UNIONTOWN — Attorney General Josh Shapiro today announced charges against a Fayette County funeral home director for stealing $284,393 from his clients — senior citizens who had pre-paid for their own funerals. Shapiro announced the charges at a news conference at the Fayette County Courthouse in Uniontown with District Attorney Rich Bower, whose office investigated […]
PITTSBURGH–Scott W. Brady, United States Attorney for the Western District of Pennsylvania, and Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro today announced the formation of a joint federal and state Western Pennsylvania COVID-19 Fraud Task Force to investigate and prosecute coronavirus-related fraud.
AG’s Bureau of Consumer Protection Saved Consumers More Than $210 Million in 2022 Looking to protect yourself from fraud, identity theft, and scams? Wondering about the best way to improve your credit, shop for a used car, or how to maximize your security online? The Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General has information for you during […]
HARRISBURG—Attorney General Josh Shapiro today announced that Pennsylvania has joined an Anti-Robocall Litigation Task Force of 50 attorneys general to investigate and take legal action against the telecommunications companies responsible for bringing a majority of foreign robocalls into the United States. This bipartisan nationwide Task Force has one goal: to cut down on illegal robocalls.
HARRISBURG —Attorney General Josh Shapiro today announced felony charges against 2 insurance agents in Allegheny and Westmoreland County for insurance fraud. In one case, an agent stole $26,247 from eight clients, including their life insurance proceeds, auto insurance premiums and even a loan. In the other case, the agent submitted 252 phony Medicare supplement […]
HARRISBURG — Attorney General Josh Shapiro today announced a lawsuit against the owner of an appliance-repair business based on claims that he accepted deposits for work which he failed to perform, or that he performed work in a substandard manner.
HARRISBURG — Attorney General Josh Shapiro announced today he is creating a Consumer Financial Protection Unit to better protect Pennsylvania consumers from financial scams, and appointing an experienced consumer protection attorney to lead the initiative. Attorney General Shapiro announced the appointment of Nicholas Smyth, who helped create the federal Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), as […]
WASHINGTON, Pa. — Today, Attorney General Josh Shapiro detailed an array of charges against a Washington County funeral home director charged with stealing $340,000 from her elderly clients in part to support her gambling habit. The arrest of Lynn S. Taucher, 56, of Burgettstown, revealed that over a 9 ½ year period, she collected advance […]
HARRISBURG—As temperatures begin to drop and consumers turn on the heat in their homes, the Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General and the Office of Consumer Advocate are working together to educate consumers, including our seniors, on how to protect themselves against the rising costs of heating and electricity this year.
HARRISBURG —Attorney General Josh Shapiro led a bipartisan group of 42 attorneys general in calling on the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to take further action to stop the growing proliferation of illegal robocalls and spoofing.
AG Shapiro to FCC: “Block these illegal robocalls” HARRISBURG — In a comment to the Federal Communications Commission on Monday, Attorney General Josh Shapiro and a bipartisan coalition of 29 other attorneys general are asking the federal government to adopt rules that will let telephone providers block illegal robocalls being made to consumers in Pennsylvania […]
HARRISBURG — Attorney General Josh Shapiro today announced a lawsuit against an Alabama driveway paving company owner on claims that he sold defective driveway paving services to unsuspecting consumers in Northwestern Pennsylvania from at least 2015 through October 2017.
HARRISBURG — Attorney General Josh Shapiro today announced that the Office of Attorney General has won $500,000 in restitution for Pennsylvania residents scammed by Harbour Portfolio Capital, LLC, affiliated Texas companies, and their leader, Charles A. Vose III. Citizens were deceived by Defendants through entering into unfair and unlawful “for sale by owner” purchases of uninhabitable family homes.
HARRISBURG — Leading a bipartisan coalition of 34 Attorneys General, Attorney General Josh Shapiro today called on the Federal Communications Commission to create new rules to allow telephone service providers to block more illegal robocalls being made to unsuspecting consumers in Pennsylvania and across the country.
HARRISBURG—Attorney General Josh Shapiro today announced a settlement with Ticket Victory, a business owned by Brian Plowcha and based in Indiana, Pennsylvania. Ticket Victory operated from 2015 until 2018 and repeatedly scammed consumers by offering ticket sales to events and concerts without sending the consumer what they paid for.
HARRISBURG”Attorney General Josh Shapiro today announced that his office’s Bureau of Consumer Protection has saved nearly $1.65 million for Pennsylvanians during the COVID-19 crisis. The Bureau of Consumer Protections focuses on mediating complaints from Pennsylvanians who, among other things, have been cheated out of services or products they never received, and during the COVID-19 pandemic were also tasked with assisting consumers who had paid for events, vacations, and camps that were cancelled due to the pandemic.
