Virginia Consumer Protection Act

The act governs unfair, deceptive, and unconscionable practices in consumer transactions, defining prohibited trade practices while excluding certain conduct from its reach, and layering on more detailed rules for particular dealings such as foreclosure consulting, short sales, the use of loan information in solicitations, and vehicle-sharing arrangements. Enforcement is shared by the attorney general and district attorneys, who may investigate regulated persons, issue subpoenas, and pursue restraining orders, civil penalties, and other remedies, with some investigative material treated as confidential and inadmissible. It also authorizes civil actions subject to limitations periods, imposes criminal penalties for some violations, and — in the transactions it specifically regulates — requires written contracts, prescribes their language and content, guarantees a right to cancel with notice, and bars waiver of those protections.

Editorial summary generated from the text of this act. It is not part of the statute — read the sections below for the operative language.