Class Action Lawsuit Targets Vertrue’s “Savings Clubs”

A class action lawsuit has been filed against MyLife.com, MasterCard International Inc., Vertrue Inc., Adaptive Marketing LLC, Velo Holdings and Oak Investment Partners, claiming that these companies trick consumers into joining bogus “consumer savings clubs” run by Vertrue.

The class action lawsuit alleges that the defendants make money by charging consumers “membership” fees for these “savings clubs,” which most consumers never actually make use of. Once they learn of the fraudulent charges, they typically cancel their subscriptions immediately.

According to the class action lawsuit, when consumers purchase goods and services from sites run by Vertrue and its online partners, they are presented with confusing advertisements for Vertrue’s “savings clubs.” Consumers allegedly click through these ads, not realizing that they have subscribed to the club until they find out they have been charged a recurring monthly fee of $20 or more. The plaintiffs allege that Vertrue’s business model is built on this deception, and that the other named defendants are co-conspirators who profit from Vertrue’s fraudulent activities.

Vertrue’s “savings clubs” are administered by its subsidiaries, according to the class action lawsuit. These “savings clubs” include:

• At Home Rewards
• At Home Rewards+
• BusinessMax
• Cross Country Savings
• DealMax
• Home Savings Mall
• Food and Flix
• Getaway and Save
• Leisure Exclusive
• My Great Deals
• Passport to Fun
• Passport to Fun+
• SavingsAce
• SavingSmart
• Shopping Essentials
• Shopping Essentials+
• Simply You
• Today’s Escapes
• Today’s Escapes+
• ValueMax
• Your Savings Club

Allegedly, Vertrue provides consumers’ credit card information to MasterCard, which verifies the consumer’s identity and transmits the data to the cardholder’s issuing bank. If the issuing bank authorizes the transaction, the fraudulent funds are sent to Vertrue. The class action lawsuit alleges that all of the defendants are aware of this fraudulent scheme but continue to participate because it allows them to receive significant transaction fees.

The Vertrue savings club lawsuit was filed on behalf of all U.S. consumers who have been harmed by the defendants’ practices.

This class action lawsuit is not the first to hit back at companies that enroll consumers in “membership” programs without their knowledge or consent. In February, a California federal judge certified a class action lawsuit accusing ZaaZoom Solutions LLC of using the bank account information of consumers applying for payday loans online to automatically enroll them in online coupon membership programs. In 2011, Vertrue and Adaptive Marketing reached a class action settlement over claims that the companies used telemarketers to enroll consumers into membership programs and charge them fees without their prior written consent.

The plaintiffs are represented by Webb Klasse & Lemond LLC.

The Vertrue Savings Club Class Action Lawsuit is Chi v. Vertrue Inc., et al., Case No. 1:14-cv-00614-TWT, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia.