Consumer Protection Act (Quebec)

The Consumer Protection Act (Loi sur la protection du consommateur) is a Quebec law which gives protections to consumers in dealing with merchants and businesses. It requires merchants to deal honestly in all matters of advertising, and in fair contracts. The Act applies to all contracts made in Quebec between a consumer and a merchant, in its capacity of conducting its business. The contract can be either for a product or a service. The main purpose of the act is to level out inequalities in bargaining power between the consumer and the merchant. The law annuls any contract term that contravenes this (similarly to, say, the Unfair Terms in Consumer Contracts Regulations 1999 in the United Kingdom). In the 1960s, consumerism became prominent in the United States, after its industrialisation. Market economies flourished. The consumer movement was a response in Europe, and in Canada, to what was perceived as overwhelming market forces to the detriment of the consumer. In Quebec, the emergence of a consumerist movement cast a light on the absence of consumer protection laws, notably the lack of legal obligations for businesses: the law was caveat emptor, let the buyer beware. But slowly, laws were introduced, culminating in the first Consumer Protection Act in 1971, pushed forward by the lawyer Claude Masse, who was later to become known as the main author of the law. Important amendments were made to the Act in 1978, seven years after the law was first adopted: these were mostly about advertising and guarantees (warranties). After this first major reform, several other smaller amendments have been enacted to cover new commercial practices. As an example, on 8 June 2011, the Quebec government ran through the "projet de loi 24" (Bill 24). This white paper reformed and re-established the rights and responsibilities of the Act for consumer credit contracts and mortgages; it put new responsibilities on lenders. Some contracts, especially those concerning credit terms that are established between a consumer and a merchant, must be made in writing.