Mar 27, 2020 | Consumer Protection, Employment & Technology Archive
California Attorney General Issues Consumer Alert on Fraudulent Charities During Coronavirus – COVID-19 Public Health Emergency
Kehoe Law Firm, P.C. is making consumers aware that on March 26, 2020, the California Attorney General issued a consumer alert to warn Californians about fraudulent charities during the COVID-19 public health emergency. The California Attorney General advised all Californians to research charities before making any donation, particularly during a time of crisis. The California Attorney General provided the following donation tips:
- Check Registration Status: Charities operating in California and telemarketers soliciting donations in California are required to register with the Attorney General’s Registry of Charitable Trusts. They are also required to file annual financial reports. Confirm that the charity is registered and up-to-date with their financial reporting by searching the Attorney General’s Registry of Charitable Trusts at www.oag.ca.gov/charities.
- Give to Organizations You Trust: Do your research before giving. Review the charity’s purpose and its financial records, available on the Attorney General’s Registry of Charitable Trusts, and find out how it spends donations. How much is spent directly on the charitable cause? How much goes to overhead and employee compensation? Research charities in your community and support those charities that make a positive impact.
- Don’t Be Pressured By Telemarketers And Ask Questions Before Donating: If you receive a call from a telemarketer, ask for the name of the fundraising organization, whether it is registered with the Attorney General’s Office, the name of the charity benefitting from the solicitation, how much of your donation will go to charity and how much to the telemarketer, and the direct telephone number of the charity. If the telemarketer tells you the donation is for your local animal shelter, hospital, school, police department, firefighter or other public safety agency, check directly with the benefitting organization to confirm that they authorized the solicitation and will actually benefit from your donation. Don’t fall for pressure tactics or threats. Remember you have the right to reject the donation appeal and if you feel pressured or threatened, just hang up.
- Be Cautious Of “Look-Alike” Websites: These fraudulent websites may have a slightly different web address (URL). Similar looking URLs are sometimes purchased to lure in would-be donors. These sites may ask for personal information or install harmful material onto your device.
- Watch Out For Similar-Sounding Names And Other Deceptive Tactics: Some organizations use names that closely resemble those of well-established charitable organizations to mislead donors. Be skeptical if someone thanks you for a pledge you never made. Check your records. Remember: current registration status with the Attorney General’s Office does not mean the Attorney General endorses or has approved the activities of the organization.
- Be Wary Of Social Network and Crowdfunding Websites: If you are planning to donate through a social network solicitation or through a crowdsourcing website, such as GoFundMe, find out what percentage is going to the charity, whether you will be charged a fee, or if a percentage of your donation will be paid to the platform website.
- Protect Your Identity: Never give your Social Security number or other personal information in response to a charitable solicitation. Never give out credit card information to an organization unfamiliar to you. Some organizations sell or rent their donor lists to other organizations, including organizations that are not charities. Look at the charity’s privacy policy and learn who the charity might share your information with before you provide it.
Source: State of California Department of Justice, Office of the Attorney General – OAG.CA.gov
Mar 26, 2020 | Consumer Protection, Employment & Technology Archive
Kehoe Law Firm, P.C. is making consumers aware of the following class action lawsuit filings:
Verde Energy USA, Inc.
Class action lawsuit filed against Verde Energy USA, Inc. on March 25, 2020 in United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas, Houston Division, alleging violations of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act.
According to the complaint, Verde Energy USA’s “telemarketing efforts include the use of automated calls to send prerecorded messages.” The Plaintiff, allegedly, received an “unsolicited, prerecorded phone call on his cellular telephone number from, or on behalf of[,] Defendant [Verde Energy USA].” The Plaintiff, according to the complaint, received the call from telephone number (215) 619-9124, and the call Plaintiff received “used a pre-recorded voice and stated that Defendant [Verde Energy USA] was calling to offer Plaintiff discounted electricity and natural gas.”
Nuvision Federal Credit Union and Denali
Class action lawsuit filed against Nuvision Federal Credit Union and Denali on March 24, 2020 in United Sates District Court, Central District of California, alleging violations of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act.
According to the complaint, Defendants Nuvision Federal Credit Union and Denali “regularly called [the Plaintiff’s] cellular telephone number . . . without his consent,” and “[o]n each of the calls, Defendants sought to collect a debt from someone who is not [the Plaintiff].” Allegedly, even though the Plaintiff told the Defendants that Plaintiff “was not the person Defendants [were] looking for[,] . . . Defendants [Nuvision Federal Credit Union and Denali] continued to harass [the Plaintiff] with calls.” Telephone number (907) 339-2550 was identified in the complaint as a number which contacted the Plaintiff’s cellular telephone.
