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Consumer Law

Legal Knowledge (3)>Consumer Rights (1)>Consumer Law (2)

About this section

Under the Data Protection Act 1998 you have the right to access information about you which is held by an organisation. This applies to computerised personal data and structured manual files.

The Act gives you the right to the following:

Gain access to your personal data
Have inaccurate data corrected, destroyed, blocked or erased
Seek compensation for any damage or distress caused to you by inaccurate data
Prevent data being processed in certain circumstances
Stop your data being used for direct marketing
Stop your data being used for fully automated decision making

You can make a request to see your personal data by writing to the organisation that is holding the information. This is known as a ‘subject access request’, and you should include your name and contact details.

Organisations have 40 calendar days from the day they receive your letter to answer your request. If they fail to do so, you have the right to make a complaint to the Information Commissioner.

Consumer law has its foundation in laws regulating trade which have existed for many years. However, the laws which are most relevant for today’s consumers were introduced in the 1970s. Most consumer law is based on 'reasonableness', and you can often use common sense to detect whether or not you are in the wrong. If you wish to recite legal sounding jargon at a seller, the only thing you really need to remember is 'The Sale of Goods Act 1979’ (as amended). The amended part shows you are aware that the act has been extended slightly since its introduction. This essentially means that goods sold to you by a trader must be:

As described
Of satisfactory quality
Fit for purpose

If a trader breaks a consumer law, he or she can be investigated by the appropriate law enforcement agency - usually Trading Standards. They can end up in a criminal court and if found guilty, will face a fine or imprisonment.

The Trade Descriptions Act 1968 is an important part of Consumer Law. Under this Act it is an offence to falsely describe goods or supply any products which have been incorrectly described.

Lastly, part two of the Consumer Protection Act 1987, as amended by the General Product Safety Regulations 1994, ensures that all producers and distributors must make certain that their products are safe. Part three of this law makes it an offence to use a misleading price.

Articles in this Category

09/12/2008	Compensation
	What to do if there have been significant problems with goods or services including if you were injured
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09/12/2008	Consumer Contracts
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UKLA Direct is a trading name of TLA Direct Limited, a company registered in England and Wales (Company Number 06643412) whose registered office is Pegasus House, 463A Glossop Road, Sheffield, S10 2QD. TLA Direct is regulated by the Ministry of Justice in respect of regulated claims management activities. It's registration is recorded on the website www.claimsregulation.gov.uk CRM14556. In the event that you instruct a UKLA solicitor following introduction through this service, the solicitor may pay a fee, dependant on the type of work, to TLA Direct for marketing and administration services. This fee may either be a fixed amount, a percentage of up to 15% of the fees billed by the solicitor or nothing. In no circumstances will this fee be added to your quote/bill. Your solicitor will advise you of any such fee in their letter of instruction.