More on the Pennsylvania CPL

In my last Blog entry, I mentioned that Pennsylvania’s Unfair Trade Practices and Consumer Protection Law (the “CPL”) offered relief, including an award of attorney fees, in the event a consumer suffers damages as the result of any of 21 wrongful acts that are listed in the statute. In this Blog entry, I briefly summarize what those acts are. For the sake of brevity, I combined certain of the acts and paraphrased the language in the statute. To determine exactly what protections are afforded under the statute you should, of course, consult an attorney. That said, here is my abbreviated list of the wrongs for which consumers can seek redress under Pennsylvania’s CPL:

1) Deceiving the consumer as to the identity of the maker or provider of the goods or services, or as to the identity of persons or entities affiliated with or endorsing the goods or services, or with respect to the geographic origin of the goods or services.

2) Passing off new or refurbished goods as new.

3) Advertising goods of services with an intent to not sell them as advertised (including an undisclosed limitation of the quantity available at the advertised price or terms).

4) Disparaging another’s goods or services through false or misleading representations.

5) Making any other false claim about the nature or benefits of goods or services.

6) Offering future credits, at the time of a sale, for bringing in additional buyers following the sale.

7) Facilitating Chain Letter or Pyramid Schemes.

8) Not honoring a guarantee or warranty.

9) Knowingly misrepresenting the need for services, replacements or repairs.

10) Making improvements, repairs or replacements that are of lesser quality than agreed to in writing.

11) Making telephone solicitations that do not properly identify the caller, the purpose of the call, the thing being offered and, if the is an opportunity to win a prize, the fact that no purchase is required to be eligible to win the prize.

12) Offering any contract that includes a clause whereby the consumer gives up the right to assert a defense.

13) Soliciting mail or phone sales without reasonably believing that it can ship anything purchased to the buyer when promised or, if no promise is given, within 30 days.

14) Making any misleading representations or omissions conserving rustproofing with respect to the sale of new automobiles.


The information contained in this blog is not legal advice and should not be relied on as such. For legal advice or for answers to specific questions, please contact the blog's author.