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Unsafe Products – What Are Your Rights?

admin — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 13:29:34 +0000

When it comes to product safety, consumers depend on manufacturers to produce items that have been rigorously developed and tested to the highest standards of quality and safety. But what happens when we purchase faulty, defective or unsafe products? What are consumers’ rights?

Reasonable Care

The term “reasonable care” or “standard of care” often comes up in unsafe products litigation, and for good reason: the idea of reasonable care is at the heart of products liability. The law expects that both manufacturers and consumers will act with reasonable care.

Basically, this tenet means that a reasonable manufacturer would do everything in its power to develop a safe and marketable product, while a reasonable consumer would take heed of product warnings and use a product in its intended manner.

For example, it is reasonable for a manufacturer to design automobiles to be crashworthy, or able to sustain an automobile accident with minimal impact and injury to passengers.

At the same time, it is reasonable for a customer to drive an automobile in a rational and safe manner. The manufacturer cannot be held liable for a driver’s erratic decision to drive her car into a ditch regardless of the ultimate crashworthiness of the car.

Reasonable care extends to the actions of consumers when using a product. For example, if a manufacturer has placed a warning label on a toxic chemical used for house cleaning – within its reasonable standard of care – and a consumer chooses to disregard this warning label and drink the cleanser, the manufacturer will not assume liability for the consumer’s injuries.

Unavoidable Dangers

Under the standard of reasonable care, manufacturers are expected to adequately warn consumers about the potential dangers of their products. However, manufacturers cannot be held liable for unavoidable dangers of a product. For example, manufacturers often place potentially unsafe products – such as heavy machinery or drugs – on the market.

They cannot be held liable for injury sustained by consumers, who are expected, by the doctrine of reasonable care, to understand that the use of heavy machinery or prescription drugs carries with it an inherent and unavoidable risk.

Caveat Emptor No More?

The law used to favor businesses with a strict caveat emptor (”let the buyer beware”) interpretation of products liability law. However, the courts are beginning to recognize more and more responsibility on the part of businesses and manufacturers to inform their customers about the inherent risks of their products and to design their products with safety in mind. Businesses are liable for products that pose a danger to consumers.

This is a good tool for consumer protection – strict liability laws hold manufacturers accountable for educating the buyer and creating safe products for consumers and gives consumers redress when they have suffered injury from an unsafe product.

If you have been harmed by an unsafe product, consider contacting an attorney experienced in the field of products liability law. A lawyer with experience in unsafe products litigation can help assess whether you have a valid claim and lead you through the legal process.

Collection Harassment And Consumer Rights

admin — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 07:17:24 +0000

Very few people ever get into debt with the intention that they will not pay it off. Unfortunately, life can deal us all some tricky hands, and oftentimes it is just too difficult to see this obligation through. While it may not be your fault that you are suddenly unable to pay your debt, that won’t stop the creditor harassment from coming. If you are the victim of credit harassment, it is important to know your rights under the law so you can handle the situation appropriately, snd speak with an advocate of Consumer Rights in GA .

The first step in the process is to not be intimidated by collection harassment. You have rights under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA), and if you are unsure of exactly what those rights might be, you can always report the creditor to an experienced attorney. In Georgia, a leading advocate for consumer rights is the law firm of Persily & Associates Georgia Consumer Rights, like the team at http://www.persilylaw.com, who can explain those rights to you and provide the necessary methods to protect yourself. If you do not live in Georgia, Persily & Associates Atlanta Lawyers may be able to help you find a collection harassment lawyer in your state.

There are also a few simple steps that you can take yourself to ensure that your rights are protected and that creditor harassment ends.

The first step in fighting collection harassment is to make copies of all correspondence, including envelopes that show postmarks. Before you contact a consumer rights lawyer to protect creditor harassment, the more complete your records, the more likely you will be to win your case. Make sure to document all phone conversations with the company as well, and write down any potential creditor harassment that takes place during those calls. These might include threats of imprisonment or garnishment of wages, profane or obscene language, or other types of abusive behavior. An attorney can advise you on additional procedures that may be appropriate, such as keeping recordings of your conversations.

