Questions tagged [consumer-protection]
For questions related to the laws designed to protect consumers from fraudulent or unfair business practices.
362
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In India, what action can be taken against a company that's spamming someone who never signed up for their services?
I'm constantly getting spam calls and sms from TVS Credit, but I never signed up for their services. Here's some backstory on the matter.
The company claims that some person called "NI" (don'...
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Can ones frequency/propensity of utilizing American (either debit or) credit cards' chargeback mechanisms affect the chances of future times' success
If one requests many chargebacks, can this degrade one's credibility in the credit card issuers/payment networks' eyes, or reduce the chances of future chargeback disputes being adjudicated in a ...
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How are REGOS being used by energy companies without purchasing the renewable energy they relate to in the UK?
The ‘Renewable Energy Guarantee of Origin’ (REGO) scheme is designed to “provide transparency to consumers about the proportion of electricity that suppliers source from renewable generation" (...
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Right to a refund on accessories when the main purchase is found to be not as advertised
I recently bought an amplifier for my hifi system from a local retailer in the UK. The amplifier was found to be not as specified and after some quibbling the store manager agreed a refund. However, ...
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Do you have to pay for a sum of monthly membership charges you weren't charged for until you cancelled?
Imagine the scenario where F had been going to a local gym since 2018 with a monthly membership subscription. When F went to cancel this week, they informed F that they never actually charged her ...
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Are foreign traders subject to UK consumer law if they advertise services to UK residents?
I am in several WhatsApp groups for offer holders for UK universities. There is an essay writing group which repeatedly sends messages advertising their services despite the messages being clearly ...
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Statutory right to return shoes bought online that don't fit
Online shoe seller's policy is to allow returns within fourteen days of purchase at buyer's expense if the shoes have their tags on them and are not worn outdoors.
I received mine tried them on and a ...
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What are the parameters of the statutory buyer's remorse refund period for online purchases?
Do they apply to purchases of services as well as of goods?
For such purposes, what constitutes an online purchase? Must it be automatically accepted card payment, or does a discussion with a service ...
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What avenues of recourse does one have on a vendor from just their phone number bank details and name?
Suppose a goods or services vendor is contacted by phone and paid by faster payments, then does not honour their statutory obligations.
How can process be served, or is there no recourse of ...
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1
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What are the parameters of ingredients which may be legally listed as natural flavourings in the UK?
A food product supplier has said:
Flavours are sold and marketed as natural if they are derived from the actual source. We use vanilla and chocolate flavours extracted from vanilla pods and cocoa ...
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Regulating fares in the UK transport system - who can unfair 'unregulated' fares be reported to?
I went to book a train from South Wales to Yorkshire and the tickets cost £363. This is obscene and completely beyond its true market value. It is the same price as a flight from UK to USA.
I have ...
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How do you know if you live in a jurisdiction where an opt-out option in arbitration clauses are mandatory?
I've noticed in contracts with arbitration clauses, some offer opt-out of arbitration, some do not. This question notes this practice is because some jurisdictions require this, and it is simpler to ...
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After buying from a brick & mortar shop they've contacted me to say buying things from them is consent to arbitration. Is this legal?
A few days ago I bought over-the-counter goods from a shop. There was no signature involved in this purchase. I walked up to the counter with off-the-shelf items, was asked for a phone number, paid in ...
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Is blocking users to take phone backups on external harddrive by Apple not unlawful?
Over the past few weeks I am having some hard time restoring my backups from external harddrive after my iphone got bricked.
I am using a new iPhone 12 Pro with 512gb space and I keep backing up my ...
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What do statements that “X does not affect your statutory rights” accomplish?
Often return policies will say something like none of these terms should be taken to curtail your statutory rights as a consumer”. What would be different if companies didn’t write these lines?
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Which company should I choose while filing a consumer court case against Poco India?
I am filing a consumer grievance case against Poco India for dishonouring warranty claims on the official govt website: https://consumerhelpline.gov.in/user/register-complaint.php
Originally, Poco was ...
