Andrew Cuomo (D)
NEW YORK (Legal Newsline) - New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo said Tuesday that his office has reached a settlement from a local auto parts dealer over allegations the company failed to deliver purchased merchandise to customers.
Rhino Engines and Transmission, a division of Blue Ventures Solutions Inc. allegedly promised customers that any products ordered through their web site would be delivered within a week to ten days; however, many customers never received products or refunds, according to Cuomo.
Under the terms of the agreement, the company must pay $40,000 into a fund that will reimburse customers who never received their ordered parts.
The company must also pay $2,000 in penalties, fees and cost to the state, as well overhaul its business practices.
The attorney general's office said in a written statement that in order to be eligible for a refund, customers must have made a purchase they did not receive from Rhino Engines between Dec. 1, 2007, and Jan. 1, 2009.
"The rules for doing business on the internet are the same as those for doing business in a store - you cheat your customers, you face the legal repercussions," Cuomo said.
Fairport, N.Y.-based Rhino Engines and Transmission is a retail auto parts dealer that sells reconditioned automobile parts, engines and drive trains via the Internet and phone.