Tag: Credit & Loan Offers

The Federal Trade Commission and a group of 18 states sued national jewelry retailer Harris Jewelry to stop the company from cheating military families with illegal financing and sales practices. According to the complaint, the jewelry company deceptively claimed that financing jewelry purchases through Harris would raise servicemembers’ credit scores, misrepresented that its protection plans were not optional or were required, and added the plans to purchases without consumers’ consent. The complaint also includes a charge that the jewelry company violated the Military Lending Act, the FTC’s first action under this Act.

A federal court has ordered Harris Jewelry to reopen its claims process and renotify consumers, most of whom are active duty servicemembers, to submit their claims for refunds. The court found Harris Jewelry violated its prior settlement with the Federal Trade Commission and a multistate group led by the New York Attorney General’s Office by prematurely shutting down the claims portal.

The new claims process is open for 33 days, starting November 18, 2024 and ending Saturday, December 21, 2024.  

A lead generation company that collected sensitive information from millions of consumers under the guise of connecting them with lenders will pay $1.5 million in civil penalties and face restrictions on their operations as a result of a Federal Trade Commission lawsuit.

The FTC’s complaint alleges that since at least 2012, ITMedia Solutions LLC, a number of affiliate companies, and their owners and officers have operated hundreds of websites that were designed to entice consumers into sharing their most sensitive financial information—including their Social Security numbers and bank account information. The defendants sold that information to marketing companies and others without regard for how the information would be used, according to the complaint.

Two Nevada companies and two individuals have agreed to stop charging consumers thousands of dollars to apply for multiple credit cards in their names in order to pay for expensive and often ineffective training programs under a proposed settlement of a Federal Trade Commission lawsuit.

The FTC filed a federal court complaint along with a proposed settlement which requires the defendants to stop obtaining credit cards for consumers for a fee. In addition, the defendants will be required to pay $2.1 million under the proposed settlement, which will be distributed by the FTC to consumers.

In September 2021, The Federal Trade Commission sent checks totaling more than $2 million to consumers who were harmed by the company.