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.
Hacker Valley is an unincorporated community in northern Webster County, West Virginia, United States. Its ZIP Code is 26222. The valley was named for its first settler, John Hacker, who reportedly took possession of a tract of land nearby by "tomahawk mark" around 1772. Hacker Valley is home to Holly River State Park and serves as the southern end of the Mountain Parkway Byway scenic byway. The community is also contains the grave of George Lough (died 1817), which is believed to be the oldest marked grave in northern Webster County.