Low Pressure Refrigerants Industry
16 CFR Part 164 · Trade practice rules · in the Code of Federal Regulations 1945-1976 (12 annual editions)
Scanned CFR pages, OCR text may contain errors; the linked Library of Congress PDF is the authority. Not legal advice; not affiliated with the FTC. These rules and guides are historical: most were rescinded or replaced, so do not assume any is in force.
Latest edition: Library of Congress, 1976 CFR · Earliest edition: 1945 CFR
Text (1976 edition, OCR)
Chapter [Federal Trade Commission
§ 163.103 Repudiation of contracts.
Lawful contracts are business obliga-
tions which should be performed in let-
ter and in spirit. The cancellation or
repudiation of contracts by sellers on a
rising market or by buyers on a declining
market is condemned by the industry.
PART 164—LOW PRESSURE
REFRIGERANTS INDUSTRY
Grour I
Bec.
164.1 Misrepresentation in diverse forms.
164.2 Deception in respect to “heels.” .
164.3 Deception in respect of refrigerint
containers.
164.4 Deceptive use of refrigerant con-
tainers.
164.5 Defamation of competitors or dis-
paragement of their products.
1646 Imitation of trade-marks, trade
names, etc.
164.7 Commercial bribery.
1648 Inducing breach of contract.
1649 False invoicing. ,
164.10 Procurement of competitors’ confi-
dential information by unfair
means and wrongful use thereof.
164.11 Consignment distribution.
164.12 Selling below cost.
164.18 Combination or coercion to fix prices,
suppress competition, or restrain
trade.
164.14 Discrimination.
164.15 Discrimination as to return of cylin-
ders or containers, and discrimina-
tion in refunding of deposits on
cylinders or containers.
Group II
164.101 Return of cylinders.
164.102 Unwarranted return of merchandise.
164103 Differentiating between wholesale
and retail transactions.
164.104 Dissemination of credit informa-
tion.
Avrmoriry: The provisions of this Part 164
issued under secs. 6(g), 5, 3B Stat. 722, 719;
18 U.S.C. 46(g), 45, unless otherwise noted.
Bounce: The provisions of this Part 164
appear at 10 FR. 7968, June 30, 1945, unless
otherwise noted.
Group I
$164.1 Misrepresentation in diverse
forms.
It is an unfair trade practice to use, or
cause or promote the use of, any trade
promotional] literature, advertising mat-
ter, guarantee, warranty, mark, brand,
label, designation, or representation,
however disseminated or published:
(a) Which has the capacity and tend-
ency or effect of misleading or deceiving
58-064—T6—_5
57
§ 164.4
the purchasing or consuming public with
respect to the grade, quality, quantity,
origin, efficacy, price, ingredients, safety,
preparation, manufacture, or distribu-
tion of any industry product; or
(b) Which is false, misleading, or de-
ceptive in any other material respect.
§ 164.2 Deception in respect to “heels.”
It is an unfair.trade practice to repre-
sent to purchasers or prospective pur-
chasers that refunds will be credited
or paid for “heels” when such refunds
are not actually made, or when such
“heels” do not actualiy exist, or when
such representation is otherwise false,
misleading, or deceptive. (For inhibited
discriminations in respect of “heels,” see
§ 164.14.) (The term “heels” as used in
this part refers to the small residual por-
tion of refrigerant remaining in the cyl-
inder or container and returned therein
by the purchaser to the manufacturer,
such residual portion however, not being
regarded as “heels” if it exceeds 10 per-
cent of the full capacity of the respective
container.)
§ 164.3 Deception in respect to refrig-
erant containers.
It is an unfair trade practice to cause
any refrigerant shipped or delivered in a
cylinder or container not complying fully
with appropriate regulations of the Inter-
state Commerce Commission to be repre-
sented or passed off, directly or indirectly,
as and for a refrigerant shipped or deliv-
ered in cylinders or containers which do
comply with such regulations.
