HARRISBURG – Attorney General Michelle Henry announced that her office entered into a settlement agreement with two out-of-state telemarketing companies — AGR Group Nevada LLC and Utilities Marketing Group LLC — for providing telemarketing services for retail energy suppliers in Pennsylvania.
The Office of Attorney General’s investigation found that the companies allegedly trafficked a large number of telemarketing calls to consumers registered on Pennsylvania’s “Do Not Call” List. The settlement further alleges that the companies engaged in a wide range of violations relating to their telemarketing operations in Pennsylvania, including:
- Initiating outbound telephone calls to people that previously stated that they do not wish to receive outbound telephone calls
- Initiating telephone solicitation calls to people who registered their names, telephone numbers, and addresses on the “Do-Not-Call” list
- Initiating calls to consumers in a repeated pattern
- Using misleading and deceptive acts and practices in connection with requests to be contacted for purposes of telemarketing solicitations
“My office has been very active in taking action against companies making unsolicited phone calls that continue to plague Pennsylvanians,” Attorney General Henry said. “We are working hard to curb these calls and ensure that companies are following the law when contacting consumers.”
Attorney General Henry thanks the consumers who filed complaints and brought this conduct to the attention of investigators.
Under the terms of the settlement, in addition to being prohibited from making unwanted telemarketing calls to consumers, the companies must pay $150,000 to the Attorney General’s Office.
This settlement comes after related settlements with Direct Energy, Indra Energy, and Fluent, LLC, the lead generator used by these companies. These settlements have generated nearly $815,000 in payments to the Commonwealth.
Attorney General Henry and Pennsylvania Consumer Advocate Patrick Cicero last week worked to inform consumers of the increase in energy costs across the Commonwealth. With this increase in energy costs, scammers and shady businesses may be on the lookout for potential victims to fall for tactics like the ones used by Indra Energy, Fluent, and AGR Group.
If you are on the Pennsylvania “Do-Not-Call” list and you receive unwanted and unsolicited calls from telemarketers, you should file a Complaint at https://www.attorneygeneral.gov/submit-a-complaint or contact the Office of Attorney General Bureau of Consumer Protection at 800-441-2555 or scams@attorneygeneral.gov.
The settlement was filed in the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas by Senior Deputy Attorney General Amy L. Schulman of the Pittsburgh Regional Office.
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