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Is it legal for a business to refuse service to a former customer in retribution for them leaving negative online reviews of the business?
The workers of the business are excellent at what they do and lovely people, while the manager is always a mean jerk to everyone. I don’t want to stop going there just because of him but I’m finally ...
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Can consumers use trusts to protect themselves from losing their deposit — if, after consumers pay deposit, a company goes bankrupt?
Many companies (call them D for Defendant) require monetary deposits from consumers (C for Claimants), before D undertakes time and effort to order the product. C is an unsecured creditor, and a ...
user49089
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Refund on deposit day after signing order for
I went to the Ideal Home show yesterday and found a “Natuzzi” sofa that we loved. We paid a deposit (£1700). On getting home from the show I did some searches for reviews and discovered that the brand ...
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Can an arbitration award be vacated for manifest disregard of the evidence?
A AAA arbitration over a credit card billing dispute between a consumer and a bank concluded recently. The consumer "won", in the sense that he obtained equitable relief, but lost, in the ...
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Small claims court claim
Consider a dispute with a cosmetic clinic whose recommended treatment has resulted in no change or improvement, despite costing £4,000. This is in the UK, Merseyside.
The client has been advised to ...
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What consumer rights are there in UK for services that haven't delivered
I went to an aesthetic clinic to discuss dermal filler options. They recommended instead another procedure which cost me £4k and has had zero effect once the swelling went down.
I was told it would ...
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Can an airline legally claim its tickets are feely changeable if their customer service can't be reached within some "reasonable" amount of time?
For my last vacation, I bought a flight ticket from an airline. The ticket was changeable without any fee. However, to change it, I had to call the airline's customer support and nobody was picking up ...
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How does federal law prohibit the disclaiming of express warranties?
According to the National Consumer Law Center "[e]xpress warranties cannot be disclaimed" per the Federal Used Car Rule of the FTC. However, the CFR § 455, et seq., provisions don’t appear ...
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Is a certificate from a car dealership legally binding or can they unilaterally change the terms?
The car is purchased new from authorized dealership in New York State in 2014. To sweeten the deal, the dealership gives a certificate to buyer a certificate for free oil changes for as long as you ...
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Consumer Protection act India 2019 and damaged good return replacement and refund
Is there any clause in the consumer protection act 2019, which protects if the delivered product was delivered and defective, but the e-commerce company denied exchange or return?
Also, There was a 7-...
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Orphan Devices and the Internet of Things
This is hypothetical, but similar fact patterns have occurred in reality. I'm interested in UK law here. Also, I'm not a law student, and this is not my homework.
Suppose that Alice buys a Device. The ...
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Should a business testimonial advertisement without any contact information be used "as is" in a publication?
A testimonial advertisement was provided by a business (for their own endorsement) in a publication. Traditionally, print advertisements may need some sort of visual text contact information to be ...
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167
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In United Kingdom what are consumer rights about online subscription
A few months ago I subscribed to an online service that monthly delivers goods (beers) to my home. I now want to cancel but they ask to call to do so.
I tried for a few days and of course, no one is ...
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Energy provider retrospectively canceld contract, switching consumer to default provider. Who has to pay difference of energy prices?
The German energy provider Stromio went out of business and canceled all end consumer contracts on the 21st of December. However, due to 'technical reasons' the email notifying customers of this ...
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Are (new) parts purchased from or replaced by the original manufacturer subject to protections under lemon laws as a new product?
Say, you purchase a passenger vehicle with some of the original warranty given by the manufacturer remaining. Knowing the typical issues with the vehicle, you decide to buy some spare parts — each new,...
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Mental health consumer rights (UK)
Are there any specific UK laws that deal with the following?
I've struggled with mental health problems most of my adult life and am currently on the waiting list for an nhs referral to a psychiatrist....
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Holding refunds for pre-orders until the items become available
How legal is the following practice?:
A store takes pre-orders for physical items. The items take much longer to become available than estimated. The customers get frustrated and request refund/...