Finally, don’t let creditor harassment push you into doing something you are uncomfortable with. Some creditors will try to persuade you to pay your debt using a post dated check or automatic withdrawals from your account. Others collection agencies may try to dictate the amount of the payments and the intervals in which they must be paid. Keep in mind that you are the one who decides how much and when to pay your debts, no matter how much creditor harassment is occurring on the other end. If the payments are more than you can afford, talk to your consumer rights attorney about setting up smaller payments that will be comfortable for your budget.

Creditor harassment can sap your energy and create stress and strain in your life. The good news is that it doesn’t have to. When you know your rights and have an experienced Georgia attorney on your side, you can stop creditor harassment and go back to the task of living your life.

Protect Your Automobile Consumer Rights

admin — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 19:20:58 +0000

How do you know for sure if you have a lemon and how did you get stuck with it? Anybody can get stuck with a lemon car or truck, it is not anything you did. Sometimes every individual car or truck will be declared a lemon and the company will stop making them. This is not usually the case but it has happened. Maybe you heard of the Edsel or Corvair? These losers were being manufactured way before any lemon laws were even thought of.

The best use of a lemon law is to keep consumers safe. So if a car or truck or motorcycle can’t be fixed up so it as good as a new vehicle under warranty it might be unsafe and you should really try to get your money back or get a replacement under your state lemon law.

There really is no way to protect yourself from ever getting stuck with a lemon. It can happen to anyone at any time. And it is so disappointing to buy a new car and have it turn out to be a lemon. You just cannot believe it is happening to you. The lemon law is written to protect you so don’t hesitate to use it. You deserve to be treated fairly. If a car is a lemon, it is a lemon and you should go to court to get it settled once and for all.

Even if you read reviews of the car before you buy it and the car is being described as safe and runs well, anyone can still end up getting stuck with a lemon of that model of car. It is always a surprise and that is why you need to be aware of the lemon law and be ready to act. But don’t delay. You need to get the multiple repairs done before the warranty runs out. And don’t be afraid of going to court to get protection. It is the only way to get treated fairly. You must do your part, get the repairs done and the paperwork filled out and then let the lemon law attorneys and courts do their part.

Consumer Protection Laws on Distance Trading Rights

admin — Sat, 29 Nov 2008 14:19:29 +0000

RIGHTS OF CONSUMERS IN CONSUMER PROTECTION LAWS ON DISTANCE TRADING PRACTICES

(Based on author’s site www.geocities.com/mlordc)

Many consumers in distance trading suffer financial loss or delays in mail order or online shopping -the consumer protection legislation and Distance Trading Regulations, in basic lay terms, are as follows…

In distant trading mail order companies (including in internet shopping or online shopping) in law do not have to tell you your rights -the entitlement to details exists only if you know your rights and ask ~but it is unlawful also in distance trading for mail order traders expressly or by implication (including orally) to mislead you or to seek to restrict the exercise of your rights in consumer laws.

Whether you have ordered goods from a catalogue, newspaper or magazine, television or internet advertisement, be they on approval or not, goods such as a jackets or dress or shoes, music CDs, video cassettes, DVDs or books, whether a one off purchase or periodically by club membership, paid for by cash or on credit, by debit or credit card, in full or in part, there are some consumer rights not commonly known under various consumer laws and mail order schemes which sometimes can save you time, effort, money.

For example, mail order companies must service serviceable goods they sell, and your credit card company also may be liable.

Catalogues usually subscribe to a mail order traders’ association whose logo they display, and there are expectations from them…

1. They must provide accurate information about such details as material used, colour, and size, of the goods they advertise, as well as regarding installation and anything that may restrict their use ~they must state any restriction on availability or delivery -as well as all charges involved, including any extra delivery charges.

2. You must be able within a stated period of time, usually two weeks, to return unwanted goods -if faulty or substitute goods (which must be on approval) post paid by them ~and if goods may require servicing you must be given fullest details if you ask.

