Consumer law provides implied terms and protections for consumers in contracts for the sale of goods and supply of services. Key implied terms include that goods must have good title, correspond with their description, be of satisfactory/merchantable quality, and be fit for their intended purpose if made known to the seller. Consumers can claim damages or repudiate contracts if these terms are breached. Additional protections are provided by the Consumer Protection Act and EU Directive, which prohibit unfair commercial practices and aggressive selling techniques. The Competition and Consumer Protection Commission enforces consumer law in Ireland.

1. Law and Ethics
8. Consumer Law

2. By the end of this lesson you will
- Know the development of consumer protection legislation
- Identify the main terms implied into every sale of goods
contract
- Identify the remedies available
- Describe the additional protection afforded to consumers
by the Consumer Protection Act and Consumer Protection
Directive
- Understand the role of the Competition and Consumer
Protection Commission

4. Implied terms in consumer contracts
Implied terms custom, legislation or courts
Consumer contracts = 2 parties
Individual consumer is disadvantaged / forced to agree to
terms
All consumer and commercial contracts subject to law on sale
of goods
Sale of Goods and Supply of Services Act 1893/1980

5. Sale of Goods and Supply of Services Act 1980
S.1(1) of Act defines contract for sale of goods as seller
transferring goods to buyer for money consideration called
the price.”
1) Agreement must have objective transfer of **GOODS** i.e.
not land, shares or contract for services. Can be
existing goods, future or specific or unascertained goods
2) Contract must be for sale
3) Goods must be sold for price (money not trading stamps or
performance of service)

6. Implied Terms
Act implies terms regarding title,
description, merchantable quality and
fitness for purpose.
Implied terms apply to sales in course of
a business
Private sales are transactions carried
out between a private individual and a
consumer are not in course of business.

7. Section 12 Title of Goods
Sellers duty to pass on goods with a good
title
I.e. seller must have right to sell goods.
If they don’t have the right, the buyer is
entitled to a full refund…
Even if the buyer has taken goods for a
period of time

8. Rowland v Divall 1923
Plaintiff bought a car from the defendant and
used it for several months.
Discovered defendant never owned it so the
car had to be restored to the true owner.
Plaintiff sued = failure of consideration.
Court of Appeal held breach of contract
Good Title = free from encumbrances

10. Section 13: Description
Implied term in contract in private and
business that goods sold must correspond with
description
Breach of contract if they do not correspond

11. Varley v Whipp 1900

12. Section 14 Merchantable Quality
Implied term that goods sold must be of merchantable
quality
Merchantable quality also means safe quality
Must meet standard a reasonable person would expect
But courts will also take into account defects and
other conditions

13. Buyer cannot rely on this section if….
- The seller brought the defect making the goods
unsatisfactory to the buyer’s attention OR
- If the buyer examined the product and ought to have
noticed the matter OR
- If the buyer examined a sample good and ought to have
noticed

14. Grant v Australian
Knitting Mills
Buyer entitled to damages
after the underwear he
bought was held not to have
been of satisfactory
quality.
Sulphites caused a rash!
Buyer who purchased coalite
was entitled to damages as
coalite contaminated with
explosives
Wilson v Rickett
Cockerell

15. Section 14: Fitness for Purpose
Under S.14 where a buyer says specifically what the goods
are for, then there is an implied duty that he provides
goods that are fit for this purpose.
The buyer must prove that the seller made the purpose known
BUT! Seller can avoid liability if he can show that the
buyer did not rely on his judgment whether the product was
actually fit for purpose

16. Baldry v Marshall
Buyer who expressly
requested a comfortable car
was given a bugatti which
was not suitable for
touring
Man bought hot water bottle
that burst.
Court said that although he
had not expressly made
known to the seller the
purpose for which he wanted
the product, there was a
breach of the implied term
Priest v Last

17. Section 15: Sale by Sample
Duty imposed on the seller that when a sale is made on the
basis of a sample that
a) The goods that arrive must correspond with sample in
terms of quality and be free of defects
b) Buyer should be given reasonable opportunity to compare
the sample with the bulk of the goods

18. Godley v Perry 1960
Shopkeeper who purchased a large
number of catapults after
examining a sample was entitled
to repudiate the contract and
claim damages as the catapults
were unsafe and the defect
wasn’t apparent on examination
of the goods

19. Supply of Services
1980 Act extends consumer rights to contracts for the
supply of goods or services.
Services eg. plumbing, car service etc.
Any goods that are supplied under these services are
subject to the same implied terms
Supplier must also - have skills to do service, with
reasonable skill & care, supply satisfactory goods, within
a reasonable time and reasonable price

20. Remedies for breaches under the Act
Depending on what type implied term has been breached and
the seriousness of it, injured party may be able to
repudiate the contract and claim damages
Injured party may be granted “specific performance” where
damages are an insufficient remedy, which may involve a
repair or replacement of the good or service

21. Exclusions
Any attempt to exclude from the terms of the Sale of Goods
and Supply of Services Act 19080 is strictly prohibited
Such an exclusionary term is void and of no effect.