Coconut Funding, LLC
Class action lawsuit filed against Coconut Funding, LLC on March 25, 2020 in United States District Court, Central District of California, alleging violations of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act.
According to the complaint, “Coconut Funding placed a [marketing] robocall to Plaintiff’s cellular telephone number.” The complaint identified (530) 231-5111 as the telephone number which called Plaintiff’s cell phone without the Plaintiff’s “prior express written consent to receive automatic robocalls by using an automatic telephone dialing system.”
Titan Mutual Lending, Inc.
Class action lawsuit filed against Titan Mutual Lending, Inc. on March 24, 2020 in United States District Court, Southern District of California, alleging violations of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act.
According to the complaint, Titan Mutual Lending, “between December 29, 2018 and April 25, 2019, . . . placed at least four unsolicited marketing calls, advertising its services to Plaintiff’s cellular telephone.” The complaint identified (619) 382-3846 as the telephone number which contacted Plaintiff’s cell phone “without Plaintiff’s prior express written consent or permission.”
Do You Believe You Are a Victim of Illegal Robocalls, Text Messages, “Junk” Faxes or Telemarketing Sales Calls?
If you have received illegal robocalls, text messages, “junk” faxes or telemarketing sales calls, you may be able to recover at least $500 for each illegal call, text or fax you received and, possibly, as much as $1,500 for each illegal call, text message or facsimile that was made either willfully or knowingly in violation of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act.
To help evaluate your potential legal claims under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, please complete KLF’s confidential Robocall Questionnaire or, if you prefer to speak with an attorney, please complete the form above on the right, e-mail [email protected] or contact Michael Yarnoff, Esq., [email protected], (215) 792-6676, Ext. 804, for a free, no-obligation evaluation of your potential legal rights.
Mar 25, 2020 | Consumer Protection, Employment & Technology Archive
Class Action Lawsuit Filed Against JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. For Allegedly Making Robocalls in Violation of The Telephone Consumer Protection Act
On March 24, 2020, a class action lawsuit was filed against “J.P. Morgan Chase Bank, N.A.” in United States District Court, Southern District of New York, for, allegedly, placing numerous robocalls to the Plaintiff in violation of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act.
According to the complaint, “[i]n or around September 2019, Plaintiff began receiving numerous calls to her . . . cellular telephone number from Chase seeking to recover a debt relating to . . . her deceased grandfather.” The Plaintiff, allegedly, was robocalled by Chase from telephone numbers (847) 488-2001, (888) 293-5321, and (847) 488-3078 without the Plaintiff’s express consent.
Do You Believe You Are a Victim of Illegal Robocalls, Text Messages, “Junk” Faxes or Telemarketing Sales Calls?
If you have received illegal robocalls, text messages, “junk” faxes or telemarketing sales calls, you may be able to recover at least $500 for each illegal call, text or fax you received and, possibly, as much as $1,500 for each illegal call, text message or facsimile that was made either willfully or knowingly in violation of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act.
To help evaluate your potential legal claims under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, please complete KLF’s confidential Robocall Questionnaire or, if you prefer to speak with an attorney, please complete the form above on the right, e-mail [email protected] or contact Michael Yarnoff, Esq., [email protected], (215) 792-6676, Ext. 804, for a free, no-obligation evaluation of your potential legal rights.
Mar 25, 2020 | Consumer Protection, Employment & Technology Archive
Class Action Lawsuit Filed Against Business Capital Consultants Corp. For Alleged Violations of The Telephone Consumer Protection Act
Kehoe Law Firm, P.C. is making consumers aware that on March 24, 2020, a class action lawsuit was filed against Business Capital Consultants Corp. in United States District Court, Central District of California, for, allegedly, “knowingly, and/or willfully placed unsolicited automated text messages to Plaintiff’s cellular phone in violation of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act.”
According to the class action complaint, Business Capital Consultants Corp. sent the Plaintiff an unsolicited text message to the Plaintiff’s cell phone from short code 48782. The complaint contained the following image of the alleged unsolicited text message the Plaintiff received from Business Capital Consultants Corp.:
Do You Believe You Are a Victim of Illegal Robocalls, Text Messages, “Junk” Faxes or Telemarketing Sales Calls?