Nore: Nothing in this section shall be con-
strued as relieving any member of the in-
dustry or other party of the necessity of
complying with all of the rules and regula-
tions of the Interstate Commerce Commis-
sion relative to the shipment or delivery in
commerce in cylinders or containers of the
various compressed refrigerants used, in-
cluding requirements as to packing, testing,
re-testing, marking, qualification, and main-
tenance of cylinders, etc.; and no misrepre-
sentation or deception, direct or indirect,
shall be practiced in the sale or distribution
of industry products respecting any such
matters.’
§ 164.4 Deceptive use of refrigerant con-
tainers.
The use by any member of the industry
of the refrigerant cylinder or container
of a competitor with the capacity and
tendency or effect of thereby misleading
or deceiving purchasers or prospective
purchasers, or the unauthorized use of a
§ 164.5
competitor’s container with the effect of
prejudicing such competitor in his busi-
ness, is an unfair trade practice.
Norse: Owing to the responsibility of the
owners of containers invoiving compliance
with Interstate Commerce Commission Spec-
fications or requiring periodic testing of
such containers, the industry recommends
that containers which bear a competitor’s
identification marks should not be used
without owner’s permission evidenced by bill
of sale, lease, or other instrument in writing,
or duly recorded transfer of ownership on the
records of 1.C.C.
§ 164.5 Defamation of competitors or
disparagement of their products.
The defamation of competitors by
falsely imputing to them dishonorable
conduct, inability to perform contracts,
questionable credit standing, or by other
false representations, or the false dis-
paragement of the grade, quality, quan-
tity, origin, efficacy, price, ingredients,
safety, preparation, manufacture, or dis-
tribution of the products of competitors,
or of their business methods, selling
prices, values, credit terms, policies, or
services, is an unfair trade practice.
§ 164.6 Imitation of trade-marks, trade
names, etc.
The practice of imitating or causing to
be imitated, or directly or indirectly pro-
moting the limitation of, the trade-
marks, trade names, or other exclusively
owned symbols or marks of identification
of competitors, having the capacity and
tendency or effect of misleading or de-
ceiving purchasers or prospective pur-
chasers, is an unfair trade practice.
§ 164.7
It is an unfair trade practice for a
member of the industry, directly or indi-
rectly, to give, or offer to give, or permit
or cause to be given, money or anything
of value to agents, employees, or repre-
sentatives of customers or prospective
customers, or to agents, employees, or
representatives of competitors’ customers
or prospective customers, without the
knowledge of their employers or princi-
pals, as an inducement to influence their
employers or principals to purchase or
contract to purchase products manufac-
tured or sold by such industry member
or the maker of such gift or offer, or to
influence such employers or principals to
refrain from dealing in the products of
competitors or from dealing or contract-
ing to deal with the competitors.
Commercial bribery.
Title 16—Commercial Practices
§ 164.8 Inducing breach of contract.
Inducing or attempting to induce the
breach of existing lawful contragts be-
tween competitors and their customers
or their suppliers by any false or decep-
tive means whatsoever, or interfering
with or obstructing the performance of
any such contractual duties or services
by any such means, with the purpose
and effect of unduly hampering, injur-
ing, or prejudicing competitors in their
business, is an unfair trade practice.
§ 164.9 False invoicing.
It is an unfair trade practice to with-
hold from or insert in involces any state-
ments or information by reason of which
omission or insertion a false record is
made, wholly or in part, of the transac-
tions represented on the fact of such
invoices, with the effect of thereby mis-
leading or deceiving purchasers or
prospective purchasers.
§ 164.10 Procurement of competitors’
confidential information by unfair
means and wrongful use thereof.
It is an unfair trade practice for any
member of the industry to obtain infor-
mation concerning the business of a com-
petitor by bribery of an employee or
agent of such competitor, by false or mis-
leading statements or representations, by
the impersonation of one in authority,
or by any other unfair means, and to use
the information so obtained in such man-
ner as to injure said competitor in his
business or to suppress competition or
unreasonably restrain trade.
§ 164.11 Consignment distribution.
It is an unfair trade practice for any
member of the industry to employ the
practice of shipping industry products on
consignment or pretended consignment
for the purpose and with the effect of
artificially clogging or closing trade out-
lets and unduly restricting competitors’
use of said trade outlets in getting their
products to consumers through. regular
channels of distribution, thereby injur-
ing, destroying, or preventing competi-
tion or tending to create a monopoly or
to unreasonably restrain trade. Noth-
ing in this section shall be construed as
restricting or preventing consignment
shipping or marketing of industry prod-
ucts in good faith where suppression of
competition, restraint of trade, or un-
due interference with competitors’ use
of the usual channels of distribution, is
not effected.
