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Your rights when a service goes wrong

When you pay a business for a service, such as a repair, an installation, building work or a haircut, it must be carried out with reasonable care and skill. If it is not, you can ask for the work to be redone at no cost to you, and if that is not possible or is not done properly, you can ask for a price reduction.

Reviewed 23 September 2026 · applies across the UK unless a nation is named · sources listed below · how we check

What a service must meet

Under the Consumer Rights Act 2015 a service must be performed with reasonable care and skill. Anything the trader told you about the service, which you took into account when deciding to go ahead, is binding. If no price was agreed, you only have to pay a reasonable price, and if no timescale was agreed, the work must be done within a reasonable time.

First remedy: have the work redone

You can ask the trader to repeat the work, or the part that was not done properly. It must be done within a reasonable time, without significant inconvenience to you, and at the trader's cost.

Second remedy: a price reduction

If repeating the work is impossible, or the trader does not do it within a reasonable time or without significant inconvenience, you can ask for a price reduction. Depending on how badly the service fell short, this can be up to the full price.

No 30-day right to reject for services

Unlike goods, services have no short-term right to reject. For a serious failure you may have other legal remedies, such as ending the contract or claiming for your losses, and free advice from your national consumer helpline is worth getting before you take that step.

Goods supplied with a service

Parts or goods supplied as part of a job, such as a new part fitted by a garage, are covered by your rights for goods. See the 30-day right to reject.

Quick answers

Can I refuse to pay for bad work?

Refusing to pay can put you in breach of the contract, so get advice from your national consumer helpline first. Put your complaint in writing and ask the trader to put the work right.

The work is taking far too long. What can I do?

If no deadline was agreed, the work must be done within a reasonable time. Write to the trader setting a clear, reasonable deadline, and keep a record of the delays.

Do these rights apply to builders and tradespeople?

Yes, whenever you pay a business to do the work. They do not apply to work done by a friend or a private individual who is not trading.

What if the trader said something about the job that turned out to be untrue?

What a trader tells you about a service, which you rely on when deciding to go ahead, forms part of the contract. If it turns out to be untrue, you can use the same remedies.

Official sources

Check your own situation

The Be Consumer Wise app walks you through what you bought, how you paid and what went wrong, shows the right helpline for your part of the UK, and lets you ask ConsumerBot follow-up questions.

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Reviewed 2026-09-23. General legal information about UK consumer rights, not legal advice.