Unfair business practices

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Unfair business practices (also Unfair Commercial Practices) describes a set of practices by businesses which are considered unfair, and which may be unlawful. It includes practices which are covered by other areas of law, such as fraud, misrepresentation, and oppressive or unconscionable contract terms. Protections may be afforded to business-to-business dealings, or may be limited to those dealing as consumers. Regulation of such practices is a departure from traditional views of freedom to agree on contractual terms, summed up in the 1804 French Civil Code as qui dit contractuel dit juste (roughly, anything contractual is fair). [1]

Contents

Canada

Canadian provinces enact their own consumer protection laws which differ in scope and coverage. [2] For example, Saskatchewan's Consumer Protection Act says:

It is an unfair practice for a supplier, in a transaction or proposed transaction involving goods or services, to: (a) do or say anything, or fail to do or say anything, if as a result a consumer might reasonably be deceived or misled; (b) make a false claim; (c) take advantage of a consumer if the person knows or should reasonably be expected to know that the consumer: (i) is not in a position to protect his or her own interests; or (ii) is not reasonably able to understand the nature of the transaction or proposed transaction.

For example, the Saskatchewan Act has been applied to a case in which an automobile dealer mis-sold cars, based on allegations of false claims, representing goods as new or unused when they weren't, and using exaggeration, innuendo, or ambiguity when representing material facts. [3]

Other Canadian provinces have laws headed Unfair Trade Practices Act (Alberta), "Trade Practices Act" (B.C.), "Business Practices Act" (Ontario), Consumer Protection Act (Quebec), and Trade Practices Inquiry Act (Manitoba). [2] [4]

European Union

Under the Unfair Commercial Practices Directive 2005 (amended 2017) each member state is required to regulate unfair business practices. [5] As the EU described its objectives:

The objective of the EU Directive on unfair commercial practices from 2005 was to boost consumer confidence and make it easier for businesses, especially small and medium-sized enterprises, to trade across borders. It is the overarching EU legislation regulating unfair commercial practices that occur before, during and after a business-to-consumer transaction has taken place.

United States

In the United States, the Federal Trade Commission addresses unfair business practices. It has in the past included in its mission the goal of preventing "fraud, deception, and unfair business practices in the marketplace". [6] It does so by "collecting reports from consumers and conducting investigations, suing companies and people that break the law, developing rules to maintain a fair marketplace, and educating consumers and businesses about their responsibilities". [7] Individual states within the U.S. are also responsible for protecting consumers against unfair practices.[ citation needed ]

United Kingdom

In the United Kingdom unfair business practices are Unfair terms in English contract law by the Unfair Contract Terms Act 1977, Consumer Rights Act 2015 and Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations.

Australia

In Australia unfair business practices are regulated under the Australian Consumer Law which is enforced by the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission (ACCC). For example, in 2023 the ACCC took action against airline Qantas for, among other things, advertising and allowing customers to book unavailable flights. [8]

The law provides, among other things, that "A person must not, in trade or commerce, engage in conduct that is misleading or deceptive or is likely to mislead or deceive." [9] [8]

See also

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fair Trading Act 1986</span> Act of Parliament in New Zealand

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Unfair terms in English contract law are regulated under three major pieces of legislation, compliance with which is enforced by the Competition & Markets Authority (CMA). The Unfair Contract Terms Act 1977 is the first main Act, which covers some contracts that have exclusion and limitation clauses. For example, it will not extend to cover contracts which are mentioned in Schedule I, consumer contracts, and international supply contracts. The Consumer Rights Act 2015 replaced the Unfair Terms in Consumer Contracts Regulations 1999 and bolstered further requirements for consumer contracts. The Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008 concerns certain sales practices.

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In online retail, drip pricing is a sales technique where a headline price is advertised at the beginning of the purchase process, followed by the incremental disclosure of additional fees, taxes or charges. The objective of drip pricing is to gain a consumer's interest in a misleadingly low headline price without the true final price being disclosed until the consumer has invested time and effort in the purchase process and made a decision to purchase.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">European consumer law</span> EU consumer protection law

European consumer law concerns consumer protection within Europe, particularly through European Union law and the European Convention on Human Rights. Article 169 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union enables the EU to use its ordinary legislative procedure to protect consumers "health, safety and economic interests" and promote rights to "information, education and to organise themselves in order to safeguard their interests". All member states may grant higher protection, and a "high level of consumer protection" is regarded as a fundamental right. Consumers are entitled to a legislative "charter of rights" to safe and healthy products, fair terms, proper information free from misleading advertising and marketing, and rights of cancellation. Beyond these general principles, and outside specific sectors, there are four main Directives: the Product Liability Directive 1985, Unfair Terms in Consumer Contracts Directive 1993, Unfair Commercial Practices Directive 2005 and the Consumer Rights Directive 2011, requiring information and cancellation rights for consumers. As a whole, the law is designed to ensure that consumers in the EU are entitled to the same minimum rights wherever they make their transactional decisions, and largely follows inspiration from theories of consumer protection developed in California, and the Consumer Bill of Rights proclaimed by John F. Kennedy in May 1962. The European Court of Justice has continually affirmed the importance of ensuring more consumer rights than in commercial contracts, both because of information asymmetry, and inequality of bargaining power.

The following is a list of laws providing an overview of laws and regulations that aim to protect consumers from microtransactions.

References

  1. ↑ Rutgers, Jacobien; Sauter, Wolf (December 2021). "Promoting Fair Private Governance in the Platform Economy: EU Competition and Contract Law Applied to Standard Terms". Cambridge Yearbook of European Legal Studies. 23: 343–381. doi:10.1017/cel.2021.11. ISSN   1528-8870.
  2. 1 2 Buckwold, Tamara M (1999). "Statutory Regulation of Unfair Business Practices in Saskatchewan: Possibilities and Pitfalls". Saskatchewan Law Review. 62 (1): 45 – via CanLII.
  3. ↑ "Sask. auto dealer violated consumer protection and business practices, province says". Regina. 2024-02-06. Retrieved 2024-09-19.
  4. ↑ "Unfair Business Practices". Government of Alberta. Retrieved 15 August 2023.
  5. ↑ "EU consumer law: Unfair Commercial Practices Directive". Practical Law. Retrieved 2024-09-19.
  6. ↑ "Federal Trade Commission: Performance Report Fiscal Year 1999" (PDF). Federal Trade Commission. 1999.
  7. ↑ "FTC Bureau of Consumer Protection". 12 March 2013.
  8. 1 2 Marquis, Mel; Srivastava, Neerav (2023-09-27). "Even if Qantas is fined hundreds of millions it is likely to continue to take us for granted". The Conversation. Retrieved 2024-09-21.
  9. ↑ Bartak, Erika; Warren-Myers, Georgia; Cradduck, Lucy (2020-05-07). "Spruiking the stars: some home builders are misleading consumers about energy ratings". The Conversation. Retrieved 2024-09-21.


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