3. You must be told how to complain should the occasion arise and speedily must be dealt with complaints and sympathetically.

Book or Music Clubs mostly subscribe to a mail order publishers association whose symbol they display and who must investigate complaints in case of failure in the following respects.

1. The main terms of any offer advertised must be stated clearly -must be accurate the details of quality, quantity, price, postage ~they must not be sent you unsolicited without an order (they must be returnable at seller’s expense if on approval); if you sent money it must be acknowledged with despatch date and any delay explained.

2. If you buy regularly you need not give a reason if you wish to cancel after a year, or if price increases exceed the expectation ~if debt collecting they must ensure not to unreasonably bother you.

Mail Order items advertised in a medium with a ‘protection scheme’ unless ‘classified’ are protected by advertising practice codes too ~the law requires advertisement to be ‘legal, decent, honest, truthful’ -’washes whiter than white’ is an obvious slogan and fine.

Internet or online shopping is equally covered in the Distance Trading Regulations –whether deliver is by mail or courier.

1. You have the right without giving a reason to inform the seller within seven working days (the day of receipt not counting) that you wish to return the goods. You do not have to actually return them within the cooling off period, e.g., if the seller takes his time to issue a return number. Such a cancellation, in law, is for the whole of the package, unless the seller agrees or can be shown by custom and practice to accept return of individual items -e.g., if its RMA request form asks without more for items wanted to be returned to be marked. If you choose to do so, you must return the goods undamaged. If you have paid money, you are entitled to a full refund within thirty days which must be in ‘cash’ -not as credit-note, nor voucher (this is an implied statutory term -a term or condition that makes this the seller’s option is void).

In consumer protection laws and Distance Trading Regulations this is so also if goods are faulty or misleadingly described or not fit for the purpose that the seller was told of or enquired from (including orally –e.g., by telephone) or knew or could reasonably be expected to know –in this case you are entitled also to any return costs (e.g., postage). You are entitled to a refund also if the sale was not fair in the circumstances.

The seller’s discretion to replace or repair is normally exercisable if, e.g., the defect has been discovered after a long time of use, e.g., six months. Reference in law is to ‘goods’ as distinct from their wrapping or packaging -not that they must not have been opened or used; but they must be returned in good condition in reason in the applicable circumstance.

(Any seals that the seller may lawfully ask to be agreed not be broken are only such as may be on the goods themselves and of a kind that would not restrict your legal right to try the goods, e.g., to decide whether you like and wish to keep them -except if the item sealed is “computer software or driver disk” [although it is difficult to see how, e.g., a printer or scanner can be tried without the use of its driver disk to see if one likes and wants to be keep or not within the cooling-off period]).

These legal obligations are of the sellers, directly to the customers, and are not affected by any liability on the part of the manufacturer, and any terms or conditions that exclude or restrict consumer rights given by law, e.g., that the customer must contact the manufacturer instead, even if agreed to, are void in law.

Sometimes are involved return or authorisation number request procedures for administrative purposes of the seller -sellers may not, e.g., by refusing to issue an RMA, lawfully refuse receipt of returned goods.

If in relation to returning goods within the seven-day cooling off period the customer mentions a reason [whether asked or not], e.g. that they are faulty or not fit for the purpose, that does not affect the customer’s right to return them within seven days of receipt, and does not entitle the seller to treat such a reasons to, e.g., insist to repair or replace them under any other terms and conditions.

If goods are returned as faulty and the customer states that the return is for refund, any authorisation bars the seller from exercising any otherwise exercisable discretion. Any such ‘returns policy’ of the seller that, e.g., faulty goods or liability (including for injury or damage resulting from faulty goods) will not be accepted (or that will not be accepted unless made, e.g., within fourteen days of purchase), has no validity in law and any, e.g., internet return-forms that do not open may be tantamount to attempt to unlawfully seek to limit liability or the exercise of the consumer’s rights -as well as absence of ‘good-will’ on the part of the seller and in it’s own right make the contract void and be ‘unfair trading’.

