Beck's Facing Lawsuit over Promotion

April 14, 2010  by in UnCategorized   

By Home Furnishings Business in Legal on April 15, 2010

Customers of Beck's Furniture have sued the retailer in Sacramento Superior Court over a free grocery promotion at Beck's stores in California.

The suit, filed Tuesday, alleges unfair competition, false advertising, negligent misrepresentation and fraud in the marketing and advertizing the promotion.

Last summer, Beck's had turned management of the promotion over to Chicago-based My Free Travel after the original marketing company BBZ Resource Management of Mesa, Ariz., filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy. According to a CBS-13 story, My Free Travel stopped honoring the vouchers in December.

According to a press release from the plaintiffs, the Beck's advertised that customers purchasing $497 in furniture would receive $500 in free groceries. The complaint alleges that the advertisements did not disclose the fact that there was an initial fee of $9.95 to enroll in the program. Further, only $25 worth of groceries could be redeemed per month; in order to receive the $25 rebate one had to purchase $100 in groceries.

"Our complaint alleges that the advertisement program that the company put on TV and in the newspapers was not the program customers received," said Eric Kingsley, attorney for plaintiffs.