Say, have you ever heard of consumer rights? As a consumer, you have 8 core consumer rights that can benefit you in multiple ways. What are these rights? These rights safeguard you against unfair practices in the marketplace. We’ll be taking a look at each one of these rights today.
First, we have the right to basic needs. This right states that consumers need to be able to access basic, essential goods and services. These include: adequate food, shelter, health care, education, etc. Additionally, all basic needs must be readily available at a fair market price, and no company may hold a monopoly.
Secondly, we have the right to safety. This right states that consumers are to be protected against products, production processes and services that are harmful to health or life. In other words, consumers should be able to assume that the products they buy are reasonably safe for their intended purpose when used as directed. Defective safety equipment in cars, excessively flammable home products, and dangerous toys are a few examples of products that were found to be unreasonably safe and helped shape the body of law creating this right.
Third of all, we have the right to be informed. This right states that consumers are to be given the information that is required to make an informed choice. This right also states that consumers are to be protected against dishonest or misleading advertising and labelling. This is particularly relevant to products like medications and health care devices. Knowing exactly what the chemicals one puts into their body could do is critical to allowing the consumers to make an informed decision and allowing consumers to harm themselves through the use of a product about which they were not properly informed led to lawsuits that created this “right.” Truth in advertising and laws against unfair competition lend to the legal substance of this right.
The right to choose is the right that allows you to be able to select from a range of products and services. It also guarantees that products and services are offered at competitive prices. This right also states that products and services in the marketplace are to be of a satisfactory quality. Competing goods and services offer alternatives in terms of price, quality, and service. This is one area of the consumer rights in which there are significant statutory provisions in the form of antitrust and unfair competition laws.
We also have the right to be heard, which states that the execution of government policy and the development of products and services must be done with consumer interests as one of the factors in mind. The government will take heed of the concerns of consumers and will protect those interests through wisely enacted statutes and administrative regulations. Additionally, customer service departments were created to hear your concerns!
The right to redress allows consumers to receive a fair settlement of just claims. These claims include compensation for misrepresentation, unsatisfactory services, or inadequate goods. The right to redress provides for consumers to receive a fair settlement of just claims, including compensation for misrepresentation, shoddy goods, or unsatisfactory services.
The right to consumer education guarantees that consumers are able to make informed and confident decisions regarding goods and services. It also states that consumers are to be able to know the basic consumer rights and responsibilities and how to act on them while making choices in the marketplace.
Lastly, we have the right to a healthy environment, which states that we are able to to live and work in an environment that is non-threatening to our health and wellbeing, and the health and wellbeing of future generations as well.
These rights are important to us, as they protect us from unfair practices and make sure that we can make good choices with our money. They also allow us to voice our opinions and complaints. Without them, we would be subject to unreasonable treatment in the marketplace. They are why we as consumers can get our money’s worth.