Maine has very good consumer laws and this is an avenue for you and I to explore them, either for our own benefit or to pass along bits of information that may help someone else.

The Maine Attorney General's Office publishes the Maine Consumer Law Guide and it can be easily downloaded and printed, rather lengthy at that. The wealth of information you may glean from it can outweigh the cost of printing.

Please take the time to at least scan it and, if necessary, look for more information. You may be surprised with what you may learn. Many merchants and service providers do NOT understand these laws any better than you or I.

This week we are up to Chapter 4, paragraph 10 and on. This area pertains to implied warranties and services. The Uniform Connercial Code (available online, add Maine to Google) warranty provisions apply to both goods and services. The Maine Supreme Judicial Court has found that an implied warranty of good workmanship accompanies the sale of services. The court found that it is a breach of a contractor's implied warranty of good workmanship not to perform work in a "reasonably skillful manner." The Court further ruled that there is implied in every contract for worker service a duty to perform "skillfully, diligently and in a workmanlike manner."

In the situation of a used item being sold, the second buyer may very well receive the benefit of any express warranty rights held by the original buyer. The Maine Uniform Commerical Code at 11 M.R.S.A. para 2.318 states or implies that express warranty rights may pass to a suybsequent user of the item if that person was someone "who the manutacturer, seller or supplier might reasonably have expected to use, consume or be affected by the goods." Since most consumer goods are regularly sold used as well as new, there is a strong argument that, within the meaning of this language, a buyer of used goods is a foreseeable user, and should receive the benefit of the manuacturer's express warranty. (View previous Consumer Corner articles for some difinitions usded here)

Also, a person who receives a good as a gift would also receive whatever warranies still applied to the gift, express and implied. In addition to an express warranty, all consumer good, even used ones, are sold with an implied warranty of merchantability. For used goods, this means that the item at least works. (The exception is a used car, on which the dealer can disclaim the implied warranty.) There is a possiblity that you may buy an item on an "as is" basisand it does not work. It must work for the intended purpose, however, it might be worn out or so old it has exceeded its useful life. Please be careful in buying anything that you are told that it is sold as is and no returns. You may find that you may be able to demand your money back.

The Maine Long Arm Statute ( 114 M.R.S.A. PARA 704-a) does allow enforcement against out of state sellers. The court will have to determine if the merchant or seller is "doing business in Maine." Does the seller advertise in Maine, encouraging Maine consumers to contact it in order to buy its products? Does the business deliver its products in Maine, does it service the products in Maine and does it provide Maine residents with telephone, Internet, or snail mail contacts to work out any problems? The answers will allow the court to best determine your rights.

Remember, all new or used consumer goods sold in Maine, except used cars, come with an automatice implied warranty that the item is not seriously defective. The warranty cannot be disclaimed or denied by the seller.

This week's helpful hint:

This needs repeating. If you are looking at the various suppliers of electricity to choose the correct one, go to the Maine Office of the Public Advocate's website and see the comparison figures. This is for the purchase of your electricity. Central Maine Power Company, in our area, delivers it to its customers but the company does NOT sell it to them. It seems as though everyone and their brother is selling it and it is and will get to be very competitive. Also, the Smart Meters are getting a lot of attention lately as to whether they are good or bad and whether it was a good move to allow the changes.

Remember it costs about 15 cents (slightly less in some cases) to run an appliance using 1,000 watts for one hour. For instance: a 13-watt light bulb (which generally gives out significant light) would cost less than 15 cents to provide light for about 77 hours, or six hours a day for 13 days. An air conditioner that uses 1,500 watts will cost approximately 19 cents for each hour or about $1.14 per six-hour day and about $34 for 30 days at six hours per day.

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Who is Dale Hayward?

Dale Hayward was born and raised in Belfast and Northport, and lives in Rockland.

He graduated from Harford Institute of Accounting in Connecticut and served in the U.S. Air Force from 1966 to 1970. He was a state auditor in Delaware and Maine, where he also owned and operated private accounting practices. From 1978 to 1992 he owned and operated Seaport Office Supply. For the next eight years he drove a tour bus 600,000 miles across the United States and Canada.

Dale holds a Bachelor of Science in business administration, with a major in management and a minor in finance, from the University of Maine. He retired in 2007. He previously presented a consumer talk show on WRFR.

On why he continues to share consumer information, Dale said, "Consumer information is critical for people to survive in this economy and I would like to share my extension knowledge after having researched issues for many years. The format is to provide tips, advice and facts for people to check out further. This is not legal advice and does not carry any promises."