What to Do If a Business Misled You
Start pulling the records together now, while they are easy to find.
- Keep every document. Contracts, estimates, invoices, receipts, warranties and order confirmations. Don't throw out the product or its box.
- Screenshot the promise. The website, online listing or social post that drew you in can be edited or taken down.
- Pull the money trail. Card and bank records for each deposit, draw or final payment.
- Write down conversations. Phone calls and in-person promises, with dates, names and the exact words where you can.
- Photograph the job. For a roofing, remodeling or repair job, get wide and close pictures of what was done and what was left unfinished.
- Slow down before signing anything new. Many people check with a lawyer first.
One folder and a short timeline of who said what, and when, go a long way.
Common Disputes Around Greenville
With new subdivisions and remodels going up across Greenville County, from Five Forks to Travelers Rest, many disputes involve contractors, roofers after storms like Hurricane Helene, the storm that brought down trees across the Upstate, car purchases, movers and home services.
When a Bad Deal Becomes an Unfair Trade Practice
The South Carolina Unfair Trade Practices Act prohibits unfair or deceptive acts or practices in the conduct of trade or commerce.1 Still, not every broken promise or billing fight falls under it. To bring a private claim, a person must show the practice affects the public interest, which a purely private contract dispute usually does not.2
A lawyer can look at what the business did and whether the facts fit the Act, a contract claim or something else.
Want someone to look at your situation?
Talk with our team about what happened and ask the questions on your mind.
The Filing Deadline
Claims under the South Carolina Unfair Trade Practices Act generally must be filed within three years after the unlawful conduct is discovered.3 Guessing either way is risky. Bring the dates of the sale, the work and when you first noticed the problem to the call.
The statewide consumer protection page covers the Act in more depth. If a product hurt you, see product injuries in Greenville.
Talk With Us
Maybe a roofer took a deposit after the storm and vanished, or a dealer's paperwork didn't match the sales pitch. Tell us the promise and the result. Some of these turn out to be contract fights, and we say so when that's how it looks.
Our office is on King Street in downtown Charleston. The first conversation can happen by phone. We take cases across South Carolina, including Greenville and the Upstate.
Call, and have the contract, receipts and messages nearby.
South Carolina Law on This
- The South Carolina Unfair Trade Practices Act prohibits unfair or deceptive acts or practices in the conduct of trade or commerce.1
- To bring a private claim under the South Carolina Unfair Trade Practices Act, a person must show the practice affects the public interest, which a purely private contract dispute usually does not.2
- Claims under the South Carolina Unfair Trade Practices Act generally must be filed within three years after the unlawful conduct is discovered.3
- To bring a private claim under South Carolina's Unfair Trade Practices Act, a person generally must have suffered an ascertainable loss of money or property caused by the unfair or deceptive conduct. The loss does not necessarily have to be an out-of-pocket payment; other measurable property or economic losses may qualify.4
- Under the South Carolina Unfair Trade Practices Act, a person who suffers a financial or property loss because of an unlawful unfair or deceptive business practice may sue to recover actual damages. If the court finds that the violation was willful or knowing, it must award three times the actual damages. A court that finds a violation in a qualifying private lawsuit must also award reasonable attorney's fees and costs.5
Frequently Asked Questions
I signed a contract with the contractor. Can I still bring a claim?
Maybe. A signed contract doesn't automatically rule out a claim under the Act, but a purely private contract dispute usually doesn't meet the public-interest requirement.2 What was promised, the contract terms, whether others were affected and what you lost all matter.
Do I have to have lost money?
To bring a private claim under the Act, a person generally must have suffered an ascertainable loss of money or property caused by the unfair or deceptive conduct. The loss doesn't have to be an out-of-pocket payment in every case.4
What can a person recover under the Act?
A person who suffers a loss from an unlawful practice may sue for actual damages, and a court that finds a violation in a qualifying private suit must also award reasonable attorney's fees and costs. If the violation was willful or knowing, the court must award three times the actual damages.5 Every piece of the claim has to be proven first, so no result is certain.
Sources
This page is general information about South Carolina law, not legal advice for your situation. Every case depends on its own facts.
