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§ 13-301. Unfair or deceptive trade practices defined

West's Annotated Code of MarylandCommercial LawEffective: January 1, 2024 to June 30, 2025

West's Annotated Code of Maryland
Commercial Law
Title 13. Consumer Protection Act
Subtitle 3. Unfair or Deceptive Trade Practices (Refs & Annos)
Effective: January 1, 2024 to June 30, 2025
MD Code, Commercial Law, § 13-301
§ 13-301. Unfair or deceptive trade practices defined
Currentness
<Section effective until July 1, 2025. See, also, section 13-301 effective July 1, 2025.>
Unfair, abusive, or deceptive trade practices include any:
(1) False, falsely disparaging, or misleading oral or written statement, visual description, or other representation of any kind which has the capacity, tendency, or effect of deceiving or misleading consumers;
(2) Representation that:
(i) Consumer goods, consumer realty, or consumer services have a sponsorship, approval, accessory, characteristic, ingredient, use, benefit, or quantity which they do not have;
(ii) A merchant has a sponsorship, approval, status, affiliation, or connection which he does not have;
(iii) Deteriorated, altered, reconditioned, reclaimed, or secondhand consumer goods are original or new; or
(iv) Consumer goods, consumer realty, or consumer services are of a particular standard, quality, grade, style, or model which they are not;
(3) Failure to state a material fact if the failure deceives or tends to deceive;
(4) Disparagement of the goods, realty, services, or business of another by a false or misleading representation of a material fact;
(5) Advertisement or offer of consumer goods, consumer realty, or consumer services:
(i) Without intent to sell, lease, or rent them as advertised or offered; or
(ii) With intent not to supply reasonably expected public demand, unless the advertisement or offer discloses a limitation of quantity or other qualifying condition;
(6) False or misleading representation of fact which concerns:
(i) The reason for or the existence or amount of a price reduction; or
(ii) A price in comparison to a price of a competitor or to one's own price at a past or future time;
(7) Knowingly false statement that a service, replacement, or repair is needed;
(8) False statement which concerns the reason for offering or supplying consumer goods, consumer realty, or consumer services at sale or discount prices;
(9) Deception, fraud, false pretense, false premise, misrepresentation, or knowing concealment, suppression, or omission of any material fact with the intent that a consumer rely on the same in connection with:
(i) The promotion or sale of any consumer goods, consumer realty, or consumer service;
(ii) A contract or other agreement for the evaluation, perfection, marketing, brokering or promotion of an invention; or
(iii) The subsequent performance of a merchant with respect to an agreement of sale, lease, or rental;
(10) Solicitations of sales or services over the telephone without first clearly, affirmatively, and expressly stating:
(i) The solicitor's name and the trade name of a person represented by the solicitor;
(ii) The purpose of the telephone conversation; and
(iii) The kind of merchandise, real property, intangibles, or service solicited;
(11) Use of any plan or scheme in soliciting sales or services over the telephone that misrepresents the solicitor's true status or mission;
(12) Use of a contract related to a consumer transaction which contains a confessed judgment clause that waives the consumer's right to assert a legal defense to an action;
(13) Use by a seller, who is in the business of selling consumer realty, of a contract related to the sale of single family residential consumer realty, including condominiums and town houses, that contains a clause limiting or precluding the buyer's right to obtain consequential damages as a result of the seller's breach or cancellation of the contract;
(14) Violation of a provision of:
(i) This title;
(ii) An order of the Attorney General or agreement of a party relating to unit pricing under Title 14, Subtitle 1 of this article;
(iii) Title 14, Subtitle 2 of this article, the Maryland Consumer Debt Collection Act;1
(iv) Title 14, Subtitle 3 of this article, the Maryland Door-to-Door Sales Act;2
(v) Title 14, Subtitle 9 of this article, Kosher Products;
(vi) Title 14, Subtitle 10 of this article, Automotive Repair Facilities;
(vii) Section 14-1302 of this article;
(viii) Title 14, Subtitle 11 of this article, Maryland Layaway Sales Act;3
(ix) Section 22-415 of the Transportation Article;
(x) Title 14, Subtitle 20 of this article;
(xi) Title 14, Subtitle 15 of this article, the Automotive Warranty Enforcement Act;4
(xii) Title 14, Subtitle 21 of this article;
(xiii) Section 18-107 of the Transportation Article;
(xiv) Title 14, Subtitle 22 of this article, the Maryland Telephone Solicitations Act;5
(xv) Title 14, Subtitle 23 of this article, the Automotive Crash Parts Act;6
(xvi) Title 10, Subtitle 6 of the Real Property Article;
(xvii) Title 14, Subtitle 25 of this article, the Hearing Aid Sales Act;7
(xviii) Title 14, Subtitle 26 of this article, the Maryland Door-to-Door Solicitations Act;8
(xix) Title 14, Subtitle 31 of this article, the Maryland Household Goods Movers Act;9
(xx) Title 14, Subtitle 32 of this article, the Maryland Telephone Consumer Protection Act;10
(xxi) Title 14, Subtitle 34 of this article, the Social Security Number Privacy Act;11
(xxii) Title 14, Subtitle 37 of this article, the Online Child Safety Act;
(xxiii) Section 14-1319, § 14-1320, or § 14-1322 of this article;
(xxiv) Section 7-304 or § 8-801 of the Criminal Law Article;
(xxv) Title 7, Subtitle 3 of the Real Property Article, the Protection of Homeowners in Foreclosure Act;
(xxvi) Title 6, Subtitle 13 of the Environment Article;
(xxvii) Section 7-405(e)(2)(ii) of the Health Occupations Article;
(xxviii) Title 12, Subtitle 10 of the Financial Institutions Article;
(xxix) Title 19, Subtitle 7 of the Business Regulation Article;
(xxx) Section 15-311.3 of the Transportation Article;
(xxxi) Section 14-1324 of this article;
(xxxii) Section 14-1326 of this article;
(xxxiii) The federal Military Lending Act;
(xxxiv) The federal Servicemembers Civil Relief Act;
(xxxv) Section 11-210 of the Education Article;
(xxxvi) Title 14, Subtitle 44 of this article;
(xxxvii) Section 19-214.4 of the Health--General Article by a hospital;
(xxxviii) Section 14-905 of the Real Property Article;
(xxxix) Section 14-1327 of this article;
(xl) Title 14, Subtitle 13 of the Public Safety Article; or
(xli) Title 14, Subtitle 45 of this article; or
(15) Act or omission that relates to a residential building and that is chargeable as a misdemeanor under or otherwise violates a provision of the Energy Conservation Building Standards Act,12 Title 7, Subtitle 4 of the Public Utilities Article.