Chapter |—Federal
§ 164.12 Selling below cost.
The practice of selling industry prod-
ucts below the seller’s cost with the in-
tent and with the effect of injuring a
competitor and where the effect may be
substantially to lessen competition or
tend to create a monopoly or unreason-~
ably restrain trade is an unfair trade
practice. All elements recognized by
good accounting practice as proper ele-
ments of such cost shail be included in
determining cost under this section. The
costs, however, which are referred to in
the section are actual costs of the respec~
tive seller and not some other figure or
average costs in the industry determined
by an industry cost survey or otherwise.
§ 164.13 Combination or coercion to fix
prices, suppress competition, or re-
strain trade.
It is an unfair trade practice for a
member of the industry or any person,
firm, partnership, corporation, or as-
sociation,
(a) To use, directly or indirectly, any
form of threat, intimidation, or coercion
against any member of the industry to
unlawfully fix, maintain, or enhance
prices, suppress competition, or restrain
trade; or
(b) To enter into or take part in, di-
rectly or indirectly, any agreement, un-
derstanding, combination, conspiracy, or
concert of action with one or more mem-~
. bers of the industry, or with one or more
persons, firms, partnerships, corpora-
tions, or associations, to unlawfully fix,
maintain, or enhance prices, suppress
competition, or restrain trade.
§ 164.14 Discrimination.
(a) Prohibited discriminatory prices,
or rebates, refunds, discounts, credits,
etc., which effect unlawful price discrim~
ination. It is an unfair trade practice
for any member of the industry engaged
in commerce, in the course of such com-
merce, to grant or allow, secretly or
openly, directly or indirectly, any rebate,
so-called,“heel” refund, or other refund,
discount, credit, or other form of price
differential, where such rebate, so-called
“heel” refund, or other refund, discount,
credit, or other form of price differential,
effects a discrimination in price between
different purchasers of goods of like
grade and quality, where either or any
of the purchases involved therein are in
commerce, and where the effect thereof
Trade Commission § 164.14
may be substantially to lessen competi-
tion or tend to create a monopoly in any
line of commerce, or to injure, destroy, or
prevent competition with any person who
either grants or knowingly receives the
benefit of such discrimination, or with
customers of either of-them: Provided,
however, (1) That the goods invoived in
any such transaction are sold for use,
consumption, or resale within any place
under the jurisdiction of the United
States; -
(2) That nothing contained in this
section shall prevent differentials which
make only due allowance for differences
in the cost of manufacture, sale, or deliv-
ery resulting from the differing meth-
ods or quantities in which such com-
Modities are to such purchasers sold or
delivered:
(3) That nothing contained in this
section shall prevent persons engaged in
selling goods, wares, or merchandise itn
commerce from selecting their own cus-
tomers in bona fide transactions and not
in restraint of trade;
(4) That nothing contained in this
section shall prevent, price changes from
time to time where made, in response to
changing conditions affecting either (1)
the market for the goods concerned, or
di) the marketability of the goods, such
as, but not limited to, actual or im~-
minent deterforation of perishable goods,
obsolescence of seasonal goods, distress.
sales under court process, or sales in
good faith in discontinuance of busi-
ness fn the goods concerned.
(b) Prohibited brokerage and commis~
stons. It is an unfair trade practice for
any member of the industry engaged in
- commerce, in the course of such com-
59
Merce, to pay or grant, or to receive or
accept, anything of value as a commis-~
sion, brokerage, or other compensation,
or any allowance or discount in lieu
thereof, except for services rendered in
connection with the sale or purchase of
goods, wares, or merchandise, either to
the other party to such transaction or
to an agent, representative, or other in-
termediary therein where such inter-
mediary is acting in fact for or in be-
half, or is subject to the direct or in-~
direct control, of any party to such
transaction other than the person by
whom such compensation is so granted
or paid.
