A Contract is a Contract

Has anyone ever tried to change the terms of a contract you both have signed? If so, the person is committing a crime. This is another tactic used by scam artists, who stoop to levels so low that it is an insult to artists to share a title with them.

Scammers have been known to rob people by claiming that they have products to sell, taking the money and running. Some use the pity ploy, telling people that they are down on their luck and just need a loan. They disappear into the night, leaving the victims so embarrassed about having been so gullible that the crime might not be reported. This leaves the criminal free to strike again, victimizing another innocent person.

Scammers who claim to be salespeople have been known to bring contracts to people's houses, write the amounts due in the necessary spaces, take checks as payment, and try to change the terms after the fact. If you have written a check for an agreed-upon amount and the person who took it calls you a few days later and says, "Oops, I made a mistake. That will be $400 more than I told you it would be", you have no obligation to write another check. If you do not wish to cancel the contract and take your business elsewhere, the salesperson or the company is required to eat the loss.

Whether the contract you both have signed is for a car, a washing machine, a grapefruit, or anything else, the seller must provide the goods for which you have paid. You can take him to small claims court if he doesn't, but there are easier and less expensive ways to pursue your case. Writing to the Better Business Bureau or the Attorney General can help you get the results you need. The scammer will be contacted and asked about the incident, which often is enough to make him realize that he must honor the contract that he signed. Another possibility is to write to a person at a local newspaper or television station who handles cases of customer dissatisfaction. Again, the scammer will be contacted and asked about the incident. If he doesn't want to see his name and his company's name in a news item about such a thing, he may very well decide not to continue trying to take advantage of you.

Before making a large purchase, sometimes Ir's a good idea to check with the Better Business Bureau to see if the company you're considering has had any complaints against it. They will be available for you to read, as will the solutions to them. Sometimes there are complaints about reputable companies, but they are few and far between and they are almost always solved to the customer's satisfaction.

When you bring public attention to a matter of someone trying to commit a breach of contract in this manner, you are doing a favor to whoever might have been the next victim of such a thing. If you have alerted the company to the need for remedial math classes for salespeople, you are doing a favor to many.