President Signs Consumer Warranty Statute Amendment

In a rare display of bipartisanship, the U.S. Congress has passed and, on September 24, 2015, President Obama signed, an amendment of the federal statute regulating warranties on consumer products, the Magnuson-Moss Warranty – Federal Trade Commission Improvement Act. The E-Warranty Act of 2015 permits disclosure of consumer warranty terms via the "manufacturer's" Internet website.

The current Federal Trade Commission Pre-Sale Availability Rule generally requires that the full text of any written warranty on a consumer product costing the consumer more than $15 be made available before purchase, at the point-of-purchase. This requirement is implemented through separate sets of duties for warrantors and retail sellers. The current rule requires that warranties on product sales made at brick-and-mortar outlets, in door-to-door transactions, or via physical catalogs be disclosed in printed formats, e.g., on packaging, in the catalogs, and so forth.