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.
Centreville is an incorporated town in Queen Anne's County, Maryland, United States. Incorporated in 1794, it is the county seat of Queen Anne's County. The population was 1,970 at the 2000 census. The ZIP code is 21617 and the area code is 410. The local telephone exchange is 758. It hosts the Queen Anne's County Fair each summer and was home to three franchises during the existence of the Eastern Shore Baseball League -- the Colts, Red Sox, and Orioles. The book Red Kayak by Priscilla Cummings is set in Centreville.