Greg Abbott
AUSTIN, Texas (Legal Newsline) - Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott on Friday filed the state's first lawsuit against a prepaid calling card company.
The complaint, filed in Bexar County, allege that Next-G Communication, Inc. produces, sells and distributes prepaid calling cards throughout Texas but consistently fails to deliver the number of minutes it advertises to customers.
"Texas consumers who rely on prepaid calling cards for their long distance needs should be getting what they are promised," Abbott said in a statement.
The attorney general's office said state investigators independently tested the cards for their minutes. They found that Next-G's calling cards consistently failed to deliver either the number of minutes on the advertising posters or the number of minutes consumers are told when processing a call.
Abbott also claims that the calling cards and the Houston-based company's advertising posters contain "vague" disclosures about fees and additional charges, court papers say.
Among other things, the posters say a 99-cent per-call service charge may apply for calls places at payphones, and that the company charges a 25 percent service fee, the complaint reads.
The attorney general is seeing a temporary and permanent injunction against the company for deceptive marketing and civil penalties of up to $20,000 per violation of the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act.
From Legal Newsline: Reach reporter Chris Rizo by e-mail at chrisrizo@legalnewsline.com.