22. Consumer Protection Act 2007
EU Directive on Unfair Commercial Practices
Implemented into law by Consumer Protection Act 2007
Introduces general duty on all business to trade fairly
“Consumer” is defined as a natural person who purchases
goods for personal use
Protects consumers from unfair commercial practices

23. S.41 - General prohibition of unfair commercial
practices
Section 41 general prohibition on unfair commercial
practices
A practice is defined as unfair as it fails to meet the
standard of professional diligence, namely;
- Transaction not entered into in good faith by trader
- Standard of skill was likely to (1) cause appreciable
impairment of the average consumer’s ability to make an
informed choice and (2) make a decision they otherwise
would not have made

24. S.43 Misleading Practices Offences under the
Act
Section 43 Misleading Practices are
- Misleading the customer through the provision of false
information
- Deceptive presentation of the product and
- Action deceives in relation to 1) the existence of the
product or 2) the main characteristics of the product
AND
- Action causes the consumer to take a different economic
decision

25. Examples

27. Misleading Practices
Price of Goods ● Current price must be clearly shown
● Trader mustn’t prevent prices being red
● Manufacturer must state where offer applies
● If price is crossed out and lower price used, it
must have been previous price for 28 days
within previous 3mths
● If there’s no RRP do not add one
Geographical
origin
● Product must state where the product
originated from
● Especially important for food e.g. beef

28. Misleading Practices
Method of
manufacture
Offence to state that a product is handmade or
man-made when it is machine manufactured
Quality of product It is an offence to state grade, standard or style
incorrectly e.g. organic
Quantity of
product
Overstating weight of a product is misleading
(also actionable under SOG legislation
Where food is sold by weight, company must
provide a scales in store

29. Misleading Practices
Specification of a
product
It is an offences to incorrectly state the specs
of a product
E.g. 28” v 32” tv screen
Fitness of purpose Important to not mislead e.g. “helps with
weight loss”
Risks associated Any risks should be clearly stated on labels
especially cosmetic and medical products

30. Misleading Practices
Product ingredients Should be stated clearly
E.g. “no sugar added”
Trader must state all
the terms and
conditions
Offence to sell a mobile phone contract with
mentioning a period you have to commit for

31. Aggressive Practices
Sections 53/54 Consumer Protection Act 2007
An aggressive practice is any practice by the trader that:
Causes significant impairment of the “average consumer’s
freedom of choice”
AND
Causes the average consumer to make a different economic
choice

32. Aggressive Practices
Any practice that involves harassment, coercion,
undue influence
Courts will consider
1) Language used by trader
2) Timing of the contract
3) Location where contract was created
4) Tactics used by trader

33. Prohibited Practices - 32 in the Act
1. Representations about endorsements they
don’t have e.g. three star hotel
2. Representation that trader is about to
cease trading
3. Representation describing something as
“free” if consumer has to pay anything
other than what is necessary (e.g.
collection fee) - bans premium call scams
4. False representation on limited
availability
5. Using editorial content in media

35. Prohibited Practices - 32 in the Act
6. Promoting a product similar to another to
deceive a consumer into thinking it is the
same (e.g. using same logo)
7. Operating, running a competition or prize
promotion without awarding the prizes
described

37. Prohibited Practices - 32 in the Act
8. Failing to comply with a customer’s request to leave their
residence
9. Persistently failing to comply with a consumer's request
to cease (i) communicating with them or (ii) sending
unsolicited representations by phone, text, email etc
10. In relation ot a product that a consumer does not
solicit, demanding payment or inertia selling

38. Purely Creative v Office of Fair Trading 2011
ECJ said that where a customer is led to believe they have
won a prize, the promoter cannot make any requests for costs
whatsoever
Consumers in this case told to claim through premium rate
phone line
Action classified as prohibited commercial practice.

39. Penalties under the Act
Person found guilty liable to fine up to €3,000
And/or term of imprisonment up to six months fo first offence
Where offender prosecuted on indictment, liability is limited
to max fine of €60,000 or imprisonment of up to 18 months or
both
A consumer who suffered a loss can also sue the trader for
damages

42. Consumer Protection Directive
2014 EU Consumer Rights Directive transposed into Irish law
European Union (Consumer Information, Cancellation and Other
Rights) Regulations 2013
Provides additional protections for consumers who enter into
contracts with web traders based in Ireland & the EU

43. Consumer Protection Directive
These protections include:
a) Cancellation of contracts (14 days)
a) Refunds
a) Pre-ticked boxes

44. Consumer Protection Directive
These protections include:
d) Hidden Charges and fees
e) digital purchases

45. Competition and Consumer Protection
Commission
NCA was a statutory body established in 2007
Enforcement of consumer law
Merged with Competition Authority
Competition and Consumer Protection Commission
Functions to promote competition, investigate,
enforce the law, encourage compliance, set
strategic objectives

46. Enforcement Powers of the CCPC
Prosecution
Compliance notices
Undertakings
Prohibition Orders - through the courts
Fixed payment notices
Correction notice

48. Page 104
Practice Questions
Spend 15 mins on each
question

49. Exam Prep
● Take an exam topic
● Condense it all onto one
A4 page
● Condense it further onto
a flashcard