Antitrust Law Daily Wrap Up, CONSUMER PROTECTION NEWS: FTC letters warn Internet retailers of warranty disclosure requirements, (Dec 2, 2013)

The FTC staff has sent letters to “top Internet retailers” advising them that the Commission’s Pre-Sale Availability Rule requires them to provide complete and accurate warranty information to consumers prior to sale, according to an announcement today.

The letters inform retailers that the Rule generally requires sellers to make warranty information concerning all warranted consumer products costing over $15 available to consumers by either “(1) displaying the warranty document in close proximity to the product or (2) furnishing the warranty document on request and providing notice of the warranty document’s availability as specified in the Rule.” The letters notify the recipients that the FTC located several warranted products sold on their websites without full disclosure of complete warranty information, and tell retailers that they can achieve compliance by, for example, providing a clearly-labeled hyperlink to the full text of the warranty in close proximity to the description of the product. The FTC staff notes that it will revisit the companies’ websites after 90 days to verify compliance.

News: ConsumerProtection FederalTradeCommissionNews