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Learn About Ohio’s Consumer Protection Laws

4/13/2022
The Ohio Attorney General has enforcement authority over more than 25 laws designed to protect consumers. When consumer laws are discussed in Ohio, many cite the expansive Consumer Sales Practices Act (CSPA), which aims to generally protect consumers against unfair, deceptive or unconscionable acts or practices in connection with the solicitation or purchase that would be used for the home or personal use.

Here is a timeline of some of Ohio’s lesser known consumer protection laws:
  • 1973 – The Home Solicitation Sales Act creates safeguards for consumers, including the right to cancel within three days any transaction of $25 or more that occurs at a location outside the seller’s regular place of business, such as the consumer’s home, a fair booth or a hotel meeting room.
  • 1974 – The Anti-Pyramid Sales Act makes it illegal to participate in pyramid sales schemes, which operate like giant chain letters. Participants pay to join, then recruit others in order to profit from the new recruits’ fees. Although there may be some profit for the handful of people who join at the beginning, the remaining investors generally lose all their money.
  • 1976 – The Prepaid Entertainment Contracts Act protects consumers who pay in advance for the services of health spas, dance studios, diet centers, dating agencies or martial arts schools. The law gives consumers three days after their first services are available to cancel their contracts. It also sets a three-year limit for the length of these contracts.  
  • 1979 – The Business Opportunity Purchaser’s Protection Act gives consumers five days to cancel “business opportunity agreements.” In a business opportunity agreement, a buyer pays a seller for the right to offer, sell or distribute goods or services. Some business opportunity ventures are scams that promise quick profits but require large initial down payments.
  • 1987 – The Lemon Law in Ohio protects new-car owners, covering problems that occur within the first year of purchase or the first 18,000 miles of the vehicle, whichever comes first.  
  • 1993 – The Credit Card Recording Act makes it unlawful for sellers to give out consumers’ Social Security numbers, credit card account numbers, expiration dates, and other personal financial information.
  • 1996 – The Hearing Aid Returns Act gives consumers the right to return hearing aids within 30 days of purchase.
  • 1996 – The Defective Assistive Devices Act requires one-year warranties covering the full cost of repair or replacement for products designed for consumers with disabilities, such as hearing aids, wheelchairs, motorized scooters and talking software.
  • 2001 – The Certificate of Motor Vehicle Title Act gives consumers the unconditional right to cancel their motor vehicle purchase if dealers do not deliver their titles within 40 days of the purchase. The Ohio Attorney General’s Office operates a special fund to reimburse affected consumers and pursues the violating car dealers to hold them accountable and to reimburse the fund. 
  • 2006 – The Gift Card Act gives consumers the right to use a gift card for at least two years from its issue date. The law also states that gift cards with no expiration dates are valid until redeemed or replaced.  
Please note that these are just some examples and are used for educational purposes only. The Ohio Revised Code (ORC) and the Ohio Administrative Code (OAC) are available at http://codes.ohio.gov.

Consumers who suspect an unfair business practice or want help addressing a consumer problem should contact the Ohio Attorney General’s Office at www.OhioProtects.org or 800-282-0515.