Can you simply charge costs for a service that you did not perform?

Questioner

Ir/Madam, Yesterday we called a leak detection company to make an appointment to detect the leak in our house. An appointment was made for 14 Jan. Today by chance we find the leak so we cancel the appointment. The confirmation states that if we had canceled before 8 am on 12 Jan. it would have been free of charge. Now at 8.49 am today we canceled the appointment by email. They are now going to send us an invoice for 50% of the starting rate incl. VAT. The starting rate is 356.95 incl. VAT. This would mean that we would have to pay €178.46 for a service that we did not receive. Is this allowed? This is a considerable amount. I understand that in the event of a cancellation, call-out charges may be charged, but I still think this is a considerable amount.

Lawyer

That is a very unreasonable attitude of this company. I assume that the rule of cancellation is mentioned in their terms and conditions, then it is voidable or is presumed to be unreasonably onerous because the costs incurred by cancellation are now entirely determined by the company. Strictly speaking, a consumer may withdraw the order at any time but is obliged to reimburse the costs that the contractor actually misses and therefore suffers damage. You do not know at this moment whether another order can be booked and whether there is no damage on balance. VAT may also not be charged for a service that has not been delivered, because this is also not settled. For more information or help with your defense, you can contact me directly.

Questioner

Thanks for the quick response, for now I know enough. If I have any questions I will contact you. Yours sincerely