The Ohio Consumer Sales Practices Act (CSPA) protects consumers from unfair, deceptive and unconscionable acts or practices by suppliers. The Act specifies which business practices are legal or illegal, including what businesses can and cannot say in advertisements. It also describes what the Attorney General can do when businesses break the law.
What qualifies as a consumer transaction is defined broadly in the Act to include: “a sale, lease, assignment, award by chance, or other transfer of an item of goods, a service, franchise, or an intangible, to an individual for purposes that are primarily personal, family, or household, or solicitation to supply any of these things.”
Due to its broad coverage, the CSPA prohibits a wide variety of unfair, deceptive, and unconscionable conduct. A supplier’s actions will generally be considered unfair or deceptive if they are likely to induce a belief that is not truthful in the mind of the consumer. The CSPA provides a non-exhaustive list of actions that are unfair or deceptive, even if the supplier does not intend to deceive the consumer.
The CSPA prohibits the supplier from falsely representing that the product has been sponsored or approved or that it has characteristics, accessories, uses or benefits that it does not have. The CSPA also prohibits the supplier from misrepresenting the quality and model of the product. Further, a supplier cannot represent the product as new if it is not, or represent that it will be supplied in a greater quantity than intended. A supplier also cannot represent that a specific price advantage exists if it doesn’t, or that a repair or replacement is needed if it is not. Finally, a supplier cannot make misrepresentations about warranties, remedies, or obligations.
Unconscionable actions, on the other hand, must be committed with knowledge or intent to deceive the consumer. The CSPA provides a list of circumstances to be taken into consideration to determine unconscionable actions, including whether the supplier has knowingly taken advantage of the ignorance, infirmities or illiteracy of a consumer. The Act also considers whether the supplier knew that the price was substantially higher than the price of similar products, or that the consumer was not able to receive a substantial benefit from the transaction. The Act further considers whether the supplier required the consumer to enter into a substantially one-sided transaction, or whether the supplier knowingly made a misleading statement detrimentally relied upon by the consumer. Finally, the Act considers whether the supplier has unjustifiable refused to refund a returned item.
The CSPA also requires that anytime a supplier accepts a deposit from a consumer, the supplier must refrain from offering the same goods to any other person for a specified period of time.
Suppliers who commit unfair, deceptive, or unconscionable acts or who do not comply with the deposit requirements of the Act may be subject to penalties under the Act. It is important for both Ohio suppliers and Ohio consumers to understand the requirements of the Act so that suppliers are not penalized and consumers understand their rights. If you have any questions about the applicability of the CSPA to your situation, don’t hesitate to contact an Ohio small business attorney to ensure your rights are protected.
Crumpton Law LLC is a Columbus Small Business Law Firm, with attorney Matthew Crumpton serving as managing member and lead attorney.
Tags: consumer law, cspa, ohio consumers, small business
