McGraw
CHARLESTON, W.Va. - Attorney General Darrell McGraw has filed a suit against DirectBuy over its high-pressure sales practices.
Assistant Attorney General Matthew Stonestreet said Wednesday that Indiana-based DirectBuy Inc., the local franchise DirectBuy of Charleston-Huntington and its President Timothy Parker were named as defendants in the Kanawha Circuit Court case regarding unlawful, coercive, deceptive, and high-pressure sales practices.
Soon after the local DirectBuy opened in 2009 in Cross Lanes, McGraw's office began receiving complaints from consumers that the discount buying club "pressured them into purchasing memberships costing thousands of dollars."
A release from the AG's office says DirectBuy coerced consumers by offering free trial offers, guaranteeing free gifts, and offering a variety of other promotions.
"When consumers attempted to redeem these offers, they discovered the offers were not available as promised," the release says, "Instead, DirectBuy focused on selling expensive club memberships through a sophisticated and oppressive sales presentation."
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