(a) A toll-free telephone line, available to consumers throughout the state, shall be established in the Department of Consumer Protection for the handling of consumer inquiries and complaints concerning consumer goods or services in the state or any other matter within the jurisdiction of the department and its licensing and regulatory boards. The line shall be in operation from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday each week, exclusive of those legal holidays on which state offices are closed, and shall be restricted to incoming calls.

(b) The Department of Consumer Protection shall process the intake of consumer complaints concerning consumer goods or services in the state and any other matter within the jurisdiction of the department. In order to assist in the resolution of consumer complaints, the department may notify, in writing, the respondent against whom a complaint was received of the allegations against them and require a written response be provided to the department not later than thirty days of receipt of such notice.

(c) For purposes of this section, “credential holder” means a person certified, licensed, permitted or registered with the Department of Consumer Protection. In the event the department provides written notice to a respondent who is not a credential holder that a complaint has been filed against him or her, and said respondent fails to respond after receipt of such notice, the respondent may be fined not more than two hundred fifty dollars for failure to respond to the department. Written notice for purposes of this section shall include notice sent by registered or certified mail or hand-delivered to a respondent.

(P.A. 73-640, S. 1–3; P.A. 77-614, S. 172, 610; June 30 Sp. Sess. P.A. 03-6, S. 146(d); P.A. 04-169, S. 17; 04-189, S. 1; P.A. 18-141, S. 3.)

History: P.A. 77-614 deleted Subsec. (b) containing appropriation to carry out section purposes and added reference to use of telephone line for handling other matters within jurisdiction of department and its licensing and regulatory boards, effective January 1, 1979; Sec. 19-170e transferred to Sec. 21a-2 in 1983; June 30 Sp. Sess. P.A. 03-6 and P.A. 04-169 replaced Department of Consumer Protection with Department and of Agriculture and Consumer Protection, effective July 1, 2004; P.A. 04-189 repealed Sec. 146 of June 30 Sp. Sess. P.A. 03-6, thereby reversing the merger of the Departments of Agriculture and Consumer Protection, effective June 1, 2004; P.A. 18-141 designated existing provisions re telephone line as Subsec. (a), added Subsec. (b) re processing intake of consumer complaints and notification to respondent, and added Subsec. (c) re fine for respondent's failure to respond, effective June 11, 2018.