another path, with its own conditions. Keep the signed contract, your cancellation notice and proof of when it went out.

Also asked

Does the cooling off rule apply when you called the plumber yourself?

It can. The rule text covers sales following a buyer's invitation. But a repair or maintenance visit you started and requested is excluded, apart from extras beyond necessary replacement parts. So calling does not settle it. What was sold, and how, matters.

How do you count the three business days on a home repair contract?

The right lasts until midnight of the third business day after the sale. Saturdays count. Sundays and federal holidays do not. If you are close to the line, send your notice now, and keep proof of the date.

Can an emergency plumber have you waive the cooling off right?

The rule's emergency exclusion requires you to have started the contact, a real immediate emergency, and a separate dated, signed statement in your handwriting. A printed line in a contract does not match that description. State law may add rights, so ask your state's consumer office.

Sources

1. 16 CFR 429.0, Cooling-Off Rule definitions Invitation, emergency and repair exclusions
2. 16 CFR 429.1, via Cornell LII Notice of cancellation; 10-business-day refund
3. FTC, Buyer's Remorse: The Cooling-Off Rule Thresholds and counting business days
4. FTC, How To Avoid a Home Improvement Scam Steps when a contractor will not resolve it
5. FTC advice on scams after weather emergencies Sign-now discounts as a warning sign
6. Contractors State License Board, What Is a Contract California down payment cap, change orders
7. Contractors State License Board, Contracts and Binding Agreements California written contract over $500
8. Maryland Home Improvement Commission, Contracts Maryland deposit cap
9. New York Attorney General, Hiring a Home Improvement Contractor New York contract and escrow