Question
Legal Studies Question on Laws of Contract
Legal Principles:
1. Offer is a proposal made by one person to another to do an act or abstain from doing it. The person who makes the offer is known as the promisor or offeror and the person to whom an offer is made is known as the promisee or the offeree.
2. A contract comes into being by the acceptance of an offer. When the person to whom the offer is made signifies his consent thereto, the proposal is said to be accepted and the parties are at consensus ad idem regarding the terms of the agreement.
Facts: Mr. Kumar visited the Holiday Bliss Hotel. He had not made an in advance booking and upon arrival requested a room for the night. He signed the register and there was no mention at that stage of any other terms or conditions that might impact upon his stay at the hotel. During the course of his stay Mr. Kumar discovered that someone had broken into his room and stolen certain property including a coat. Kumar filed a case of negligence on the Hotel administration. Nevertheless, the Hotel sought to rely upon an exclusion clause that was placed in the bedroom the claimant stayed in. This stated that the hotel would not accept liability for lost or stolen items belonging to customers. Decide whether the exclusion clause that was displayed in the bedroom constituted a valid term of the contract.
The contract was made when Kumar signed the register at the reception and so the acceptance of the offer mean acceptance of all the terms of the offer.
There is a valid contract between Kumar and Hotel and the Hotel has taken reasonable steps to bring exclusion clause to Kumar's attention in the room.
Terms must be brought to the attention of the customer, consumer or party against whom they are trying to be enforced at the moment the contract was entered into. Kumar was not given notice of this exclusion clause until he had already entered into the contract and therefore it was unenforceable against him.
Though the terms must be brought to the attention of the customer, consumer or party against whom they are trying to be enforced at the moment the contract was entered into. But, such type of clauses are generally part of all contracts and customers should be aware of such exclusion of liability clauses.
Terms must be brought to the attention of the customer, consumer or party against whom they are trying to be enforced at the moment the contract was entered into. Kumar was not given notice of this exclusion clause until he had already entered into the contract and therefore it was unenforceable against him.
Solution
The correct option is (C):Terms must be brought to the attention of the customer, consumer or party against whom they are trying to be enforced at the moment the contract was entered into. Kumar was not given notice of this exclusion clause until he had already entered into the contract and therefore it was unenforceable against him.