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.
Flatwoods is a city in Greenup County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 7,605 at the 2000 census. Bobby F. Crager is the city's mayor . Flatwoods is a part of the Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH, Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA). As of the 2000 census, the MSA had a population of 288,649. Locally, Flatwoods is considered to be a "bedroom community", as it has no large employer within the city. Many residents work for CSX Transportation, AK Steel, Marathon Oil, King's Daughters Medical Center, or Our Lady of Bellefonte Hospital. There are five institutions of higher education located within 30–40 minutes of Flatwoods. The Ohio University Southern Campus, Marshall University, Kentucky Christian University, Ashland Community and Technical College and, Shawnee State University.