Dating service to pay $500K to settle suit

Mesa, Arizona - A Scottsdale-based dating service has agreed to pay half a million dollars in restitution and fines to settle a lawsuit filed by state Attorney General Terry Goddard.

The suit alleged the company - Sun West Video, doing business as Great Expectations for Singles - used coercive sales tactics and misrepresentations to sell expensive memberships to Arizona consumers, typically costing thousands of dollars.

Bradley Gardner, attorney for Great Expectations, said the company agreed to settle to avoid costly litigation and to avoid having to turn over confidential member's files to the attorney general's office.

He said the service has agreed to alter its business practices to meet the objections of the attorney general.

"We felt it would be better to be a good business neighbor and work with the attorney general," he said.

Gardner said the complaints involved about 174 members out of more than 8,000 members going back eight years.

Under the settlement, Great Expectations is required to pay $250,000 in restitution to eligible customers and $250,000 to the state of Arizona for consumer-fraud prevention programs, Goddard said.

The attorney general filed the suit in June 2008, alleging that Great Expectations violated the Arizona Consumer Fraud Act and the Arizona Dating Referral Services Act.

Named in the suit were Sun West Video President John Meriggi, Great Expectations Director Michael Buhler and sales representative Geri Schencker.

Among the deceptive and illegal practices alleged by the attorney general were that company executives misrepresented the number of participating members and number of new members joining each month.

Also, the attorney general said they falsely claimed to have conducted criminal background checks on all their members and claimed that two or three marriages occurred between members every month when they had no credible basis to back up such statements.

They also illegally extended initial memberships while misleading consumers into believing they had no right to cancel the agreements, the AG's office said.

And they obtained consumers' credit information as soon as they arrived at the Great Expectations office before they agreed to purchase a membership and subjected prospective customers to high-pressure sales tactics during hours long presentations, the attorney general said.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/29403345/