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Illegal Use of Equipment
A Florida intermediate-level appellate court has held that a lessee is not relieved of its payment obligations when it discovers that it cannot lawfully utilize the leased equipment in the manner it intended. De Lage Landen Financial Services, Inc. v Cricket's Termite Control, Inc., 942 So. 2d 1001 (Fla. 5th DCA 2006). While the writer is aware of similar results reached in other unreported Florida actions, this decision, the first reported decision in Florida, not only will provide assistance in dealing with similar scenarios but also exhibits the strength of standard lease clauses.
Factual Background
Cricket's Termite Control, Inc. ('Cricket's') entered into a lease with U.S. Bancorp for a Pro Lead PMC Computer Marketing System, which 'is essentially a computer and a program that randomly selects and dials the telephone numbers of potential customers and plays a pre-recorded message when a phone is answered.' The lease was assigned to De Lage Landen Financial Services, Inc. ('DLL'). More than two years after entering into the lease, Cricket's received notice from the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services of complaints received about telephone sales calls Cricket's had been making utilizing the leased equipment in violation of Florida Statute '501.059(7)(a), which prohibits calls involving 'an automated system for the selection or dialing of telephone numbers or the playing of a recorded message when a connection is completed to a number called.' The notice ordered Cricket's to cease making the calls and apprised Cricket's of the civil penalties for making calls in violation of this law. Upon receipt of this notice, Cricket's ceased using the leased equipment and stopped making lease payments to DLL.
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