# Regulatory Compliance Category > General Regulatory Compliance Forum >  Lay-by

## acronje@vodamail.co.za

I need to be able to offer some of my customers a Lay-by option. I can not seem to find any guide line by which to go by. Where can I find the relevant Act outlining the rules to follow, and where can I find a sample of a lay-by contract.

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## Vincent

> ...offer some of my customers a Lay-by option... Where can I find the relevant Act outlining the rules


The new Consumer Bill will explain what you're looking for.

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## Arras

So currently there is nothing available, and I wil have to wait for the bill? New Zealand and Austrailia web sites explain Lay-by procedures very clearly, but aparently SA has no guidelines?

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## Vincent

> So currently there is nothing available, and I wil have to wait for the bill? New Zealand and Austrailia web sites explain Lay-by procedures very clearly, but aparently SA has no guidelines?


The National Assembly approved the _Consumer Protection Bill_ on the 25 September 2008, although it is still under debate.



> 22 October 2008
>                          Prior to the enactment of the Consumer Protection Bill, the department of trade and industry (DTI) will have to publish a business code regarding consumer practice and call for public hearings on the subject.


 Read the rest of the article *HERE*

You can download the latest version of the Consumer Protection Bill [B19D-2008] *HERE*

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Dave A (23-Oct-08)

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## Arras

Thanks Vincent.

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## Sieg

Careful, people!

That BILL is still just a BILL and is not yet law. 

There is law which governs lay-by agreements: Government Notice R.1234 of 1980. This kind of agreement is regarded as a credit agreement. It may also be governed by the National Credit Act. [I have not checked this aspect.]

In essence: 

1. The agreement must be in writing;
2.Must be signed by the Seller and Purchaser personally;
3. Contain a complete description of the goods with identification numbers;
4. mention the price;
5. mention the deposit payable;
6. must contain a clause that the purchaser may cancel and if so terminated, that the Seller shall refund at least 90% of all monies received (i.e. the Seller can keep only ten percent of amounts paid as "rouwkoop");
7. Purchaser must be provided with a copy of the agreement;
8. Purchaser must be sent detailed monthly statements;
9. The agreement may not be longer than for six months;
10. The agreement may not exclude the Purchaser's common law rights for defects in the goods. 

There are some further obligations on the Seller. 

I can provide a (somewhat older) example of such an agreement on e mailed request. 

Sieg

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Dave A (24-Oct-08), duncan drennan (28-Oct-08)

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## Dave A

You jogged my memory, Sieg.

Here is an extract from a post by Eugene on some background to the origins of the National Credit Act:



> The Lay-by Regulations were promulgated in terms of the Sale and Services Matters Act. Very few people were aware of the existence of Lay-by Regulations, which were intended to protect consumers party to lay-by transactions. Three of the prescriptions were that the transaction period could not exceed 6 months; that the agreement should be in writing, and; that interest could not be charged on the purchase price.


From that it seems likely Lay-by issues might well be dealt with in the NCA, but I suspect the detail will be in the regs rather than the Act itself.

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