Getting out of an agency contract: what is possible

There is little about this online because hardly anyone has an interest in writing it down. So here is the sober sequence — even if you do not end up with us.

Upfront: this is not legal advice. Where there is a dispute about an actual contract, a lawyer belongs in the room, and early.

First read, do not resign

Before anything is written, you need three things from your contract: the term, the notice period, and what happens to the account, the content and the income after it ends.

If you no longer have the contract, request it. An agency that will not hand you your own contract has just given you the most important piece of information about itself.

The four points that matter

The login details. If you have them, change the passwords at the agreed moment and move two-factor authentication to your own number. If you do not have them, that is the most urgent point — and a reason to put things in writing immediately.

The account's email address. Whoever owns the address effectively owns the account. If an agency address sits there, it has to be changed before you give notice.

The content. Whoever produced your material did not thereby acquire it. Have everything handed over and secure your own copy before access expires.

Ongoing income. Subscriptions keep running and payouts arrive with a delay. Settle in writing how the final accounting period is handled.

What a long term is worth

Less than many assume. An unreasonably long commitment, surprising clauses or a one-sided renewal can be unenforceable — but nobody decides that from the gut; someone qualified has to read the contract.

The reverse also holds: as long as nothing is settled, you are still working under that contract. Simply stopping is the most expensive route.

The order

Secure copies of your content first. Then settle login details and the email address. Then give notice in writing, with proof of delivery. Then check the payout details. In that order, not the other way round — otherwise you are negotiating over something you can no longer access.

Everything important in writing. A friendly phone call is not proof.

How to avoid a repeat

The points where it goes wrong are visible before signing: account access, term, notice period, what applies after the end. The list is in What to check in a contract and How do I recognize a legitimate agency?.

How we handle it

With us the account stays yours, including login details and email address. There is no fixed term, and what you produced belongs to you — afterwards as well. If you are coming out of another arrangement, tell us openly: we start nothing while the old one is not cleanly closed.