Credits

Added by Acts 1975, c. 49, § 3, eff. July 1, 1975. Amended by Acts 1975 c. 431, § 1; Acts 1976, c. 507; Acts 1976, c. 907; Acts 1977, c. 362; Acts 1977 c. 376, § 2; Acts 1978, c. 673, § 1; Acts 1979, c. 65; Acts 1979, c. 536; Acts 1981, c. 388; Acts 1981, c. 502; Acts 1985, c. 710; Acts 1986, c. 506; Acts 1987, c. 577; Acts 1987, c. 650; Acts 1988, c. 6, § 1; Acts 1988 c. 268; Acts 1988 c. 269; Acts 1988 c. 588; Acts 1988 c. 589; Acts 1988 c. 775; Acts 1990, c. 223; Acts 1992, c. 342; Acts 1992, c. 537; Acts 1992, c. 642; Acts 1998, c. 653, § 1, eff. Oct. 1, 1998; Acts 1999, c. 34, § 1, eff. April 13, 1999; Acts 2002, c. 543, § 1, eff. Oct. 1, 2002; Acts 2003, c. 21, § 1, eff. April 8, 2003; Acts 2004, c. 25, § 1, eff. April 13, 2004; Acts 2004, c. 437, § 1, eff. June 1, 2004; Acts 2005, c. 25, § 1, eff. April 12, 2005; Acts 2005, c. 456, § 1, eff. July 1, 2006; Acts 2005, c. 521, § 1, eff. Jan. 1, 2006; Acts 2006, c. 491, § 1, eff. Oct. 1, 2006; Acts 2008, c. 5, § 1, eff. April 3, 2008; Acts 2008, c. 6, § 1, eff. April 3, 2008; Acts 2008, c. 36, § 1, eff. April 8, 2008; Acts 2008, c. 483, § 1, eff. July 1, 2008; Acts 2008, c. 532, § 2, eff. Jan. 1, 2009; Acts 2009, c. 60, § 1, eff. April 14, 2009; Acts 2009, c. 557, § 1, eff. Oct. 1, 2009; Acts 2010, c. 52, § 1, eff. Oct. 1, 2010; Acts 2010, c. 89, § 1, eff. Oct. 1, 2010; Acts 2010, c. 90, § 1, eff. Oct. 1, 2010; Acts 2011, c. 280, § 1, eff. Oct. 1, 2011; Acts 2011, c. 281, § 1, eff. Oct. 1, 2011; Acts 2012, c. 214, § 1, eff. Oct. 1, 2012; Acts 2012, c. 215, § 1, eff. Oct. 1, 2012; Acts 2015, c. 156, § 1, eff. Oct. 1, 2015; Acts 2015, c. 157, § 1, eff. Oct. 1, 2015; Acts 2018, c. 515, § 1, eff. Oct. 1, 2018; Acts 2018, c. 731, § 1, eff. Oct. 1, 2018; Acts 2018, c. 732, § 3, eff. Oct. 1, 2018; Acts 2020, c. 160, § 1, eff. Oct. 1, 2020; Acts 2020, c. 554, § 2, eff. July 1, 2020; Acts 2020, c. 628, § 1, eff. May 8, 2020; Acts 2022, c. 501, § 1, eff. Oct. 1, 2022; Acts 2023, c. 49, § 6; Acts 2023, c. 310, § 1, eff. July 1, 2023; Acts 2023, c. 311, § 1, eff. July 1, 2023; Acts 2023, c. 413, § 1, eff. Jan. 1, 2024; Acts 2023, c. 414, § 1, eff. Jan. 1, 2024; Acts 2023, c. 525, § 1, eff. June 1, 2023; Acts 2023, c. 561, § 1, eff. Oct. 1, 2023; Acts 2023, c. 630, § 1, eff. Oct. 1, 2023; Acts 2023, c. 631, § 1, eff. Oct. 1, 2023.

Footnotes

1
Commercial Law, § 14-201 et seq.
2
Commercial Law, § 14-301 et seq.
3
Commercial Law, § 14-1101 et seq.
4
Commercial Law, § 14-1501 et seq.
5
Commercial Law, § 14-2201 et seq.
6
Commercial Law, § 14-2301 et seq.
7
Commercial Law, § 14-2501 et seq.
8
Commercial Law, § 14-2601 et seq.
9
Commercial Law, § 14-1301 et seq.
10
Commercial Law, § 14-3201 et seq.
11
Commercial Law, § 14-3401 et seq.
12
Public Utilities, § 7-401 et seq.
MD Code, Commercial Law, § 13-301, MD COML § 13-301
Current through legislation effective through April 9, 2023, from the 2024 Regular Session of the General Assembly. Some statute sections may be more current, see credits for details.
End of Document