• Rhode Island laws protect consumers.Legal Law Justice image by Stacey Alexander from Fotolia.com
  
  Rhode Island consumer laws are overseen by the Consumer Protection Unit, a wing of the Office of the Attorney General. Rhode Island consumer laws cover areas such as the purchase of vehicles, conduct of retail establishments and telephone solicitations. For those who are worried that they may have been on the wrong end of a consumer scam, knowing Rhode Island's consumer laws will be helpful.
  
  

Lemon Law

• Rhode Island has a "Lemon Law" that covers the purchase of used automobiles. Used vehicles are considered lemons if they have been in the care of an auto mechanic three times for the same problem or for a total of 15 days or more during the warranty period. New vehicles are considered lemons if they have been taken to a mechanic four times for the same problem and the problem persists. Those whose cars meet these criteria should attempt to have the dealer fix the problem. If this does not work, the owner should contact the Better Business Bureau or the Motor Vehicle Arbitration Board. If these agencies fail to come up with a satisfactory solution, the owner of the lemon is urged to contact a lawyer. The lemon law applies only to cars purchased from dealers. Private sales are not covered by the lemon law, but state law prohibits anyone from selling a car that does not have a current, valid inspection sticker.
  
  

Telephone Solicitation

• Automated telephone messages are prohibited by Rhode Island state law, with a few exceptions. Business may make prerecorded solicitations by telephone if a consumer has previously consented to such calls. Similarly, recorded messages are allowed if a live operator obtains verbal permission before playing the recording. This operator must preface the recording with information regarding the business's name, the reason for the message, the type of goods or services being sold in the message and acknowledgment that the message will solicit funds.
  
  

Retail Stores

• Rhode Island state law lays out provisions for how retail stores must conduct themselves. In the state of Rhode Island, gift cards and certificates carry no expiration date. Remaining portions of a gift card must be reissued to a customer in the form of a gift certificate until the balance is less than one dollar. Stores are required to have their return policy posted. If no return policy is posted, a customer may return an unused item within 10 business days. This law does not apply to books, custom merchandise, items sold on an "as-is" basis, food or other perishable goods.