WRITE A PAPER ON BUSINESS CONSUMER PROTECTION.William, the CEO of a large manufacturing company based in Wales had recently accepted an invitation to speak at an international conference in New York. William wanted to leave the car near Heathrow Airport and after some investigation located a company “Luxury Cars Retreat Ltd” (LCR) which had a secure long term vehicle storage facility. He decided to drop in to see them on his way back from a business trip to London shortly before his trip to New York. At LCR’s offices he met with Duncan one of sales representatives and agreed to pay the total sum of £500 for the storing of the six-month-old Rolls Royce for two weeks.
Duncan asked William to sign a contract to confirm their agreement which William did without looking at it.
The contract contained (inter alia) two clauses:
⦁ LRC accepts no liability for any theft or damage to personal belongings left in any vehicle stored in the facility:
⦁ LRC accepts no liability for any personal injury suffered on the premises of the facility, including that caused by negligence of LRC or its agents.
Arriving back in the UK, William headed straight to LCR to collect the car and was horrified to find it had extensive damage to its body work. Opening the car boot William also discovered that the expensive leather designer brief case and luggage that had been left in it was missing. On his way to remonstrate with Duncan, William fell heavily injuring his left arm when he slipped on a puddle of oil on the floor of the storage facility.
Having discovered that LCR had clearly been negligent in providing security and in failing to ensure that all spills were cleaned up, William has told LCR that he is intending to take legal action against them.
Task
You have been approached by the owner of LCR for advice. As they are not sure whether the car was William’s or whether it was a company car, you are required to critically consider and discuss their potential liability (together with any possible defences) under the relevant legislation in relation to both:
⦁ B2B contact and
⦁ a B2C contract
You have been approached by the owner of LCR for advice. As they are not sure whether the car was William’s or whether it was a company car, you are required to critically consider and discuss their potential liability (together with any possible defences) under the relevant legislation in relation to both:
⦁ B2B contact and
⦁ a B2C contract
Guidance on the contents of the slides
⦁ The issues surrounding the making of the contract
⦁ The importance of the classification of William’s status i.e., consumer or acting in the course of business
⦁ Relevant legislation with identification of specific sections/subsections
⦁ Relevant and illustrative case law
⦁ Academic referencing
