It is the norm for groups, businesses, and organizations to have a voice. But, unfortunately, the masses and individuals patronizing their goods and services are difficult to hear to prevent these businesses and corporations from preying on their customers.

California Consumer Laws

The state of California (apart from the federal laws protecting consumers) established a set of legal rules that protect the consumers in the State. These rules are referred to as the California Consumer Protection Laws.

The California Legal Remedies Act considers the following actions as illegal:

• When legal action takes against deceptive acts or competitive practices, which carried out to lease goods to consumers or create sales transactions.
• When the origin of goods or services is misrepresented, they refurbish old goods as new and sell them.
• When repairs or maintenance are recommended without it been required. And also offering rebates when the hidden conditions are forbidden.

In instances where these groups and organizations seek to deceive or violate these protection laws for consumers, the consumer can file a lawsuit against the group or organization. This lawsuit is usually referred to as a “class-action lawsuit.”

The class-action lawsuits provide the consumers with the power to challenge (and win) over the business and corporations and change their behavior.

There are, however, several ways by which groups and organizations can violate the laws that protect the consumers, and they include:

Excessive Bank Charges

In 2010, certain regulations established at the federal level protect bank customers from being charged excessive overdraft fees.

Although these regulations exist, several bank customers are still subject to these fees they did not agree to pay. The laws of the state of California also seek to protect consumers from bank fraud, and it offers consumers protection from:

• They were being charged overdraft fees without the customer expressly agreeing to join the program and having the customer enrolled in a bank’s overdraft protection program.
• Having their deposits and withdrawals manipulated to generate overdraft fees
• They are charging the customers for not using their credit cards.
• They were increasing the interest rate charges on credit cards during the first year, after which the credit card account opened and many more.

Deceptive Advertising and Packaging

Provided that the group or organizations make goods and services available for consumers, then it is only natural for the consumer to make decisions based on the information that has been provided.

For this reason, it has become mandatory for companies not to engage in false and deceptive advertising. Furthermore, the laws of both the Federal and the state of California have been designed to protect the rights of consumers against these illicit acts, such them any involvement in these acts violates these laws.

Examples of these acts include:

• Advertising products as being “Made in U. S. A,” when most of its components are from foreign countries.
• I am representing the quantity or weight of the product contained in a package wrongly.
• We are representing a product as “natural” when it contains “artificial ingredients” or “organic” when the product was not grown organically.
• We are publishing fake reviews for a service provider or a product.
• Stating that an herbal supplement has certain health benefits has been proven not to have these benefits and many more.

Bait and Switch Advertising is another form of violating the law through advertising. It occurs when a product or service is advertised to cost a particular amount, sell at a higher price, or coerce the consumers to purchase a product or service that costs more.

There are several other components of the California Consumer Protection Law which include:

Telemarketing Violations

Unlawful Debt Collection Practice

Violating Credit reports, among others.