False advertising is just about as old as advertising itself. When someone has something to sell, there is sometimes a temptation to lie about it(often with inflated claims regarding a product or service’s benefits) in order to increase sales and make a profit.
Consumer Laws, Consumer Fraud Attorneys
California has laws in place to punish companies and individuals who engage in false advertising. Consumers who have been cheated can take their complaints to the state government, but they can also retain a consumer fraud attorney to more forcefully represent their interests. When you've been the victim of false advertising, having an experienced and committed attorney on your side is a good first step toward being compensated for your losses.
What Constitutes False Advertising?
Hundreds of thousands of people are the victims of false advertising in the U.S. each year. Many people don't even realize when they've been conned. In other instances, the fraud eventually becomes clear. Here are a few of the most common types of false advertising:
- Overcharging for a service — This is common in many types of businesses, including real estate, restaurants, auto repair, and home renovations, among others. In this type of fraud, the charge applied for a good or service is higher than the price advertised.
- Hidden fees, costs, and markup — Especially common these days among mortgage companies, but prevalent in car sales and other businesses that involve complex transactions, often for first-time buyers who aren't aware of the difference between valid and fraudulent fees.
- Misrepresentations —Advertising that misrepresents the benefits, characteristics, origin, or uses of a product or service. For example, a "late model" TV set turns out to be ten years old; "Maine lobsters" on the menu may actually be from the Pacific Ocean; a used car advertised as being in great shape when it's actually a lemon; diet and medicinal products which have little or no benefit.
- Bait and switch " tactics — In a bait and switch, a product or service is advertised at a low price to lure the customer. The seller has no intention of selling this product or service; it's just offered as “bait” to attract customers so that higher-priced products/services can be pushed instead (the "switch"). The salesperson will tell customers that the advertised product is inferior, or even unavailable — it may not even exist.
- Buy One, Get One Free — In cases of false advertising of this kind, the price of the product you pay for (the "buy one") is significantly inflated to cover the cost of the "free" product. In other instances, the "free" product is of poor quality.
- Going Out of Business" Sales — Also "fire sale," "forced out of business," "liquidation sale," "lost our lease," etc. Sometimes the sign is true, and sometimes it's false advertising done simply to make customers think that they're getting merchandise or service at a savings. However, in most locales, businesses wanting to advertise a "going out of business" sale must get a permit from the city where the business is located, and the company must post the permit near the entrance to the premises.
- False Price Comparison —Unscrupulous businesses use falsely inflated "regular" prices to deceive customers into thinking that they're getting a bargain. For instance, a product's regular price is shown on the price tag as $50, on sale as $40, when the regular price was really $40 or even $30. In fact, just the words "on sale" are enough to trick some consumers. It's best to shop around and compare prices.
Call on O'Mara & Padilla for Help
These are just a few examples. We haven't even touched on the Internet, which is chock-full of false advertising. If you suspect you’ve been the victim of false advertising, contact our offices to schedule a free consultation, and we'll discuss your legal options with you.