Ever try and cancel a room or flight in England? You even have to pay to talk to Customer service for them to tell you "Sorry mate".
Yes, I've cancelled quite a few in the past (hotel rooms mainly) with no problems whatsoever. I've also managed to do so on a freephone number too, or easily enough online,
Mind you, I've also tried talking to Customer Services in the US as my problem could not be solved by the European office and incurred a £25 phone bill as a result.
British and European consumer protection laws are actually very good and better in some cases than in the US. We recently received compensation from Virgin as a result of a delayed flight from Miami for just over £200 each plus $20 per person voucher at the airport. They paid this with some reluctance but had no choice under EU law. What did United Airlines offer us for a similar delay from Charlotte? A $10 meal voucher.
Contract law is no different in the Eu as it is in the US, if you enter into a purchase agreement for a timeshare in Spain for example then you have a cooling off period of usually two weeks. This is no different to the US. If you fail to rescind by that time then you're stuck with it.