©2001 West Legal Studies in Business. All Rights Reserved. 1 Chapter 24: Consumer Protection

©2001 West Legal Studies in Business. All Rights Reserved. 2 IntroductionIntroduction All statutes, agency rules and common laws that protect the interests of consumers are classified as consumer law. Today, federal and state laws govern consumer law. This chapter will focus on federal law.

©2001 West Legal Studies in Business. All Rights Reserved. 3 §1: Deceptive Advertising Advertising is deceptive if a consumer would be misled by the advertising claims. Puffing: Vague generalities and obvious exaggerations are permissible and not considered deceptive. Bait and Switch: The advertising of a product at an attractively low price to lure customers in to buy more expensive items.

©2001 West Legal Studies in Business. All Rights Reserved. 4 FTC Actions Against Deceptive Advertising The FTC, charged with enforcing federal laws against deceptive advertising, can, in appropriate circumstances: –Issue cease and desist orders. »With respect to a particular product or advertisement »With regard to multiple product orders. –Impose counteradvertising. Case 24.1: FTC v. Pantron I Corp. (1994).FTC v. Pantron I Corp.

©2001 West Legal Studies in Business. All Rights Reserved. 5 TelemarketingTelemarketing Telemarketing and Electronic Advertising: The Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) prohibits automated solicitation using automatic telephone dialing system or a prerecorded voice.

©2001 West Legal Studies in Business. All Rights Reserved. 6 §2: Labeling and Packaging Laws Labeling must be accurate, and must use words that are easily understood by the ordinary consumer. Product labeling and packaging are regulated by: –Wool Products Labeling Act of –Fur Products Labeling Act of –Flammable Fabrics Act of –Fair Packaging and Labeling Act of –Smokeless Tobacco Health Education Act of –Nutrition Labeling and Education Act of of 1990.

©2001 West Legal Studies in Business. All Rights Reserved. 7 §3: Sales Forms of Sales: –Door-to-Door Sales. –Mail Order Sales. –Telephone and Mail-Order Sales. –Unsolicited Receipt of Merchandise. Emerging Trends: Protection against Internet Fraud.Protection against Internet Fraud.

©2001 West Legal Studies in Business. All Rights Reserved. 8 Door-to-Door Sales Most states requires that, for door-to-door sales, consumers have a post-sale “cooling- off” period during which they can cancel their purchase without obligation. Consumers are given the most favorable benefits of the FTC rule and their own state statutes.

©2001 West Legal Studies in Business. All Rights Reserved. 9 Telephone and Mail-Order Sales Telephone and mail order sellers can be subject to federal mail and wire fraud statutes. FTC requires mail and telephone merchants to ship orders within the time promised in their catalogues and advertisements, to notify consumers when orders cannot be shipped on time, and to issue timely refunds when orders cannot be shipped. The Postal Reorganization Act of 1970 provides that unsolicited merchandise sent by U.S. mail may be retained, used, discarded, or disposed of in any manner deemed appropriate, without the recipient’s incurring any obligation to the sender.

©2001 West Legal Studies in Business. All Rights Reserved. 10 Real Estate Sales Federal and state laws designed to prevent fraud in real estate transactions: –Interstate Land Sales Full Disclosure Act. Only applies if the land sale can be deemed to be interstate commerce. –Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act requires lenders to furnish information to home buyers.

©2001 West Legal Studies in Business. All Rights Reserved. 11 §4: Credit Protections Consumer Credit is protected by: –Truth in Lending Act. »Case 24.2: Purtle v. Eldridge Auto Sales (1996).Purtle v. Eldridge Auto Sales »Protects credit card holders. –Equal Credit Opportunity Act. »Case 24.3: FDIC v. Medmark, Inc. (1995). –Fair Credit Reporting Act. »Case 24.4: Guimond v. Trans Union Credit Information (1995).

©2001 West Legal Studies in Business. All Rights Reserved. 12 Credit Protections [2] Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. Curb abuses by collection agencies. Creditors cannot: –Contact debtors at work. –Contact debtors at odd hours. –Harass or intimidate debtor. –Contact the debtor after debtor informs the creditor the debtor is refusing to pay the debt. Case 24.5: Snow v. Jesse L. Riddle, P.C. (1998).Snow v. Jesse L. Riddle, P.C.

©2001 West Legal Studies in Business. All Rights Reserved. 13 Garnishment of Wages Legal procedure by which a creditor may collect on a debt by directly attaching, or seizing, a portion of the debtor’s assets (such as wages that are in the possession of a third party. Debtor is entitled to notice and an opportunity to be heard in a process of garnishment. Wages cannot be garnished beyond 25% of the debtor’s after-tax earnings up to a maximum amount designed to leave the debtor a specified minimum income.

©2001 West Legal Studies in Business. All Rights Reserved. 14 §5: Consumer Health and Safety Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act. –This statute protects consumers against adulterated and misbranded foods and drugs. Consumer Product Safety Act. –This act created the Consumer Product Safety Commission which has broad regulatory authority over the safety of consumer products.

©2001 West Legal Studies in Business. All Rights Reserved. 15 §6: State Consumer Protection Laws UCC provides some protection. Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act. Uniform Consumer Credit Code (not adopted in many states). State “deceptive trade practice” acts.

©2001 West Legal Studies in Business. All Rights Reserved. 16 Law on the Web Alexander Law Firm’s consumer law page.Alexander Law Firm’s Arent Fox Law Firm’s consumer law page.Arent Fox Law Firm’s Legal Research Exercises on the Web

©2001 West Legal Studies in Business. All Rights Reserved. 17 Emerging Trends FTC’s campaign against internet fraud.FTC’s campaign Securities Exchange Commission fighting fraudulent offerings and stocks.Securities Exchange Commission National Consumers League.National Consumers League Consumer Product Safety Commission.Consumer Product Safety Commission New Hampshire Consumer Protection site.New Hampshire Consumer Protection site Return