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.
Stone Harbor is a borough in Cape May County, New Jersey, United States. It is part of the Ocean City Metropolitan Statistical Area. It shares the barrier island, Seven Mile Island with its northern neighbor Avalon. Development began in the late 19th century as a beach resort along a railroad line which has since been replaced by a traffic island along the length of Second Avenue. It continues as a resort community for visitors enjoying beaches and a thriving commercial center centered along 96th Street and 2nd Avenue, bringing in a summer population in excess of 20,000. As of the United States 2000 Census, the borough had a year-round population of 1,128. In 2006, Forbes magazine ranked Stone Harbor (08247) as #47 on its list of the most expensive zip codes in the United States, based on median home sale prices. As of 2001, Worth Magazine put Stone Harbor at #101 on its list of the Richest Towns in America, which was based on median annual real estate prices. Most vacationers come from New Jersey, Pennsylvania, New York, Connecticut, Maryland, Delaware, and Quebec. It was ranked the tenth best beach in New Jersey in the 2008 Top 10 Beaches Contest sponsored by the New Jersey Marine Sciences Consortium. Stone Harbor was incorporated as a borough by an Act of the New Jersey Legislature on April 3, 1914, from portions of Middle Township, based on the results of a referendum held on April 28, 1914. The borough gained a portion of Avalon on December 27, 1941.