Answer the questions:
1. With which position in the role–play do you agree? Explain. Was an agreement reached?
2. What does the word boycott mean? Do you think the boycott worked in this case?
Do you know of other consumer boycotts? Describe them and explain why people were boycotting.
4. Do you think the boycotts were effective? Were any of them waged against someone other than a manufacturer?
5. What alternatives to boycotting do people who dislike the practices of a company or group have? Compare the effectiveness of boycotts with that of alternatives.
Unit 3.
Consumer Law
Read and translate the texts.
Have you ever bought a meal in a restaurant or a pair of sneakers at a sporting goods store? Have you ever ridden a bus to work or have your car repaired at a service station? If you did any of these things you were a consumer. A consumer is a person who buys goods and services for personal or household purposes from a seller.
When sellers agree to provide and consumers agree to pay for goods or services, the parties have entered into a legal agreement. The agreement is called a contract. Every time you order a meal a restaurant, you promise to pay for it, and the restaurant promises to give you a meal that is fit to eat. If the consumer and the seller have a dispute they can’t settle themselves, the law may help determine the outcome.
For many years, consumer law was characterized by the legal expression caveat emptor. This means “let the buyer beware.” In other words, consumers had to look out for unfair and misleading sales practices before buying or else be prepared to suffer the consequences. Once consumers bought something, they were stuck with the purchase, even if they got less than they bargained for, such as unsafe or poor–quality products.
Today the law is more balanced. Consumers now have a right to be correctly informed of important information, such as quality, price and credit terms. Sellers must avoid sales and advertising practices that mislead, deceive, or are otherwise unfair to consumers. This increased concern for consumers is based on the fact that sellers are usually better informed about the products or services being offered and are usually in control of the sales transaction.
Even though the law has changed, the best protection is still a careful purchase. Learning about products and services, shopping carefully, and knowing your legal rights and how to enforce them are the best ways to avoid a problem.
You should also recognize that if you receive poor–quality merchandise or fall victim to a deceptive practice, all is not lost. You can often solve the problem yourself. And when you can’t, the law may provide a remedy.
While consumers have many rights, they also have responsibilities. For example, they have a responsibility to sellers to be fair and honest. A consumer who buys an item of clothing, wears it once to a party, and then returns it is not being fair and honest. When this happens, a seller’s costs go up, and everyone winds up paying higher prices.