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Can I advertise my products or services without violating truth-in-advertising laws in South Carolina? What are the requirements?

Advertising Requirements in South Carolina

To advertise your products or services in South Carolina, you must comply with the state’s truth-in-advertising laws. These laws prohibit false, misleading, or deceptive advertising practices [2.1].

Federal Truth in Lending Act

If the Federal Truth in Lending Act imposes duties or obligations on you, you must comply with that act and provide the disclosures, information, and notices required by it [2.1][2.2].

Advertising Content

When advertising a consumer credit sale, you may not make any false, misleading, or deceptive statements or representations regarding the rates, terms, or conditions of credit [2.2].

Outdoor Advertising Signs

If you plan to use outdoor advertising signs, you must comply with the regulations outlined in SCCL 57-25-430. No outdoor advertising sign shall be erected or maintained within three hundred feet of the nearest edge of the right-of-way and visible from the main-traveled way of the highway, except for certain exceptions. Signs shall not be permitted in any of the above categories which imitate or resemble any official traffic sign, signal or device; signs which are erected or maintained upon trees or are printed or drawn upon rocks or other natural features; or signs which are in disrepair. No sign permitted under this section shall contain, include, or be illuminated by any flashing, intermittent, or moving light or lights, except those giving public service information, such as time, date, temperature, weather, or other similar information. Also, no such sign permitted under this section shall be erected or maintained which is not effectively shielded so as to prevent beams or rays of light from being directed at any portion of the main-traveled way of the highway and which is of such intensity or brilliance as to cause glare or to impair the vision of the driver of any motor vehicle, or which may otherwise interfere with any driver’s operation of a motor vehicle. No such sign may be so illuminated that it interferes with the effectiveness of or obscures an official traffic sign, device or signal [4.1].

Penalties

If you violate the advertising regulations in South Carolina, you may be subject to fines, imprisonment, or civil penalties [3.2][3.3][3.4].

Therefore, to advertise your products or services in South Carolina, you must ensure that your advertising is not false, misleading, or deceptive, and that it complies with the regulations outlined in SCCL 39-15-910, SCCL 57-25-430, and the Federal Truth in Lending Act.

Source(s):
Jurisdiction

South Carolina