If you are under age, the seller sells you totally at his own risk, because no contract entered into with a party who is under age is binding, and you may not be held to any terms and conditions in case of any dissatisfaction.

2. If you have paid money for goods to be despatched at the seller’s convenience but have not received the goods within thirty days (unless made-to-measure goods or plants or you have agreed to wait longer -when a despatch date must be quoted) you are entitled to a refund -the medium that advertised it must find out if the advertiser has folded and try to get it for you if you claim with full details in reasonable time (normally within two months of ordering from a magazine or three months of the date of a newspaper advertisement -also your credit-card company may help if you paid by credit-card).

Trading Standards, Office of Fair Trading may be complained to -they do not disclose your identity without your consent. If on evidence they have a good reason to prosecute the seller, upon conviction you may claim compensation -including for unnecessarily caused expenses, e.g., postage, travel, correspondence, telephone calls. (But a word of caution: they rarely prosecute at the absence of many complaints or the seller’s not agreeing to amend its trading practices –and (while on the face of it perhaps similar to a police officer’s ignoring a burglary on that ground) not only if a complaint is frivolous but also if it is considered vexatious may they not prosecute.) Your money claim must still be in the County Court or the Small Claims Court.

Suing Consumer protection laws allow arbitration; you may also sue via the internet in the small claims court. If you are suing in the County Court a company you may do so at one local to you, but if suing one or more persons trading as a business it may have to be where it is located. In court protocol you need only send one Letter Before Court to the seller, and you must spell the seller’s name correctly -if a company is limited by guarantee its details are available from the Companies House –including the names of its company secretary and director/s with their direct contact addresses.

Unsolicited Goods in the case of, you do not need do anything -normally the goods become yours if you hear no more for six months or if you inform the seller but they are not collected within a month.

Do keep the receipts for monies paid and any documents.

(Sanctions against traders are not necessarily of lasting effect in the general spirit of lawful distance trading practices: e.g., the Aria Technology Limited was found in 2000 [ICSTIS report no. 81] by omission considered unintentional to have mislead the consumers, and in 2005 [Nominet DRS 02364: Atek –v- Aria] by commission intentionally to have done so. Should you wish legally justifiably in the public interest to alert fellow consumers, there are also consumer comments or consumer complaints sites on the internet where you may lawfully do so.)

(Laws change –always ascertain current law.)

The author has a website at: http://www.geocities.com/eoa_uk

Consumer Rights and Protection

admin — Sat, 11 Oct 2008 16:33:07 +0000

The news stories in the last few months have included some pretty alarming stories about bad products that have come to us from China. And we in the west do look with disgust at failures of a government to assure that products produced by merchants are safe for consumers. This is because our government maintains a high level of control, testing, and monitoring of products to assure that the consumers of these products are protected and consumers can buy them with confidence.

Of course, this is not to say that problems with consumer protection have been eliminated. But when a product is found to be unsafe, we have a sophisticated system of recalls and alerts that go out over our media. In this way, that the damage and danger from inferior product is vastly minimized from what it might have been.

Consumer rights and protection are an important area of focus for manufacturers and merchants. These laws have a high level of importance for merchants and that drives up quality control and inspection even before the government or legal systems get involved. That is because the outcome of a recall or product failure, especially if that failure leads to injury or death of a consumer, can be devastating both to the individual merchant or company involved and to the market it serves that placing a high priority on quality is as much about market survival as it is about ethical behavior by companies.

What can we as consumers expect in the way of our rights and the protections we deserve as being part of this economy? It breaks down to what we consider to be the basics of the contract that is implied when we give someone money for a product or serviceÖ

* We expect to be able to use the goods safely with no possibility of immediate harm or long term illness as result of using the product.

* We expect the product to perform according to reasonable expectations based on what the product was promoted to do both on the package and in advertisements.

* We expect to pay what the product is advertised to cost. We do not accept changes in price after that price is advertised or surprise costs to be added on that we werenít expecting.