HARRISBURG — Attorney General Josh Shapiro today announced that his Office has filed a lawsuit against former Mercer County timeshare reseller Groupwise, Inc. and its former officers, Derek J. McGuire and Andrew J. Harkins. The suit alleges that the defendants violated the Consumer Protection Law by failing to honor the terms of their service agreements. The Attorney General’s Bureau of Consumer Protection has received 88 complaints to date against Groupwise, alleging a pattern of misconduct.
HARRISBURG — Attorney General Josh Shapiro today announced a lawsuit against Jeffrey D. Bollinger, a Westmoreland County-based contractor, and two associated businesses, Pa Remodelers LLP and Bathmakeover Pro LLC on claims that the defendant entered into contracts with residential consumers, performed partial and shoddy work, and abandoned the projects after receiving payment.
HARRISBURG—Attorney General Josh Shapiro announced that Rex Barr, owner of Rides Your Way, a non-medical transportation service provider, pleaded guilty to being involved in a scheme to charge Pennsylvanians for non-medical transportation plans that were not medically necessary. He is one of four defendants charged for participating in this scam.
HARRISBURG – Attorney General Josh Shapiro today permanently shut down Equitable Acceptance’s efforts to operate in Pennsylvania, and is requiring the company to cancel nearly $200,000 in debt for its former Commonwealth customers.
The People’s Attorney General Vows to Ensure Integrity, Protect Consumers, Combat Heroin Epidemic, and Safeguard Pennsylvanians’ Rights HARRISBURG, PA – Josh Shapiro was sworn in today as Pennsylvania’s 6th elected Attorney General, vowing to ensure integrity, safeguard Pennsylvanians’ rights, health and safety, and tackle the heroin and opioid epidemic in a comprehensive way. “While I […]
HARRISBURG – Attorney General Josh Shapiro and Fayette County District Attorney Richard Bower today announced a guilty plea by the former Uniontown, Fayette County, funeral home director who pocketed approximately $500,000 worth of pre-need funeral policy payments from 80 victims over a 12-year period. Stephen Kezmarsky, 51, of Uniontown, pleaded guilty Tuesday to Theft by Deception, Theft by Failure to Make Required Disposition of Funds, Forgery and Insurance Fraud.
What should I know about estate planning offers? Pennsylvania consumers, particularly senior citizens, are receiving an increasing number of solicitations from so-called experts offering financial and estate planning services. Consumers need to be aware that these individuals are often nothing more than sales agents looking to sell living trusts or investments that are of questionable […]
HARRISBURG — At a press conference today in Southwest Philadelphia, Attorney General Josh Shapiro announced his Bureau of Consumer Protection is settling a case against a Philadelphia tow company after an investigation that found cars were illegally towed from various locations throughout the city.
HARRISBURG — Pennsylvania consumers are receiving $3 million and Commonwealth agencies will receive an additional $5 million in restitution following the settlement of two consumer protection cases, Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro announced today. “One of my most important responsibilities is fighting to protect Pennsylvania consumers,” Attorney General Josh Shapiro said. “The Office of Attorney […]
HARRISBURG—Attorney General Josh Shapiro today announced that a coalition of 51 attorneys general reached an agreement with 12 major phone companies to fight illegal robocalls. The companies—AT&T, Bandwidth, CenturyLink, Charter, Comcast, Consolidated, Frontier, Sprint, T-Mobile, US Cellular, Verizon, and Windstream—have agreed to adopt eight principles targeted at improving prevention and enforcement of illegal robocalls.
HARRISBURG–Acting Attorney General Michelle Henry today announced that Michael Bloom of Williamsport, PA, pleaded guilty to seven counts of theft in connection with contracts he entered into for elevator installations at six Pennsylvania residences and one church. He took deposits from the customers, but never followed through with the installations.
HARRISBURG — The Office of Attorney General Josh Shapiro publicly posted its 2017-2018 budget request online, one week after testifying in front of the Pennsylvania Senate and House Appropriation committees. “My budget will let the agents, investigators and prosecutors in the Attorney General’s office shake off the problems of the past and take on the […]
HARRISBURG – Attorney General Josh Shapiro today announced a settlement with Kevin Williams and Mark Williams, owners of Dominion Management of Delaware, which operated as CashPoint, a now defunct auto title loan business. CashPoint made thousands of unlawful loans to Pennsylvania borrowers at annual interest rates exceeding 200%. As a result of this settlement, Kevin Williams and Mark Williams will refund more than $1.5 million in unlawful interest charges to consumers who fell victim to their scheme. These refunds are in addition to the $3.2 million in debt cancellation victims already received as a result of an October 2021 court order. AG Shapiro initially filed suit against the defendants in 2018 and 2020.
HARRISBURG — Attorney General Josh Shapiro today announced charges against three Philadelphia men accused of taking part in a bank fraud scheme involving the use of Instagram that resulted in the theft of more than $50,000 from various financial institutions, including the Pennsylvania State Employees Credit Union. Shakour S. Smith, 26, Ikeem M. Starks, 25, […]
