Sale of Goods Act

I spent a little time studying consumer law when my career path was looking uncertain, having previously studied it as part of a Business qualification, and the studies have stood me in good stead when it comes to knowing my rights as a consumer.
However many consumers are ignorant of the rights that the Sale of Goods Act offers. I find knowledge of the actual legislation gives particular weight to your argument when making a complaint (should you be forced to do so). In particular if you use the full and correct name of the act: Sale of Goods Act 1979 - (my tutor was always keen that we should use the date to show that we knew the full details of the legislation) generally whoever you are addressing will probably assume you know what you are talking about.
Of course, there are always those traders who don't care how they treat their clients, but the majority will want to ensure they stay on the right side of their clients whilst staying on the right side of the law.
It is worth noting that this legislation comes under the heading 'civil law' rather than 'criminal law', so calling the police to resolve a consumer dispute is not appropriate. That said, you will still hear irate consumers threatening to call the police because they want a refund for a hat that doesn't fit!
Knowing a little about the Sale of Goods Act 1979 and the sale of goods and services act 1982 will not protect you from rogue traders, but it will give you the confidence of knowing when the law is protecting you, and when it is protecting the tradesman.
It is also worth noting that the law protects you when you are buying online, but has limited powers if you buy used goods from individuals rather than new goods from business traders.