* If a product fails to deliver the service it was advertised to deliver, or is found to be flawed in any way, we expect the merchant to refund or replace the product promptly and courteously.

* In the case of food, medicines or other consumables, we expect the product to be made of the highest levels of quality and to be reasonably fresh and usable.

* We expect the merchants involved in the sale of the product to stand behind the product with guarantees from the retail merchant all the way to the manufacturer.

We have not come up with this list of rights and protections on our own. These are the minimum standards prescribed by our laws to assure that the consuming public can trade with merchant in any kind of product and service and be treated with the same minimum levels of professionalism and quality assurance.

From the merchantís point of view, you might think these high standards of consumer rights and protections would be a burden. But in fact, these laws protect both the consumer and the merchant. That is because these laws make it possible for the buying public to engage in commerce with any merchant that is authorized to do business with confidence.

Consumer protection laws make an active marketplace possible which benefits both consumers and merchants equally. So complying with consumer protection laws is not just essential from a legal point of view. It makes good sense for merchants to comply fully and perform above expectations in terms of their ability to deliver quality product to their customers. It just makes good business sense.

Consumer Law in Canada

admin — Wed, 01 Oct 2008 18:58:16 +0000

Consumer Laws or better to say consumer protection laws are designed to solve two problems: to keep the businesses and manufacturers from providing the customers with false or fake information about the product on the one side and protect the rights and interests of consumers who purchased defective goods for example, on the other. With Consumer Laws the government regulates fair competition on the market by limiting the advertising of products only to facts. Also these laws protect the health of the nation by forcing the manufacturers to keep the quality as high as possible. Beside the government there are also large numbers of non-government organizations and individuals that participate in consumer activism and protect the rights of the consumer. There are two acts that regulate the Consumer Rights regarding products in Canada: the Hazardous Products Act and the Food and Drugs Act. The first act creates the safety standards for manufacturing of various products, the second act regulates the sale of food, drugs, cosmetics and medical devices.

It is very frustrating when you purchase an unsafe or defective product. Today such cases are mostly solved in stores, by replacing the defective product. Still if the problem remains unresolved it is the best time to take legal action, but before doing it, it’s better to prepare the lawsuit carefully. You need to be aware that in some cases the manufacturer or the seller will try to prove that you knew about the defect but continued to use the device anyway. Sometimes the manufacturer or seller simply doesn’t want to replace the product for financial reasons, sometimes because the defective product is ruining the reputation of the company or the product. Still there are a number of companies that provide additional warranties as a part of its consumer policy.

The main advantage of any consumer laws is that you can unite your claim with similar claims in the whole country, province or your area and turn it into a class action lawsuit. A good base for a lawsuit is injury caused by the defective product, in this case the court will most definitely award money to the injured person if they agree that the manufacturer or seller negligently sold a defective product. The rules regarding consumer claims are different in every province. Mostly the limit for a small claim in Canada is set at twenty thousand dollars. Small claims also do not require a lawyer, but there is a consumer lawyer that can always assist you in the case. For lawsuits with large compensations the lawyer becomes necessary. In case of large lawsuits it is sometimes too expensive for one person to handle and in this case the class action lawsuit is the best solution. All the expenses will be divided between people who file a large lawsuit together. The rewards will be divided too. And as in many other types of claims be sure to do one important thing before you file the claim, be sure to discuss it with your lawyer.

Debt Collection Attorneys Beware: Debtors are Learning the Law to Fight for Their Rights

admin — Fri, 25 Apr 2008 21:37:46 +0000

As record numbers of homeowners default on their mortgages, questionable practices among lenders are coming to light in courts, leading some legal specialists to contend that companies instigating foreclosures may be taking advantage of imperiled borrowers.

