Exam 32: Consumer Protection

A letter from a collection agency to a consumer that gives the impression a lawsuit is about to be brought against the consumer when in fact it will not be brought is not a violation of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act.

The owner of a lost credit card is:

Pursuant to the Credit Repair Organization Act of 1996, credit repair organizations must be "non-profit."

The CARD Act substantially restricts the solicitation of credit card accounts for those under the age of 18.

The __________ lending market makes loans to consumers who have bankruptcies, no credit history, low-to-moderate incomes, or a poor credit history.

Samuel signed a contract to purchase furniture on credit. The contract clearly set forth in bold print all charges included in the cost of the credit, including the interest rate and annual percentage rate. The seller informed Samuel that the seller regularly sold these contracts to a finance company that paid it immediate cash and then collected from the debtors. The seller further advised that the finance company did not want "the headache" of determining the validity of consumer complaints and that therefore the contract provided that the consumer waived all defenses concerning the furniture against the finance company. The contract expressly provided that the seller would remain responsible for any non-conformities in the furniture or breaches of contract on its part. The furniture was defective, but the finance company is demanding that Samuel make the payments to it required by the contract and resolve its disputes with the seller of the furniture. Samuel consults you regarding his rights. What is your response?

Antitrust statutes that prohibit anticompetitive behavior give consumers the right to collect treble punitive damages for a violation.

Consumer protection even protects a consumer from the consumer's own negligence.

The FTC requires that only descriptive and non-ambiguous terms such as jumbo, giant, or full be used in product labeling.

The aim of consumer protection legislation is to protect persons of limited means and limited knowledge.

One of the protections for consumers against subprime loans includes credit counseling before consumers may sign for certain types of subprime loans.

A consumer may waive all defenses otherwise provided for by law.

When a credit application is refused, it is sufficient that the lender give the applicant a written statement saying: "application refused."

Automobile lemon laws protect only persons buying automobiles for personal, family, or household use.

An auto dealer who does not actually know of a roll-back can use lack of knowledge as a defense against odometer fraud, regardless of the condition of the car.

Individuals can seek criminal and civil penalties against those who violate consumer protection statutes.

An unsolicited distribution of credit cards to persons who have not applied for them is:

Labels on packages are regulated to provide information about the contents and warnings about the dangers involved in the use of the product.

Anyone promoting the sale of a real estate development that is divided into fifty (50) or more parcels of less than five (5) acres each must file a(n) __________ statement with the secretary of Housing and Urban Development.

The category of protected consumers for many statutes has been expanded to include partnerships, corporations and government entities.