Assignment
George is 73 and in the early stages of dementia (a degenerative brain disease). George is also partially blind and is very physically frail. He is completely reliant on his daughter, Lilly, for all his needs. George and Lilly regularly spend time together on weekends at the local market.
In one of their outings, George was sitting alone on a bench while Lilly went to purchase clothes for him. He is approached by a well-dressed gentleman named Daniel who introduced himself as a salesperson from Easy Finance Company. Daniel offered George "an exciting investment opportunity of a lifetime", and all George had to do was sign the contract and promise to pay a very small amount of money to enter the investment!
George looked up at the representative but did not respond. "Fantastic!" exclaimed the representative. "Look, here is the contract but you look like a smart man, so you don't have to read the terms. Don't worry about signing it, just help me fill out some basic details and I will fill out the contract alright?" Daniel told George.
George nervously said to Daniel, "Young man, I'm blind and I have a hard time understanding what you are telling me. Maybe wait for my daughter to come back and you can tell her about what you are selling. I'm so sorry I can't be of any help."
Daniel laughed and replied, "Don't worry about it, you'll be rich so you can help your daughter!" George apologised again and told him it would be better to talk to his daughter. Daniel suddenly grabbed George's arm firmly and said, "I promise you everything will be fine." Unable to escape from Daniel's firm grasp, George gave up and revealed his details without question. After Daniel finished writing, he let go of George's arm and told him the bill will be coming in a week by mail.
Daniel and George were suddenly alerted by the sounds of yelling, followed by an angry Lilly asking why Daniel is speaking to her frail father. Daniel explained that he is simply giving George an opportunity to invest a very small amount of money to make some money for both of them.
Lilly asked what would happen if his father failed to pay the money to which Daniel answered "You will get a friendly reminder phone call from one of our friendly staff - that's it. If you are having issues paying the fee, call the phone number in the invoice to speak to me. I promise you this will help you and your father." Satisfied with Daniel's explanation, Lilly and George later said their goodbyes and left.
A week later, Lilly was shocked to find a bill for $100,000 from Easy Finance addressed to George - clearly a much larger sum than what Daniel described!! When Lilly called Daniel for assistance, Daniel replied with "Sorry I can't help you, the terms of the contract did state you will be billed the amount. If you have issues paying, perhaps speak to your bank." Lilly also learned that George was receiving threatening calls from debt collectors, claiming that failure to pay the invoice may result in his house being forcibly sold to pay off the debt!!
IRAC FORMAT
• Are Daniel's representations and conduct made in trade or commerce?
• Are the following misleading or deceptive?
1. Daniel's statement that George only had to invest a very small amount of money.
2. Daniel's statement that George will get a friendly reminder phone call from a "friendly staff"
3. Daniel's statement to call his phone number if George and Lilly have any questions regarding the investment