What forms a contract?

[2plus1]

I was sent a brochure detailing a product and aftercare service with contract and fees documents. I read the brochure and made my descision from this to enter into a contract with this company and signed the contract. The product was provided but had issues so I requested the aftercare advice/service from the company. They did not provide this service at all and I have found that they cannot provide the advertised service as they are not members of the industry body. I have complained but they say that it was not specified in the contract, ie the product was mentioned with numerous T and Cs but no mention of aftercare service. Can they do this? Does the brochure form a part of the contract?

The brochure is unlikely to form part of the contract though if it indicated you would have an aftercare service under the contract then that may constitute a pre-contractual misrepresentation which you may be able to rely on in a claim for damages, which would be the value of the aftercare service.

However the contract itself may expressly exclude misrep claims, which is common. If it does and if it is the company's standard Ts and Cs then you may be able to rely on UCTA ( Unfair Contract Terms Act) to exclude the exclusion for unreasonableness, but this is a complex area and it is impossible to say without seeing the contract terms. Can you get a bit of free advice from your CAB? Is this worth a lot of money?