One of our complaints about New Jersey’s Consumer Fraud Act is that it is overly broad – encompassing many disputes that could resolved more efficiently by other means. We frequently testify in legislative hearings against bills that would add to the already cumbersome Act. So, it surprised many when we showed up to testify in favor of a recent bill expanding the CFA.

 

A3364/S2174 would prohibit the manufacture, sale, or installation of counterfeit or nonfunctional air bags in motor vehicles. If passed, violators could be charged with a crime and also punished in a civil suit under the Consumer Fraud Act. The bill has already been passed by the Senate, and was voted on favorably by the Assembly Consumer Affairs Committee at the hearing we testified at.

 

This is exactly the kind of thing that should be regulated by the Consumer Fraud Act – fraud.

 

The CFA must be treated as intended – as a weapon for punishing fraudsters, not as a balm for injured plaintiffs or a way for attorneys to make quick cash. If you agree, click here to sign our petition to the New Jersey Legislature asking for some common sense reforms that will make sure the Consumer Fraud Act fights fraud, not business.