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.
Havre de Grace (sometimes abbreviated HdG) is a city in Harford County, Maryland, United States. The population was 11,331 (17,866 in the HdG zip code, 33,491 in the Aberdeen-Havre de Grace area) at the 2000 census. Havre de Grace is named after the port city of Le Havre, France. Its name in French means "Harbor of Grace". Havre de Grace is a small city but has in recent years expanded by the process of annexing land. Housing development is moderate but steady and includes the re-building of blighted areas into middle class homes. Havre de Grace will prosper during the next few years as a result of the BRAC activities of the Department of Defense which will relocate activities from various bases to Aberdeen Proving Ground, a few miles away. This will increase the population with additional skilled and professional employed residents. Havre de Grace also claims a renovated seaplane port. There are five public schools and the oldest hospital in Harford County, Harford Memorial Hospital. Havre de Grace's location on the headwaters of the Chesapeake Bay and the outlet of the Susquehanna River makes it popular for recreation. There are marinas and service operators along the shore line. There is also a city yacht basin and park where various events occur each year. A promenade and boardwalk that runs along the shore from the Concord Point Lighthouse to the yacht basin was devastated by Hurricane Isabel and was rebuilt recently. Havre de Grace has a long history, having lost the election to be the nation's ultimate capital to Washington, D.C. , by only one vote.