(c) Prohibited advertising or promo-~
tional allowances, etc. It is an unfair
§ 164.15
trade practice for any member of the
industry engaged in commerce to pay
or contract for the payment of advertis-
ing or promotional allowances or any
other thing of value to or for the bene-
fit of a customer of such member in the
course of such commerce as compensa-
tion or in consideration for any serv-
ices or facilities furnished by or through
such customer in connection with the
processing, handling, sale, or offering for
sale of any products or commodities
manufactured, sold, or offered for sale
by such member, unless such payment
or consideration is available on pro-
portionally equal terms to all other cus-
tomers competing in the distribution of
such products or commodities.
(a) Prohibited discriminatory services
or facititiés. It is an unfair trade prac-
‘tice for any member of the industry to
‘discriminate in favor of one purchaser
-against another purchaser or purchas-
ers of a commodity bought for resale,
‘with or without processing, by contract
‘ing to furnish or furnishing, or by con-
tributing to the furnishing of, any serv-
%ees or facilities connected with the proc-
essing, handling, sale, or offering for
sale of such commodity so purchased
upon terms not accorded to all purchas-
ers on proportionally equal terms.
(e) Inducing or receiving an illegal
discrimination in price. It is an unfair
trade practice for any member of the
industry engaged in commerce, in the
course of such commerce, knowingly to
induce or receive a discrimination in
price which is prohibited by the foregoing
provisions of this section.
(1) Purchases by schools, colleges,
universities, public Ubraries, churches,
hospitals, and charitable institutions not
operated for profit. The foregoing pro-
visions of this section relate to practices
within the purview of the Robinson-Pat-
man Antidiscrimination Act, which act
and the appHcation thereunder of this
section are subject to the limitations ex-
pressed in the amendment to such Rob-
{nson-Patman Antidiscrimination Act,
which amendment was approved May 26,
1938, and reads as follows:
Be tt enacted by the Senate and House of
Representatives of the Untted States of
America tn Congress assembled, That noth-
ing in the Act approved June 19, 1936 (Pub-
lic, Numbered 692, Seventy-fourth Congress,
second session), known as the Robinson-
Patman Antidiscrimination Act, shall apply
to purchases of their supplies for thelr own
Title 16—Commerclal Practices
use by schools, colleges, universities, ptibiid
libraries, churches, hospitals, and charitable
institutions not operated for profit.
(Sec. 2, 38 Stat. 730, as amended, secs. 2, 3, 4,
49 Stat. 1627, 1528, ch, 283, 52 Stat. 446; 15
U.8.C. 13, 18a, 138b, 180, 21a)
§ 164.15 Discrimination as to return of
cylinders or containers, and discrimi-
nation in refunding of deposits on
cylinders or containers.
It is an unfair trade practice for any
member of the industry engaged in com-
merce to discriminate in favor of one
customer-purchaser against another
customer-purchaser of industry prod-
ucts, bought from such member of the
industry for resale, by contracting to
furnish or furnishing in connection
therewith:
(a) The service or facility whereby
such favored purchaser is accorded the
right or privilege of retaining refrigerant
eylinders or containers on more favor-
able conditions, including longer periods
of time, than those accorded other cus-
tomer-purchasers and upon terms not
accorded to all customer-purchasers on
proportionally equal terms; or
(b) The service or facility whereby
such favored purchaser is accorded the
right or privilege of receiving the return
of deposits or allowances upon terms not
accorded to all customer-purchasers on
proportionally equal terms. :
Group IT
§ 164.101 Return of cylinders.
(a) Recognizing that the rate of cyl-
inder return affects the cost of marketing
refrigerants, and desiring to give the
best possible service at the lowest pos-
. Sible cost to the purchaser, the industry
60
seeks to encourage prompt return of
empty cylinders.
(b) Cylinders that do not circulate
freely and are thus used for storage by
purchasers of the refrigerant greatly in-
crease the cost and difficulty of doing
business. The industry recommends that
such cylinders, if not returned after a
reasonable period of time, may prop-
erly be considered the property of the
purchasers of the refrigerant and be-
Yleves a delay of more than 2 years in
making such return an unreasonable
length of time for this purpose.