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Are cheater plugs illegal in Ohio? If so, in what contexts?
A while back, I started a thread asking if cheater plugs (adapters allowing three-prong electronics to plug into two-prong outlets) are illegal in the USA:
Are cheater plugs illegal in the USA?
From ...
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Expediting refund from a store which takes time to process it
A small online store selling physical goods has failed to ship a purchased item within estimated timeframe and has agreed to refund (under $2,000).
However, it is now taking time to process the refund,...
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Can a manufacturer be imposed civil penalties under Song-Beverly after a vehicle replacement was accepted?
Bob purchased a vehicle for $75,001 which eventually meets the lemon law presumption of the Song-Beverly Consumer Warranty Act, and Bob serves a statutory notice upon the manufacturer about its duties ...
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Arbitrator and choice of law
Given the arbitrator is in California, and the dispute is related to say Consumer protection issues in UK, what will be the choice of law during arbitration process?
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What is the scope of damages in common law fraud?
It appears to me that in case of fraud, the benefit-of-the-bargain rule defines the breadth and width of the liability of the tortfeasor in some U.S. states, and not strict liability.
Do I understand ...
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Could Bob get gagged by a court on its own initiative? Is there any support for that in law?
This is a question based on the same fact pattern as set forth in this question:
Can consumer Bob be gagged about a suit against Big Co. revealing major antitrust and policy-driven fraud causing ...
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Is this Bait and Switch?
I have been a CRAVE TV subscriber for years. This morning I received my annual notice of renewal and noticed it went up a few dollars, no big deal. I shrugged and went to watch CRAVE on my SmartTV and ...
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Can service on a potential civil suit defendant be performed directly even if their agent has demanded otherwise?
Bob buys a car that meets the "lemon-law" presumption of California's lemon laws; to collect civil penalties for non-willful violations, he needs to serve a notice on the manufacturer. But ...
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If notice in certified mail is required by statute, does that rule out compliance if one also asserts statutory confidentiality of settlement talks?
For example, the CLRA (Cal. Civ. Code §§ 1782, 1750, et seq.) requires notice of demand 30 days prior to the commencement of an action in certified or registered mail, return receipt requested, ...
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What is the legal basis, if any, for the idea that sellers are responsible for lost packages?
I recently had a package misdelivered/lost by USPS, and the small e-commerce retailer I purchased from refused to refund or replace, pointing to their “refund policy” which does include a line saying ...
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Bus. & Prof. Code § 17100 provides penal provisions; can Bob files suit if non-lawyer?
It is typically a prerequisite of attorneys that only those with sufficient experience take on any cases relating to violations of Unfair Trade Practices and False Advertising (Bus. & Prof. Code § ...
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Is it false advertising if an ad lies about the presentation of the ad but not about the product/service itself?
I have seen several ads whose premise is bringing regular people off the street and filming their reactions to a product or deal. Often these ads will claim that "these are real reactions from ...
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Dentist changed charge after the fact
My son needed dental work from our regular dentist(been with for about a year and a half), they had told they wanted to do several things that would cost over $1000 after my insurance. I told them to ...
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What do I need to do after being shipped a wrong order?
I recently ordered a book online, which is print-on-demand.
On arrival I noticed that they printed the wrong book. Only the cover says the correct title of the book, but the content is completely ...
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Can I get my deposit back from a builder?
In April this year I contacted a local builder who had done work for me before. The agreed price was £10,000 and he asked for 50% deposit and 50% on completion with the work to commence within 6-10 ...
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Is Price Discrimination in the Software Industry legal in the US? (Sneakers resale software case)
There is a software manufacturer that advertises their product for $599 on their website. Conveniently, the software is always out of stock, while the manufacturer “backdoors” some licenses to a ...
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Does a duty of care arise from advertised functionality?
Credit card issuer advertises "account alerts" on its website and in other communications, e.g., to "receive a reminder when your payment is due". Customer sets up alerts, and ...
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