P2) Describe the limitations and constraints of Marketing.

Consumer Law

Businesses have to ensure that any activities within the business abide by the different consumer laws and meet the different standards. This is so the business is able to sell products and keep their business at the best possible standards. This means that businesses must keep up with the changing laws.

Sales of Goods Act 1979

The Sales of Goods Act 1979 is a law that sets out to ensure that all products sold by a business are of a certain quality. The sales of goods act states that the description of products must fully identify what the product is and what it contains, they are not allowed to falsely claim what the product is. Products for sale must be of the same quality as those that they have used to advertise the product.

Like most businesses, Argos has a clear and understandable policy for their products. Above is a shot of their returns and refunds policy. Because Argos' products are not available to be seen until after purchase, consumers are unaware of what it is they are exactly buying. Also, the majority of their products are not tested before they are put up for sale. This means that they are constantly having to refund consumers for their products. They have a 30 day money back guarantee period in which consumers are able to refund or return their products if they are still in good condition and are working. They also have a guarantee where is product has been purchased but is out of the 30 day money back guarantee but still under 1 year old, they are happy to swap or fix the product. Argos have abided by the Sales of Goods act as they are giving consumers the opportunity to do something about the problem they may have received, and Argos in return are also willing to do something to fix the problem and maintain their customers. If they did not do this then there is a chance that they could be taken to court for not giving consumers the correct rights.

Consumer Protection from unfair Trading Regulations 2008

The Consumer Protection from unfair Trading Regulations 2008 ensures that all consumers are sold products correctly and not using misleading or underhand tactics. This act also states that companies are not allowed to advertise products that they do not sell as this would be false advertisement. The act is there to ensure that consumers are treated fairly when purchasing products and that they are mislead to buy something they did not set out to purchase.

The above screen shot is an article on the popular communications brand TalkTalk. The article shows that TalkTalk were using misleading and deceptive actions when signing new customers up. They were signing customers up to packages without their consent, meaning the customers were having to pay money to TalkTalk without knowing. Because they did not abide by the above regulation, they had to pay back £2.5 million, which allowed the consumers to receive the money back they had unwillingly paid.

Consumer credits Act 1974 and 2006

The consumer credits Acts 1974 and 2006 set out to make sure consumers are not only protected purchasing products when using credit cards, but are also protected when they take enter into a loan or hire agreement. Consumers must be given key financial information such as the duration of the agreement and the credit limit that they have.

The above screen shot shows an article on a variety of banks that have had problems with customers loan agreements. Northern Rock, as well as a range of other banks, had inadequate paperwork for their customers loan agreements as it didn’t comply with the consumer credit act. Incorrect documentation was sent, meaning Northern Rock had to pay out £270 million to more than 150,000 people.

Consumer protection (Distance Selling) Regulations 2000

The Consumer Protection (Distance selling) Regulations act 2000 ensures that consumers are given good information on products they are