If you have received illegal robocalls, text messages, “junk” faxes or telemarketing sales calls, you may be able to recover at least $500 for each illegal call, text or fax you received and, possibly, as much as $1,500 for each illegal call, text message or facsimile that was made either willfully or knowingly in violation of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act.
To help evaluate your potential legal claims under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, please complete KLF’s confidential Robocall Questionnaire or, if you prefer to speak with an attorney, please complete the form above on the right, e-mail [email protected] or contact Michael Yarnoff, Esq., [email protected], (215) 792-6676, Ext. 804, for a free, no-obligation evaluation of your potential legal rights.
Mar 24, 2020 | Consumer Protection, Employment & Technology Archive
FTC Sending Refunds Totaling More Than $6.9 Million To Small Businesses, Non-Profits, And Government Agencies Targeted By An Office Supply Telemarketing Scam
Kehoe Law Firm, P.C. is making consumers aware that the Federal Trade Commission announced that it is sending refunds totaling more than $6.9 million to small businesses, non-profits, and government agencies targeted by an office supply telemarketing scam that charged them for products they did not order. The FTC alleged that defendants’ victims included child care centers, schools, and police and fire departments.
According to the FTC, Telestar Consulting Inc. and Karl Wesley Angel offered an initial shipment represented either as free or as a low-cost “good deal.” If the consumer agreed to make a purchase, the defendants did not disclose the total cost, quantity, or terms of the sale. The FTC alleged that Telestar, d/b/a United Business Supply, and, subsequently, as Kleritec, also sent additional shipments of merchandise without obtaining the consumer’s agreement.
When consumers challenged the invoices they received or did not pay promptly, the defendants, according to the FTC, threatened to send them to “collections.” Those consumers who paid, mistakenly believing they had to pay, often received even more unordered merchandise and bills for payment.
The FTC has begun mailing 13,181 refund checks averaging $525 each to the victims of the scam. Refund recipients, according to the FTC, should deposit or cash their checks within 60 days, as indicated on the check. The FTC never requires people to pay money or provide account information to cash a refund check. If recipients have questions about the refunds, they should contact the FTC’s refund administrator, Rust Consulting, Inc., at (800) 870-7192.
The FTC’s new interactive dashboards for refund data provide a state-by-state breakdown of these refunds. In 2019, FTC actions led to more than $232 million in refunds to consumers across the country.
Source: Federal Trade Commission – FTC.gov
Mar 24, 2020 | Consumer Protection, Employment & Technology Archive
Class Action Lawsuit Filed Against Progressive Management Systems Over Alleged Debt Collection Calls in Violation of The Telephone Consumer Protection Act
Kehoe Law Firm, P.C. is making consumers aware that on March 23, 2020, a class action lawsuit was filed against Progressive Management Systems in United States District Court, Central District of California, for, allegedly, “negligently, knowingly, and/or willfully contacting Plaintiff on Plaintiff’s cellular telephone, in violation of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act.”
According to the complaint, the Plaintiff incurred a debt to a third party sometime before December 4, 2017. The Plaintiff “fell behind” on the debt payments, and the debt was “placed, assigned, or otherwise transferred to [Progressive Management Systems] for collection purposes.” The Plaintiff, according to the complaint, filed for bankruptcy, and “[o]n or around March 7, 2018, Plaintiff’s [d]ebts [were] discharged pursuant to a court order that was mailed to Defendant by the bankruptcy court,” and “following March 7, 2018, Plaintiff had no account and existing debt with [Progressive Management Systems].”
The complaint alleges that Progressive Management Systems “placed at least three calls to Plaintiff’s cellular telephone, using a pre-recorded message” from telephone number (866) 767-2296 in 2019. The complaint alleges that the calls to Plaintiff “were not in connection with any existing debt” and “were unsolicited and not in response to an inquiry from Plaintiff.”
Do You Believe You Are a Victim of Illegal Robocalls, Text Messages, “Junk” Faxes or Telemarketing Sales Calls?
If you have received illegal robocalls, text messages, “junk” faxes or telemarketing sales calls, you may be able to recover at least $500 for each illegal call, text or fax you received and, possibly, as much as $1,500 for each illegal call, text message or facsimile that was made either willfully or knowingly in violation of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act.
To help evaluate your potential legal claims under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, please complete KLF’s confidential Robocall Questionnaire or, if you prefer to speak with an attorney, please complete the form above on the right, e-mail [email protected] or contact Michael Yarnoff, Esq., [email protected], (215) 792-6676, Ext. 804, for a free, no-obligation evaluation of your potential legal rights.
