Lay-by
Easy English fact sheet 2025
You might need help to read this fact sheet.
A friend, family member or support person can help you.
What is a lay-by?
- You want to buy something.
- You pay for it slowly.
- You pay a deposit first.
A deposit is part of the full price. - You make 2 or more payments.
You can ask the shop to highlight or circle
how much you have left to pay. - You have a set amount of time to pay.
- The shop keeps the product.
- You get the product when you finish paying for it.
- Different shops have different lay-by rules.
- Some shops may not have lay-by.
What is good about lay-by?
- You do not have to pay any interest.
Interest is extra money you pay to the shop. - Most lay-bys do not have any fees
- You do not have to
- get a loan
- use a credit card
What happens when you lay-by?
- You will get a contract. The contract might
be your receipt. - The shop must give you a copy of the contract.
You can get a fact sheet about contracts from Consumer Protection WA.
Rules for a lay-by contract
The contract must
- be in writing
- have all the rules. For example,
fees when you cancel - be easy to read. For example,
use plain words.
The shop must give you a copy.
The lay-by contract must say
- what you are buying
- the total price
- how much deposit you paid
- how much you still have to pay
- the date you have to pay
- how much money you have to pay if you
cancel or stop the lay-by - the shop name, address and phone numbers
- any other rules for the lay-by.
Before you sign the contract
- Read the contract.
- Understand the contract.
When you are happy, sign the contract.
Stopping a lay-by
Rules for you
- You must stop before you get the product.
- You might have to pay a fee.
- You do not have to pay a fee if the shop
breaks or damages the product before
you get it.
You must tell the shop you want to stop a lay-by.
The shop might ask you to fill out a form.
Rules for the shop
If you break the rules in a lay-by contract,
the shop can stop the lay-by.
- If you do not fix the problem the shop
can stop your lay-by. - The shop may charge you a fee if you
stop the lay-by. - The shop must give you back any
money you have already paid.
Consumer Protection WA
More fact sheets
and information
List of fact sheets in Easy English
- Buying Furniture
- Contracts
- Lay-by
- Phone and door to door sales
- Renting - starting a tenancy
- Renting - during a tenancy
- Renting - ending a tenancy
- Refunds, replacements and repairs
- Scams
- Services
- Shopping tips
Phone 1300 30 40 54
Mail Locked Bag 100
East Perth WA 6892
Interpreter 131 450
National Relay Service 133 677
Email consumer@demirs.wa.gov.au
Website www.consumerprotection.wa.gov.au
This information is written in Easy English.
You might need more information about the law.
You can ask Consumer Protection WA.
Updated February 2025.
Easy English fact sheet updated by
Consumer Protection WA.
Look at Clear Written Communications -
The Easy English Style Guide for
information about the format and writing
style of this document.
You can find more information at
www.scopevic.org.au or
phone 03 9843 2000.
© Scope (Aust) Ltd. You may use this document for your own
personal, non-commercial purposes only. You must not use the
document for any other purpose, and must not copy, reproduce,
digitise, communicate, adapt, modify the document or any part
of it (or authorise any other person to do so) without the prior
consent of Scope (Aust) Ltd.
Scope’s Communication and Inclusion Resource Centre
wrote the Easy English. August 2016 www.scopevic.org.au.
To see the original contact Consumer Affairs Victoria.
The Picture Communication Symbols ©1981–2010 by Mayer-
Johnson. LLC. All Rights Reserved Worldwide. Used with
permission. Boardmaker™ is a trademark of Mayer-Johnson LLC.
Valuing People ClipArt © Inspired Services, UK.
www.inspiredservices.org.uk.
Change pictures © 2011. www.changepeople.co.uk.