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The Right
to Safety | The Right to be Informed | The Right to Choose
The Right to be Heard | Lemon
Law
THE
RIGHT TO SAFETY
Products offered for sale should not pose undue
risk of physical harm to consumers or their families;
yet in a recent year, for example, some 33 million
people in the U.S. were reported injured-and 30,000
were killed-in product-related accidents. Products
that cause injuries include impure food, defectively
manufactured automobiles and tires, drugs that
have harmful side effects, and unsafe appliances.
The U.S. federal government agency responsible
for ensuring the safety of most products is the
Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC). The
CPSC was established in 1973 to protect the public
from unreasonable risk of injury caused by consumer
products; to assist consumers in comparing the
safety of various items; to develop uniform safety
standards; and to promote research about the causes
and prevention of product-related deaths, illnesses,
and injuries. It has broad authority to create
and enforce safety standards for more than 10,000
consumer products and can ban hazardous items
or recall them from the marketplace. The CPSC
is responsible for enforcing the Flammable Fabrics
Act (1953), which requires fabrics to meet standards
of fire resistance, as well as the Poison Prevention
Packaging Act (1970), and the Hazardous Substances
Act (1960), which ban the use of certain dangerous
substances and require warnings and safety information
on the labels of others. The CPSC does not have
authority over food, drugs, or motor vehicles.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is charged
with ensuring that processed foods, drugs, medical
devices, and cosmetics are safe and properly labeled;
that foods are wholesome; and that drugs are effective.
It has the power to seize unsafe products and
to criminally prosecute businesses that violate
safety laws and standards. The FDA inspects food-processing
plants to be sure that foods are made and packaged
under sanitary conditions. The agency must approve
the safety and efficacy of all new prescription
drugs before they can be marketed. The FDA also
sets safety standards for radiation-emitting products
such as microwave ovens.
Motor-vehicle safety is regulated by the National
Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA),
which sets highway safety standards, investigates
reported safety-related motor-vehicle defects,
and enforces laws regarding the correction of
such defects. NHTSA can require the recall of
defective automobiles or automotive parts; in
fact, since 1966 manufacturers have recalled more
than 118 million vehicles.
Top^
THE RIGHT TO BE INFORMED
Consumers need sufficient information in order
to choose wisely among the competing products
and services available. The marketplace, however,
contains a great many different and complex products,
and advertising is usually not informative enough
for consumer purposes. Therefore, consumers often
lack the information required to compare the quality
of various products and services, to determine
their true cost, or to be assured of their suitability
or safety.
To ensure that consumers have the information
they need to buy wisely, the federal and many
state governments have passed several important
laws directing businesses to disclose necessary
information. The federal Fair Packaging and Labeling
Act (1966), for example, requires that packages
be labeled truthfully with such basic facts as
quantity and ingredients. The federal Truth in
Lending Act (1968) requires that consumers be
told in clear, accurate, and uniform terms how
much it costs them to borrow money from a lender.
Unit-pricing laws in some states require supermarkets
to show the cost of an item per pound, quart,
or count (for paper goods), so that shoppers can
compare the cost of different sizes of products.
Many states require the dating of perishable foods
to enable buyers to choose fresh foods.
Many consumer problems are caused by incorrect
or fraudulent information. The Federal Trade Commission
(FTC) bears the primary responsibility for making
sure that advertising and labeling are not false
or misleading.
Consumers often need more than just the information
sellers disclose. For instance, firms rarely volunteer
information about the shortcomings of their products.
To provide essential comparative information,
several private, independent organizations test
products and report their findings to interested
consumers. The largest such organization is Consumers
Union of United States, Inc., the nonprofit publisher
of Consumer Reports. Each issue of Consumer Reports
rates various products by brand names according
to the results of laboratory and use tests, provides
advice on services such as banking and insurance,
and reports on recalled items. Consumers Union
accepts no advertising and pledges that its reports
are free from bias and any commercial ties.
In recognition of the importance of consumer
information, many states now require elementary
and secondary schools to provide consumer education
to their students. In addition, schools, government
agencies, and public-interest organizations often
have consumer-education programs for adults.
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THE RIGHT TO CHOOSE
The structure of the American economic system
is based on the belief that, generally, competition
is the best regulator of the marketplace. According
to this theory, when many companies are selling
a product, the effort of each to attract more
customers keeps prices at the lowest level that
allows businesses to cover costs and make a fair
profit. When a market is not competitive, sellers
can set the price as high as they wish, up to
the level where consumers simply will not buy
the product. To preserve competition in the marketplace,
federal laws make it illegal for businesses to
monopolize an industry, restrain trade, or fix
prices. The FTC and the U.S. Department of Justice
share the responsibility for enforcing these laws.
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THE RIGHT TO BE HEARD
A consumer who has been cheated or who has bought
a product or service that does not perform properly
has a right to seek a refund, replacement of the
product, or other remedy. Sometimes, however,
a buyer finds that the manufacturer or seller
will not cooperate in resolving the complaint.
In recent years laws have been passed to help
dissatisfied consumers. Some laws declare certain
deceptive business practices illegal and give
consumers the right to sue a business believed
to be violating the law. A consumer who wins such
a suit can sometimes collect up to three times
the amount of the damages. Federal, state, and
local governments have established offices or
agencies to help protect consumers or to resolve
disputes between consumers and businesses. The
communications media-newspapers, television, and
radio-often aid consumers through services such
as "action lines." Some business-sponsored
agencies such as the Major Appliance Consumer
Action Panel can sometimes help those who have
a complaint about a product, service, or business
practice. The Better Business Bureau, a business
association, makes information about complaints
it has received against businesses available to
interested parties.
For consumers who want to pursue their complaints
further, small claims courts exist in most states
to handle cases involving relatively small sums
of money (generally between $500 and $1500). Lawyers
are not usually needed, and procedures are relatively
simple.
Problems with credit and billing can also affect
consumers. The Fair Credit Billing Act establishes
a procedure creditors must follow in responding
to consumers' complaints about their credit-card
bills and requires that creditors correct billing
errors promptly.
The right to be heard also means that the needs
of consumers should be considered when government
decisions affecting them are made. Under President
Gerald Ford, for example, executive agencies and
departments were ordered to establish procedures
to consider the views of consumers in certain
policymaking areas.
Top^
Lemon Law
Statutes adopted in some states
to make it easier for a buyer of a new vehicle
to sue for damages or replacement if the dealer
or manufacturer cannot make it run properly after
a reasonable number of attempts to fix the car.
Without a "lemon law"
auto makers have often demanded the buyer come
back a dozen times and give up use of the car
for lengthy periods while they test it, claiming
they are "still trying" to make it run
right.
Consumer Lawyers