Contracts – Knowing your terms and your business
26th February 2024
We have produced blog articles before on terms and conditions or reviewing them to ensure that you are happy with the terms and, where there are new opportunities, whether they are too heinous.
It isn’t often that we can provide an example of why you should always be careful of what terms you contract with. However, I have recently come found an example on why you should ensure you read your terms.
“As part of a gift, I received a copy of a new game for my console from a well known studio. As part of the initial set up of the game on the console, I had to configure the brightness setting with the advice being generally being to set it so that the text was barely visible. Against the settings suggestion, I set the maximum level of brightness, what was revealed was a joke set of terms potentially selling my person and likeness to an in-game character corporation with a poor record on respecting the rights of individuals.
Naturally it was a joke, such a contract would not be enforceable in England (but it did provoke my brain to think about it for a few minutes) and not without hesitating and actually pressing the button to go back I proceeded with setting the brightness and playing the game.”
The terms, whilst clearly a joke, highlight why it is important to review the terms you are about to agree to and if you are unsure, to take legal advice before proceeding. In many cases it could easily be a set of terms with an unfavourable limitation of liability clause or including an indemnity for risks that you may not agree with.
There are also the pitfalls of whom a contract is with, for example, a consumer customer triggers different requirements and rights by law such as the 2-week period in which they can change their mind and cancel the contract between you or the different additional rights consumers have in relation to the return and/or refund for products.
It is important to carefully review the terms of an agreement you are about to enter into as a business and make sure you understand what it is that is required of you in the contract. Although contracts may tend to come under scrutiny only really for performance when a court is involved, good practice is to know your contracts and what you are agreeing to.
If you are a business and require assistance in drafting contracts or dealing with terms and conditions, please contact our specialist Lawyers in our Corporate Commercial team.
Article written by Corporate Commercial Solicitor, Kyle Smith.