The Common Law

Taken Advantage of on Holiday Shopping?

I bought a camera as a Christmas present for my friend. Before giving it, I tried it out, and it doesn't work, and the store doesn't want to take it back. What can I do?

Consumers are prime targets during the holiday season. Sometimes frustrated consumers simply walk away from legitimate problems and take no action. Before any consumer allows the store to get away with selling defective items, you should consider various steps you can take that may help your situation and prevent similar problems between this store and other Central Texans in the future.

The starting point for any consumer dispute is to fully discuss your problem with the store's customer-service representative or manager. If you can't resolve the problem at this level, you may want to contact the store's headquarters or the owner.

Assuming the problem has not been resolved, you have several options. You can pursue your individual case by filing a lawsuit. Small-claims court (limited to a recovery of no more than $5,000) is usually the best option for consumers, because you can represent yourself. However, the personal time, energy, effort, and money needed to pursue a small-claims court matter may not make sense for an inexpensive purchase.

The consumer should consider filing a complaint with the Texas attorney general's Consumer Protection Division (www.oag.state.tx.us/consumer/complain.shtml). Filing a complaint with the Texas Attorney General's Office will not help your specific case (Texas law prohibits the AG's office from filing a lawsuit with the purpose of recovering money for a single person), but it could lead to an investigation or lawsuit against the company if it is violating laws protecting consumers.

Finally, you can file a separate complaint with the Better Business Bureau (www.centraltx.bbb.org). By doing so, you will put other savvy consumers on notice that the store has a history of complaints and problems.

You may also be able to obtain relief if you purchased the item with a credit card (search austinchronicle.com for previous "Common Law" columns on that topic). The most important thing as a consumer is to stay vigilant: Protect yourself and other consumers by pursuing violations of consumer laws and poor business practices.