Consumer · Right to Cancel
Right to Cancel a Purchase in New Hampshire
How long you have to cancel a door-to-door purchase in New Hampshire, the longer windows for timeshares and other categories, and why there is no general three-day right to return a car. Cited to the statute.
When the cooling-off right applies in New Hampshire
The door-to-door window, the categories with their own clocks, and the purchases that are not covered.
| When it applies | What it means |
|---|---|
| Three business days after the sale | The buyer may cancel before midnight of the third business day after the transaction, under N.H. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 361-B:2. You may cancel by written notice or by returning the merchandise in person. |
| 150 dollars or more, cash or credit | The right reaches a sale of goods or services priced at 150 dollars or more, made away from the seller's permanent place of business, under § 361-B:1. New Hampshire expressly covers both cash and credit sales. |
| Fifteen-day refund, no deduction for work | The seller must refund within fifteen days, the longest in the region, under § 361-B:2. If the seller performed work that altered your property, you get a full refund with no deduction for the work. |
| Goods yours after 90 days | If the seller makes no effort to recover its property within ninety days, it becomes yours with no further obligation, the longest abandonment period in the region, under § 361-B:2, V. |
| When there is no right | What it means |
|---|---|
| Under 150 dollars | A doorstep purchase priced under 150 dollars gets no state cooling-off right, so a 100 dollar sale falls to the federal FTC rule alone. |
| Sales at the seller's premises | A sale at a permanent place of business of the seller is outside the definition. The statute carries no itemized list of category exclusions. |
What you can do right now
Concrete, neutral steps to cancel a covered purchase in New Hampshire. This is consumer information, not legal advice.
- Check the price first
New Hampshire's three-day right applies only at 150 dollars or more. If your doorstep purchase was under 150 dollars, use the federal FTC rule, which starts at 25 dollars at your home.
- Cancel in writing or return the goods
Send written cancellation before midnight of the third business day, certified or registered mail preferred, or return the merchandise in person within the window.
- Do not accept a deduction for work done
If the seller altered your property during the cancellation period, you are entitled to a full refund with no deduction for the work, under § 361-B:2, I(b-1).
- Complain if a valid cancellation is refused
A violation is an unfair or deceptive act. File a complaint with the New Hampshire Department of Justice, Consumer Protection Bureau.
If a seller refuses a timely, valid cancellation, a state consumer-protection office can take your complaint and enforce the cooling-off rules.
→ New Hampshire Department of Justice · Consumer ProtectionThis is general consumer information, not legal advice. The category, the notice, and the deadline all matter, so confirm your right against the statute and use the complaint route if a valid cancellation is refused.
What New Hampshire buyers get wrong about cancelling
New Hampshire has the highest price floor in the country for a door-to-door cancellation right, and it catches many people out. Under N.H. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 361-B:2 you can cancel a home solicitation sale before midnight of the third business day, but § 361-B:1 limits the state right to a sale priced at 150 dollars or more. That means the law many Granite Staters assume protects them simply does not reach an ordinary 100 dollar doorstep purchase, and only the federal FTC rule does. The 150 dollar figure took effect January 1, 2011, which is why older summaries still circulate a stale 25 dollar figure. Where the state right applies, it is unusually generous. New Hampshire expressly covers both cash and credit sales, gives the longest refund deadline in the region at fifteen days, and if the seller altered your property you get a full refund with no deduction for the work. Its abandonment rule is the longest around too: if the seller makes no effort to recover its property within ninety days, it becomes yours. New Hampshire also offers sellers an alternate compliance route in place of the boxed notice.
Common questions
My doorstep purchase was 100 dollars. Does New Hampshire's three-day law cover me?
No. The state statute starts at 150 dollars, so a 100 dollar purchase has no state cooling-off right. The federal FTC rule, which reaches 25 dollars or more at your home, is your only floor.
Does it matter whether I paid cash or financed it?
No. RSA 361-B:1 expressly deems both a cash and a credit sale to be a home solicitation sale, so New Hampshire is not a credit-only state.
How long does the company have to send my money back?
Fifteen days, the longest refund deadline in the region, under § 361-B:2. Failure within fifteen days is itself a violation.
The installer already did some work before I cancelled. Do they deduct for it?
No. Under § 361-B:2, I(b-1), if the seller performed work that altered your property, you get a full refund with no deduction for the work.
Not legal advicePlainStatute provides plain-language summaries of public law for general information only. This is not legal advice. Statutes change; always confirm current requirements with the official source linked above before acting.