FTC Settles Bogus-Credit Charge
A group of Toronto-based financial services firms agreed to pay $190,000 to settle a complaint that they made misrepresentations in their offers of credit cards in exchange for a fee, the Federal Trade Commission said yesterday.The companies, including First Beneficial Credit Services, Platinum Express Benefits and American Capitol Benefits, offered U.S. consumers Visa and MasterCard credit cards for fees from $199 to $249, the FTC said.
Those who paid the fee received nothing except information about improving credit or a "virtually worthless" catalog card, according to the FTC.
Also under the settlement, the companies were banned from telemarketing credit services and from marketing advanced-fee credit cards. The companies had been charged in the FTC's August 1992 "Operation No Credit" sweep of financial scams.
