A merchant must not engage in a deceptive, unfair, or unconscionable trade practice, whether or not any specific consumer has, in fact, been misled, deceived, or damaged thereby. Deceptive, unfair, or unconscionable trade practices include:
(a) a representation that consumer goods or services have sponsorship, approval, accessories, characteristics, ingredients, uses, benefits, or quantities that they do not have;
(b) a representation that the merchant has a sponsorship, approval, corporation indication, status, affiliation, or connection that the merchant does not have;
(c) a representation that consumer goods are original or new if they are deteriorated, altered, reconditioned, reclaimed, or secondhand;
(d) a representation that consumer goods or services are of a particular standard, quality, grade, style, or model, if they are of another;
(e) a misrepresentation as to a material fact that has a tendency to mislead;
(f) a failure to state a material fact if the failure deceives or tends to deceive;
(g) disparaging the consumer goods or services, or business of another by false or misleading representations of material facts;
(h) advertising or offering consumer goods or services without the intent or authority to sell them as advertised or offered;
(i) advertising or offering consumer goods or services with intent not to supply reasonably expected public demand, unless the advertisement or offer discloses a limit of quantity or other qualifying condition;
(j) making false or misleading representations of fact concerning the reasons for, existence of, or amounts of price reductions; or the price in comparison to the price of competitors or one's own price at a past or future time;
(k) falsely stating that consumer goods or services, replacements, or repairs are needed;
(l) falsely stating the reasons for offering or supplying consumer goods or services at sale or discount prices;
(m) harassment of or threat to any person with regard to any act other than legal process;
(n) any deception, fraud, false pretense, false premise, misrepresentation, or concealment, suppression, or omission of any material fact with the intent that consumers rely on the concealment, suppression, or omission, in connection with any consumer goods or services;
(o) any false, falsely disparaging or misleading oral or written statement, visual description or other representation of any kind that has the capacity, tendency, or effect of deceiving or misleading consumers and is made in connection with any consumer goods or services;
(p) any representation that an agreement confers or limits rights, remedies, or obligations that it does not confer or limit, or that are prohibited by law;
(q) failure of any merchant to comply with a warranty;
(r) failure to provide a written estimate of repairs, alterations, modifications, or services when requested by a consumer and the later repair, alteration, modification, or servicing of any item without first tendering a written estimate;
(s) performing repairs, alterations, modifications, or services exceeding by 25 percent or more the price quoted in a written estimate without prior approval of the consumer;
(t) imposing or demanding a labor or service charge without notifying the consumer of the charge before dismantling, disassembling or otherwise altering a consumer good;
(u) failing to supply a consumer with a copy of a contract, lease, promissory note, trust agreement, or evidence of indebtedness when the consumer executes the document;
(v) making or enforcing unconscionable contract terms. In applying this subsection, the following factors may be considered:
(1) knowledge by the merchant when a credit sale or loan is consummated that there was no reasonable probability of payment in full of the obligation by the consumer;
(2) knowledge by the merchant at the time of the sale or lease of the consumer’s inability to receive substantial benefits from the consumer good or service sold or leased;
(3) gross disparity between the price of consumer goods or services sold or leased and the value of the consumer goods or services measured by the price at which similar consumer goods or services are readily obtainable by like buyers or lessees;
(4) the fact that the merchant contracted for or received separate charges for insurance with respect to credit sales with the effect of making the sales, considered as a whole, unconscionable;
(5) the fact that the merchant has knowingly taken advantage of the inability of a consumer reasonably to protect his or her interests because of physical or mental infirmities, ignorance, illiteracy, inability to understand the language of the agreement, or similar factors;
(w) replacing any part in an electrical or mechanical apparatus, appliance, chattel, or other consumer good when the part was not defective, unless expressly requested by the consumer;
(x) falsely stating or representing that any repair, alteration, or service was performed;
(y) taking payment for goods or services without delivering the goods or performing the services; or
(z) practicing, or in any way engaging in, any trade, occupation, or profession without a license, registration, certificate, or other evidence of training or experience required by law. (1972 L.M.C., ch. 11, § 1; 1976 L.M.C., ch. 21, § 1; , § 1.)
Editor’s note—The above section is cited in Nefedro v. Montgomery County, 414 Md. 585, 996 A.2d 850 (2010). The above section is discussed in Fosler v. Panoramic Design, Ltd., 376 Md. 118, 829 A.2d 271 (2003). The above section is quoted, interpreted and held valid in Syndicated Publications, Inc. v. Montgomery County, 921 F.Supp. 1442 (D.Md. 1996).
Editor’s note—Former Section 11-4A, unfair trade practices - future service contracts, which was derived from 1993 L.M.C., ch. 25, § 1 and 1995 L.M.C., ch. 9, § 1, was repealed by 2006 L.M.C., ch. 7, § 1. That section is discussed in Fosler v. Panoramic Design, Ltd., 376 Md. 118, 829 A.2d 271 (2003).
