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women getting money from FTC refundConsumers may soon be receiving a portion of $380,000 in refund checks from the FTC due to a settlement regarding scam business coaching services.

On July 8, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) sent out 1,177 refund checks worth a total of $380,000.

The consumers receiving these checks purchased business coaching from companies that allegedly use deceptive marketing to push buying decisions.

The FTC filed their lawsuit against numerous business coaching companies in May 2018. The complaint included claims against Vision Solution Marketing LLC and subsidiaries VSM Group LLC, Ryze Services LLC, and Specialized Consulting Solutions. Jared Rodabaugh and Justin Larsen, the owners of the businesses, were also named in the business coaching scam lawsuit.

According to the FTC, the businesses used deceptive marketing techniques to advertise their services. When consumers contact the businesses coaching companies, the companies allegedly rely on several misrepresentations to make their services seem more desirable.

By telling customers that they are screening for participants and that there are limited spots available, consumers reportedly believe that the services are reputable.

During the purchase process, Vision Solution Marketing allegedly requests personal consumer information including income, savings, debts, account balances, and credit card limits.

Although the company claims that this information helps evaluate a consumer’s qualifications, VSM reportedly uses these metrics to determine how much they can charge for their services.

VSM allegedly makes further misrepresentations about the success of consumers after using their business coaching services, claiming that the “expected range” of income is between $3,000 and $5,000.

According to the FTC, one representative said that their Upsell Services were foolproof, claiming: “We don’t have any students we’ve built the business for that have ever failed […] There’s literally no way to fail. As long as you have the right help, you’re going to be fine.”

Additionally, VSM allegedly says that they had special access to corporate credit lenders – meaning that consumers won’t be personally liable. However, the company reportedly lies about their access, meaning that consumers are forced to pay for expensive business coaching services with their personal credit cards.

The FTC’s marketing lawsuit claimed that these techniques were deceiving and caused consumers to spend up to $13,995 on disappointing products. Instead of developing a thriving business, consumers were allegedly left with little to no new earning capacity and loads of debt.

As a result, the federal commission brought legal claims that the company violated the FTC Act and the Telemarketing Sales Rule. The settlement between the FTC and the defendants resolves these claims and allows customers to receive refund checks.

Consumers who receive FTC checks have 60 days to deposit or cash the checks. If individuals think they should be included in the payments but have not received a check, they can contact refund administrator Rust Consulting Inc. at 1-877-456-1189.

In the business coaching class action, the FTC was represented in house by Darren H. Lubetzky, Christopher Y. Miller, and Savvas S. Diacosavvas.

The Business Coaching Lawsuit is Federal Trade Commission v. Vision Solution Marketing LLC, et al., Case No. 2:18-cv-00356-CW, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Utah.

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11 thoughts onFTC Refunding $380,000 to Business Coaching Scam Victims

  1. Pamela Todd says:

    Add me please

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