A cooling-off period is a set time after you agree a contract when you can change your mind and cancel without giving a reason. The Consumer Contracts (Information, Cancellation and Additional Charges) Regulations 2013 give a consumer this right for contracts made at a distance, such as online or by phone, or away from the trader's premises. For a service, it ends 14 days after the day the contract is entered into.
At Wigwam
Our terms (clause 40) say: "If You entered into the Agreement without physically coming into the Facility, then You have 14 days after We confirm acceptance of Your order to change Your mind (cooling off period)." So the 14 days run from our confirmation that we've accepted your order, not from the day you move in.
If you cancel in that time, "a refund will be provided based on the length of storage You have taken prior to cancelling and all Goods being removed from the Unit." You can cancel "by email, post or telephone call to Us referring to Your name, address, date of order, and Unit number." The clause doesn't say how quickly the refund is paid, so ask us when you cancel.
The regulations take a similar approach: if you asked for a service to start during the cancellation period and then cancel, you pay a proportionate amount for the service supplied up to the time you told the trader (regulation 36). Under our clause, the refund also depends on your goods being out of the unit, so clear it promptly once you've cancelled.
Cooling-off vs notice period
They answer different questions. The cooling-off period is a right to back out of a new booking, and it only applies if you booked without coming to the site. A notice period is how you end any agreement at any time, however you booked, and you pay storage until it runs out. If you booked in person at one of our sites, clause 40 doesn't apply and the normal notice rules do.
Related terms: Notice period · Pro-rata billing · Storage agreement · Unfair contract terms
Related questions: What are my cancellation rights if I book storage online? · Can I cancel before I move in?