H.B. 207

1

GIFT CERTIFICATES - ELIMINATING
2 EXPIRATION DATE
3 2003 GENERAL SESSION
4 STATE OF UTAH
5 Sponsor: Ty McCartney
6 This act modifies the Utah Consumer Sales Practices Act by prohibiting gift certificates
7 that contain an expiration date within five years after the gift certificate is issued.
8 This act affects sections of Utah Code Annotated 1953 as follows:
9 AMENDS:
10 13-11-3, as last amended by Chapter 57, Laws of Utah 2000
11 13-11-4, as last amended by Chapter 196, Laws of Utah 2001
12 Be it enacted by the Legislature of the state of Utah:
13 Section 1. Section 13-11-3 is amended to read:
14 13-11-3. Definitions.
15 As used in this chapter:
16 (1) "Charitable solicitation" means any request directly or indirectly for money, credit,
17 property, financial assistance, or any other thing of value on the plea or representation that it
18 will be used for a charitable purpose. A charitable solicitation may be made in any manner,
19 including:
20 (a) any oral or written request, including a telephone request;
21 (b) the distribution, circulation, or posting of any handbill, written advertisement, or
22 publication; or
23 (c) the sale of, offer or attempt to sell, or request of donations for any book, card,
24 chance, coupon, device, magazine, membership, merchandise, subscription, ticket, flower, flag,
25 button, sticker, ribbon, token, trinket, tag, souvenir, candy, or any other article in connection
26 with which any appeal is made for any charitable purpose, or where the name of any charitable
27 organization or movement is used or referred to as an inducement or reason for making any

28 purchase donation, or where, in connection with any sale or donation, any statement is made
29 that the whole or any part of the proceeds of any sale or donation will go to or be donated to
30 any charitable purpose. A charitable solicitation is considered complete when made, whether
31 or not the organization or person making the solicitation receives any contribution or makes
32 any sale.
33 (2) "Consumer transaction" means a sale, lease, assignment, award by chance, or other
34 written or oral transfer or disposition of goods, services, or other property, both tangible and
35 intangible (except securities and insurance), including the use or misuse of personal identifying
36 information of any person in relation to a consumer transaction to, or apparently to, a person
37 for primarily personal, family, or household purposes, or for purposes that relate to a business
38 opportunity that requires both his expenditure of money or property and his personal services
39 on a continuing basis and in which he has not been previously engaged, or a solicitation or
40 offer by a supplier with respect to any of these transfers or dispositions. It includes any offer or
41 solicitation, any agreement, any performance of an agreement with respect to any of these
42 transfers or dispositions, and any charitable solicitation as defined in this section.
43 (3) "Enforcing authority" means the Division of Consumer Protection.
44 (4) "Final judgment" means a judgment, including any supporting opinion, that
45 determines the rights of the parties and concerning which appellate remedies have been
46 exhausted or the time for appeal has expired.
47 (5) "Gift certificate" means any certificate, electronic card, or other medium evidencing
48 the giving of consideration in exchange for the right to redeem the certificate, electronic card,
49 or other medium for any of the following:
50 (a) goods;
51 (b) services;
52 (c) credit;
53 (d) money; or
54 (e) anything else of value.
55 [(5)] (6) "Person" means an individual, corporation, government, governmental
56 subdivision or agency, business trust, estate, trust, partnership, association, cooperative, or any
57 other legal entity.
58 [(6)] (7) "Supplier" means a seller, lessor, assignor, offeror, broker, or other person

59 who regularly solicits, engages in, or enforces consumer transactions, whether or not he deals
60 directly with the consumer.
61 Section 2. Section 13-11-4 is amended to read:
62 13-11-4. Deceptive act or practice by supplier.
63 (1) A deceptive act or practice by a supplier in connection with a consumer transaction
64 violates this chapter whether it occurs before, during, or after the transaction.
65 (2) Without limiting the scope of Subsection (1), a supplier commits a deceptive act or
66 practice if the supplier knowingly or intentionally:
67 (a) indicates that the subject of a consumer transaction has sponsorship, approval,
68 performance characteristics, accessories, uses, or benefits, if it has not;
69 (b) indicates that the subject of a consumer transaction is of a particular standard,
70 quality, grade, style, or model, if it is not;
71 (c) indicates that the subject of a consumer transaction is new, or unused, if it is not, or
72 has been used to an extent that is materially different from the fact;
73 (d) indicates that the subject of a consumer transaction is available to the consumer for
74 a reason that does not exist;
75 (e) indicates that the subject of a consumer transaction has been supplied in accordance
76 with a previous representation, if it has not;
77 (f) indicates that the subject of a consumer transaction will be supplied in greater
78 quantity than the supplier intends;
79 (g) indicates that replacement or repair is needed, if it is not;
80 (h) indicates that a specific price advantage exists, if it does not;
81 (i) indicates that the supplier has a sponsorship, approval, or affiliation the supplier
82 does not have;
83 (j) indicates that a consumer transaction involves or does not involve a warranty, a
84 disclaimer of warranties, particular warranty terms, or other rights, remedies, or obligations, if
85 the representation is false;
86 (k) indicates that the consumer will receive a rebate, discount, or other benefit as an
87 inducement for entering into a consumer transaction in return for giving the supplier the names
88 of prospective consumers or otherwise helping the supplier to enter into other consumer
89 transactions, if receipt of the benefit is contingent on an event occurring after the consumer

