{
  "id": "legal/three-day-cooling-off-rule-not-universal",
  "signature": "AI tells a US consumer they have three business days to cancel any signed contract or purchase, treating the FTC Cooling-Off Rule as a universal right",
  "signature_zh": "",
  "regex": "(cooling.off (rule|period)|three.day (right to cancel|cancellation)|3.day right to cancel)",
  "domain": "legal",
  "category": "contract_terms",
  "subcategory": null,
  "root_cause": "The FTC's Cooling-Off Rule (16 CFR Part 429) gives buyers three business days to cancel only sales made away from the seller's normal place of business - at the buyer's home, a rented hotel/motel room, dormitory, workplace, or similar temporary venue - and only above a dollar threshold ($25 at the buyer's residence, $130 elsewhere). It excludes purchases at a retail store, real estate, insurance, securities, and sales conducted entirely by mail or phone with no other prior contact. There is no general federal 3-day right to cancel ordinary purchases, online orders, or most signed contracts.",
  "root_cause_type": "generic",
  "root_cause_zh": "",
  "versions": [
    {
      "version": "any",
      "introduced": null,
      "deprecated": null,
      "removed": null,
      "behavior_change": null,
      "status": "active"
    }
  ],
  "os_specific": {},
  "dead_ends": [
    {
      "action": "Tell a consumer they can cancel any signed contract or purchase - including an in-store purchase, an online order, or a car bought at a dealership - within three days under a general federal 'cooling-off' right",
      "why_fails": "The FTC's Cooling-Off Rule applies only to sales made away from the seller's normal place of business - at the buyer's home, a temporary venue like a hotel room, or similarly - and above $25 (at the buyer's residence) or $130 (elsewhere). Sales at the seller's regular retail location, and sales made entirely by mail, phone, or online with no other prior contact, are excluded outright.",
      "fail_rate": 0.85,
      "condition": "Purchase made at a normal retail location or entirely online/by phone",
      "sources": [
        "https://www.ftc.gov/legal-library/browse/rules/cooling-period-sales-made-home-or-other-locations",
        "https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/16/429.0"
      ]
    },
    {
      "action": "Assume the cancellation right applies once a threshold amount is spent, regardless of where the sale happened",
      "why_fails": "The dollar threshold is tied to location, not just amount: $25 or more only covers sales at the buyer's own residence; sales at any other qualifying off-premises location (hotel room, fairground, workplace, dorm) require $130 or more to be covered.",
      "fail_rate": 0.5,
      "condition": "Sale at a temporary venue other than the buyer's home",
      "sources": [
        "https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/16/429.0"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "workarounds": [
    {
      "action": "Check whether the sale actually happened away from the seller's regular place of business (home visit, hotel-room sales presentation, fair/convention booth) and meets the dollar threshold before assuming a cancellation right exists",
      "success_rate": 0.85,
      "how": "If it does qualify, the seller must have provided two copies of a cancellation form and written notice of the right to cancel at the time of sale; send a signed, dated cancellation notice within three business days to exercise it.",
      "condition": "Off-premises sale meeting the dollar threshold",
      "sources": [
        "https://www.ftc.gov/node/40342"
      ]
    },
    {
      "action": "For an ordinary retail-store or online purchase, rely on the seller's own return policy, credit-card chargeback rights, or state warranty/'lemon law' protections instead of a federal cooling-off right, since none applies",
      "success_rate": 0.75,
      "how": "",
      "condition": "In-store or standard online purchase",
      "sources": [
        "https://www.ftc.gov/legal-library/browse/rules/cooling-period-sales-made-home-or-other-locations"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "workarounds_zh": [],
  "transition_graph": {
    "leads_to": [],
    "preceded_by": [],
    "frequently_confused_with": []
  },
  "official_doc_url": null,
  "official_doc_section": null,
  "error_code": null,
  "verification_tier": "ai_generated",
  "confidence": 0.75,
  "fix_success_rate": 0.85,
  "resolvable": "true",
  "first_seen": "2026-09-14",
  "last_confirmed": "2026-09-14",
  "last_updated": "2026-09-14",
  "evidence_count": 3,
  "tags": [],
  "locale": "en",
  "aliases": [
    "legal/three-day-cooling-off-rule-not-universal/us"
  ]
}