Consumer protection refers to the laws designed to aid retail consumers of goods and services that have been improperly manufactured, delivered, performed, handled, or described. Such laws provide the retail consumer with additional protections and remedies not generally provided to merchants and others who engage in business transactions, on the premise that the consumers do not enjoy a sufficient bargaining position with respect to the businessmen with whom they deal and therefore should not be strictly limited by the legal rules that govern recovery for damages among businessmen. The overarching goal is to protect individuals and the interest of the public in general from unfair and misleading activity in business and commerce (such as false advertising and deceptive trade practices) and scams perpetrated by criminals (such as identity theft and pyramid schemes) that harm a substantial number of consumers.
Fort Walton Beach is a city in southern Okaloosa County, Florida, United States. As of 2004, the population estimate for Fort Walton Beach, Florida is 19,992 recorded by the U.S. Census Bureau. It is a principal city of the Fort Walton Beach–Crestview–Destin Metropolitan Statistical Area. Fort Walton Beach is a year round fishing and beach resort community. Its busiest time of the year is during the summer, with spring break being another busy time when thousands of people flock to the Emerald Coast.