In the last past weeks there have been important events unknown by many homeowners and individuals facing debt collection lawsuits. In a study of foreclosures, Katherine Porter of the University of Iowa found questionable fees on almost half of the loans and discovered that though bankruptcy laws require documentation that a creditor has a claim on the property, 4 out of 10 claims in Ms. Porter’s study did not attach such a promissory note. The second event is a court ruling on October 31, 2007 in which a federal judge in Ohio has ruled against a longstanding foreclosure practice, potentially creating an obstacle for lenders trying to reclaim properties from troubled borrowers and raising questions about the legal standing of investors in mortgage securities pools. The third event is another ruling on November 15, 2007 by a federal judge in Ohio who has given lenders 30 days to prove that they own the promissory notes on the properties they intend to seize from troubled homeowners in 27 other cases. In a fourth event according to the New York Times article dated November 28, 2007 and titled “Foreclosures by Lender Investigated,” the federal agency monitoring the bankruptcy courts has subpoenaed Countrywide Financial, the nation’s largest mortgage lender and loan servicer, to determine whether the company’s conduct in two foreclosures in southern Florida represented abuses of the bankruptcy system.

The sighting of a robin does not make a spring, nor do the actions of four judges constitute a trend. Nevertheless, the fact that some courts are taking a harder look at foreclosure practices may foretell a shift in attitudes. In the fourth event involving Countrywide, there is every indication that Countrywide was not alone in the practices at issue. So what makes this story interesting is that it is another example of a subtle shift in power in the judicial system. The plaintiffs have considerably more resources than the mortgage holders (the homeowners), most of whom cannot mount a fight; but judges may be starting to recognize that that power imbalance has led many banks to be sloppy, presumptuous, and at times extortionate, and at least a few jurists are holding their feet to the fire. In this case, the issue was charges Countrywide added to mortgage balance in two bankruptcy filings. When the borrowers objected, Countrywide did not appear at the hearing, leading the judge to remove those costs. Countrywide’s failure to respond piqued the interest of the bankruptcy trustee, leading to the investigation. Note the judge ruled against Countrywide’s objections to trustee’s subpoenas.

The media needs to bring to the public eye that It has long been a common practice for lenders to bring foreclosure proceedings without attaching proof of ownership of the underlying note. Tracking down such documentation may be more challenging because of securitization, the pooling of mortgages into trusts that are subsequently sold to investors.

The proliferation of legal education books and events such as the ones named above are a waking call for the lending and legal industries; thus making the job of a debt collector attorney more difficult after enjoying decades of easy judgments against individuals who don’t know their rights. As Ms Porter’s study suggests, if one were to carefully analyze debt collection cases, one would probably discover that many of them lack legal standing due to insufficient proof of claims. The amount of debt collection void judgments in our courthouses is perhaps so vast, that it’s almost impossible to estimate how many there are. If every void judgment were vacated with damages, the whole financial and legal system would crumble perhaps representing an unprecedented shift in wealth.

Learn About Consumer Protection – Protect Your Rights and Know the Law

admin — Sat, 27 May 2006 09:43:12 +0000

It is important that you understand consumer protection helps you have legal rights. You want to make sure that you do not get ripped off by any business and using consumer protection helps you to do this. Example is if you go into a car dealership to buy a new car you want to make sure you do not purchase a lemon. The Consumer Protection Act helps to protect the consumer from being ripped off from any business entity. It is also important that you are protected when it comes to your credit cards and debt. Many companies try to collect debt and an unlawful manner and this is a illegal.

Find Free: Consumer Protection Help

Always be aware that you the consumer have rights and if you feel that a business has ripped you off then make sure you take action. There are many attorneys that specialize in consumer protection rights so make sure you find one that you feel comfortable with. You should get your credit report for free each year so that you can check and make sure all items are accurate. This will help you to protect your credit and know that your consumer rights cannot be violated. it is always a good idea to be proactive and make sure you understand what your rights are legally.

Find: Out Your Rights

Remember that consumer protection is a broad term but basically it helps you from being ripped off from a business entity. If you feel that you have been violated in any way it is important for you to find an attorney that you feel comfortable with. There are many attorneys that are general lawyers, but make sure you find one that specializes in consumer protection.