§ 164.102 Unwarranted return of mer
chandise.
The practice, by members of the
industry, of selling meicthandise and
Chapter l—Federal
later permitting the purchaser to return
it for credit or refund of purchase price,
without just cause, creates waste and
loss, increases the cost of doing business
to the detriment of both the industry
and the public, and is condemned by the
industry, subject, however, to the re-
quirements and limitations set forth in
the provisions of §§ 164.14 and 164.15 of
Group I, herein, and subject also to the
general limitation that members of the
industry shall not engage in any com-
bination or conspiracy in restraint of
trade, or use any other illegal methods
in the regulation, control, or prevention
of the return of merchandise,
§ 164.103 Differentiating between
wholesale and retail transactions.
Where products of the industry are
sold at wholesale and retail in the same
establishment, the failure on the part of
such concern correctly to differentiate
between or identify the two types of
transactions, where the result may be to
create confusion and deception as to the
character of the transaction in the minds
of purchasers or prospective purchasers,
is condemned by the industry.
§ 164.104 Dissemination of credit in-
formation.
The industry records its approval
of the distribution among members of
the industry of information converting
delinquent and slow credit accounts in-
sofar as such may be lawfully done.
PART 165—ARTIFICIAL LIMB
INDUSTRY
Group I
Sec.
166. Deception (general).
165.2 Disclosures to be made before sale,
165.3 Representation or promise that prod-
uct will “fit”.
165.4 Protection of public with respect to
apparent agency.
165.5 Deceptive testimonials or depictions.
165.6 Deceptive demonstrations.
165.7. Misuse of terms “custom made,” “cus-
tom built,” “tailored,” etc.
165.8 Guarantees, warranties, etc.
165.9 Misrepresenting products as conform-
ing to standard.
165.10 Deception as to rebuilt or second-
hand products.
165.11 Substitution of products.
165.12 False invoicing.
165.13 Misrepresentation as to installment
sales contracts, their terms, condi-
tions, etc.
165.14 Misrepresentation as to character of
business.
Trade Commission § 165.7
Bec.
165.15 Deception through failure to differ-
entiate between wholesale and re-
tail transactions.
Defamation of competitors or dispar-
agement of their products.
Procurement of competitors’ confi-
dential information by unfair~
means and wrongful use thereof.
Unfair threats of infringement suits.
Deceptive use of trade or corporate
names, trade-marks, etc.
Misuse of the word “free,” etc.
Coercing purchase of one product as
a@ prerequisite to the purchase of
other products.
Fictitious prices.
Inducing breach of contract.
Enticing away employees of competi-
tors.
165.16
165.17
165.18
165.19
165.20
165.21
165.22
165.23
165.24
165.25 Combination or coercion to fix prices,
suppress competition, or restrain
trade.
165.26 Discrimination.
165.27 Aiding cr abetting use of unfair trade
practices.
Group II
165.101 Disapproval of solicitation when
benefits unlikely.
165.102 Cooperation with doctors.
165.103 Importance of personal fitting.
165.104 Minimizing importance of “fit” by
exploitation of less important
features.
165.105 Sharing of improved techniques.
AuTHoriry: The provisions of this Part 166
issued under secs. 6(g), 5, 37 Stat. 722, 719;
15 U.S.C. 46(g), 45, unless otherwise noted.
Source: The provisions of this Part 165
appear at 11 F.R. 4147, Apr. 16, 1946, unless
otherwise noted.
Group I
§ 165.1 Deception (general).
(a) It is an unfair trade practice to
sell, offer for sale, or distribute any ine
dustry product, or promote the sale or
distribution thereof, by any method or
under any circumstance or condition
which has the capacity and tendency or
effect of deceiving purchasers or prospec=
tive purchasers as to the construction,
composition, design, model, origin, mane
ufacture, value, quality, weight, absence
of noise in operation, strength, dura-
bility, life expectancy, appearance, fit,
comfort, alignment, utility, ease of op-
eration, or safety to wearer, of such
product, or in any other materia}
respect; or to mislead purchasers or
prospective purchasers with respect to
the need for repair, maintenance, or
replacement of parts, of such product
61