90 enters into the transaction;
91 (l) after receipt of payment for goods or services, fails to ship the goods or furnish the
92 services within the time advertised or otherwise represented or, if no specific time is advertised
93 or represented, fails to ship the goods or furnish the services within 30 days, unless within the
94 applicable time period the supplier provides the buyer with the option to either cancel the sales
95 agreement and receive a refund of all previous payments to the supplier or to extend the
96 shipping date to a specific date proposed by the supplier, but any refund shall be mailed or
97 delivered to the buyer within ten business days after the seller receives written notification
98 from the buyer of the buyer's right to cancel the sales agreement and receive the refund;
99 (m) fails to furnish a notice of the purchaser's right to cancel a direct solicitation sale
100 within three business days of the time of purchase if the sale is made other than at the supplier's
101 established place of business pursuant to the supplier's personal contact, whether through mail,
102 electronic mail, facsimile transmission, telephone, or any other form of direct solicitation and if
103 the sale price exceeds $25, unless the supplier's cancellation policy is communicated to the
104 buyer and the policy offers greater rights to the buyer than this Subsection (2)(m), which notice
105 shall be a conspicuous statement written in dark bold at least 12 point type, on the first page of
106 the purchase documentation, and shall read as follows: "YOU, THE BUYER, MAY CANCEL
107 THIS CONTRACT AT ANY TIME PRIOR TO MIDNIGHT OF THE THIRD BUSINESS
108 DAY (or time period reflecting the supplier's cancellation policy but not less than three
109 business days) AFTER THE DATE OF THE TRANSACTION OR RECEIPT OF THE
110 PRODUCT, WHICHEVER IS LATER.";
111 (n) promotes, offers, or grants participation in a pyramid scheme as defined under Title
112 76, Chapter 6a, Pyramid Scheme Act;
113 (o) represents that the funds or property conveyed in response to a charitable
114 solicitation will be donated or used for a particular purpose or will be donated to or used by a
115 particular organization, if the representation is false;
116 (p) if a consumer indicates his intention of making a claim for a motor vehicle repair
117 against his motor vehicle insurance policy:
118 (i) commences the repair without first giving the consumer oral and written notice of:
119 (A) the total estimated cost of the repair; and
120 (B) the total dollar amount the consumer is responsible to pay for the repair, which

121 dollar amount may not exceed the applicable deductible or other copay arrangement in the
122 consumer's insurance policy; or
123 (ii) requests or collects from a consumer an amount that exceeds the dollar amount a
124 consumer was initially told he was responsible to pay as an insurance deductible or other copay
125 arrangement for a motor vehicle repair under Subsection (2)(p)(i), even if that amount is less
126 than the full amount the motor vehicle insurance policy requires the insured to pay as a
127 deductible or other copay arrangement, unless:
128 (A) the consumer's insurance company denies that coverage exists for the repair, in
129 which case, the full amount of the repair may be charged and collected from the consumer; or
130 (B) the consumer misstates, before the repair is commenced, the amount of money the
131 insurance policy requires the consumer to pay as a deductible or other copay arrangement, in
132 which case, the supplier may charge and collect from the consumer an amount that does not
133 exceed the amount the insurance policy requires the consumer to pay as a deductible or other
134 copay arrangement;
135 (q) includes in any contract, receipt, or other written documentation of a consumer
136 transaction, or any addendum to any contract, receipt, or other written documentation of a
137 consumer transaction, any confession of judgment or any waiver of any of the rights to which a
138 consumer is entitled under this chapter; [or]
139 (r) charges a consumer for a consumer transaction that has not previously been agreed
140 to by the consumer[.]; or
141 (s) imposes any of the following on a gift certificate:
142 (i) an expiration date within five years after the day on which the gift certificate is
143 issued; or
144 (ii) any limit, within five years after the day on which the gift certificate is issued, on
145 the time during which the gift certificate may be redeemed or used.




Legislative Review Note
as of 11-14-02 1:03 PM

A limited legal review of this legislation raises no obvious constitutional or statutory concerns.

Office of Legislative Research and General Counsel