(a) A dating service contract shall be in writing, which, in the case of an online dating service contract, may be an electronic writing made available for viewing online. A copy of the contract shall be provided to the buyer at the time he or she signs the contract, except that an online dating service shall not be required to provide a copy of the contract where (1) the contract is available through a direct link that is provided in a clear and conspicuous manner on the Internet Web site page where the buyer provides consent to the agreement and, (2) upon request by the buyer, the online dating service provides a PDF format or retainable digital copy of the contract.
(b) (1) Every dating service contract shall contain on its face, and in close proximity to the space reserved for the signature of the buyer, a conspicuous statement in a size equal to at least 10-point boldface type, as follows:
“You, the buyer, may cancel this agreement, without any penalty or obligation, at any time prior to midnight of the original contract seller’s third business day following the date of this contract, excluding Sundays and holidays. To cancel this agreement, mail or deliver a signed and dated notice, or send a telegram which states that you, the buyer, are canceling this agreement, or words of similar effect. This notice shall be sent to:
_____ (Name of the business that sold you the contract) _____ |
_____ (Address of the business that sold you the contract) _____ .” |
(2) Paragraph (1) shall not otherwise apply to an online dating service if the online dating service contract includes the statement in paragraph (1) in a clear and conspicuous manner in a stand-alone first paragraph of the contract.
(c) (1) The dating service contract shall contain on the first page, in a type size no smaller than that generally used in the body of the document, the name and address of the dating service operator to which the notice of cancellation is to be mailed, and the date the buyer signed the contract.
(2) In the case of an online dating service contract, if the name of the dating service operator and the email address that can be used for cancellation appears in the first paragraph of the contract, in a type size no smaller than that generally used in the body of the document, the other requirements of paragraph (1) shall not apply.
(d) (1) No dating service contract shall require payments or financing by the buyer over a period in excess of two years from the date the contract is entered into, nor shall the term of any such contract be measured by the life of the buyer. However, the services to be rendered to the buyer under the contract may extend over a period beginning within six months and ending within three years of the date the contract is entered into.
(2) In the case of an online dating service contract, if the initial term is one year or less, and subsequent terms are one year or less, paragraph (1) shall not apply.
(e) If a dating service contract is not in compliance with this chapter, the buyer may, at any time, cancel the contract.
(Amended by Stats. 2017, Ch. 578, Sec. 3. (AB 314) Effective January 1, 2018.)