Signed the job up at the kitchen table?

Does this apply to quotes done at the house?

What matters is where the contract is formed — where the customer actually agrees to the price and you're both bound. If that happens away from your business premises (their home, on their driveway, over the phone straight after a home visit), it's generally an "off-premises contract" and the regulations apply. If you're ever in doubt about whether a particular deal counts, the safe move is to give the notice anyway — there's no downside to over-complying.

What if I already started the work without giving this notice?

Stop and take stock. Issue the cancellation notice now, and if the customer is happy for you to continue, get the "early start" request signed before carrying on. This doesn't retroactively fix a completed job, and if there's already a dispute or the customer wants to cancel, that's a situation for a solicitor, Trading Standards, or Business Companion (see below) — not something to guess at.

Does it apply to my business customers (B2B)?

No. These regulations protect consumers — people buying for personal, non-business use. If you're contracting with another business (a letting agent, a shop, a builder merchant), this cooling-off regime doesn't apply, though other contract terms still matter.

What's the £42 threshold about?

The information and cancellation requirements for off-premises contracts kick in above £42. For low-value doorstep work at or under that figure the formal cooling-off paperwork isn't required — but for almost any real trade job (which comfortably clears £42) you should be issuing the notice and model cancellation form before you're bound.

Does this cover every doorstep job — are there exceptions?

No, and this is important: this tool covers the general off-premises case, but the regulations carve out some situations where the cancellation right doesn't apply at all. The two that come up most for trades:

• Urgent repairs or maintenance the customer specifically called you out for. If a customer asks you to come round urgently (a burst pipe, no heating, a lockout) there's no cancellation right for that specific callout. But it only covers the urgent job itself and the parts strictly needed for it — any extra work or additional goods you sell on the same visit are not exempt, and still need the notice and model cancellation form.
• Goods made to the customer's specification, or clearly personalised. Made-to-measure items — bespoke kitchens cut to the room, custom blinds, curtains, engraved or personalised goods — aren't covered by the cancellation right once agreed, because they can't be resold to someone else.

Outside those specific carve-outs, treat every off-premises job over £42 as needing the notice. If you're not sure whether a job qualifies for an exception, the safe default is to issue the paperwork anyway — there's no downside to over-complying, but there is a real one to wrongly assuming an exception applies.