JACKSON, Miss.–If you got an unwanted call from a political survey group offering a free cruise or vacation, you may have been called by people who didn’t have permission and who are now being sued by the Miss. Attorney General’s Office, the Miss. Public Service Commission and agencies in nine other states.
The lawsuit was filed in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida, and alleges millions of dollars in violations of the federal Telemarketing and Consumer Fraud and Abuse Prevention Act. Certain defendants have already reached a settlement in this case, and will pay Mississippi $22,136.34 as a result of their alleged wrongdoing, said a joint news release from the AG and PSC.
“The PSC regularly goes after these unscrupulous telemarketers who continue to harass the citizens of the State of Mississippi,” said PSC Chairman Lynn Posey. “We are grateful to work with the FTC and Attorney General Jim Hood on this latest case, and though we know it won’t stop the tactics of these so called ‘marketers’ we do hope that Mississippians see some relief.”
“We joined the FTC and the PSC in this effort to stop calls we felt were clearly deceiving to Mississippi consumers,” said Attorney General Jim Hood. “We hope this action sends a clear message to marketers that you can’t circumvent the law.”
“Enforcing the No-Call law is basically about protecting the privacy of Mississippians. I’m proud of the strong cooperation between our agency and Attorney General Hood’s office that sends a clear message to predatory telemarketers that we won’t tolerate the harassment of Mississippians,” said Commissioner Brandon Presley.
The following defendants have agreed to court orders settling the charges against them:
1. Caribbean Cruise Lines, Inc.,
2. Steve Hamilton,
3. Linked Service Solutions, LLC, Scott Broomfield, and Jason Birkett, and
4. Economic Strategy and Jacob DeJongh.
The settlement orders bar CCL and other settling defendants from engaging in abusive telemarketing practices, including calling customers whose phone numbers are on the Do Not Call Registry, calling anyone that has previously said they don’t want to be called again, failing to transmit accurate caller ID information, and placing illegal robocalls. The orders also require CCL to monitor its lead generators on an ongoing basis and Hamilton to terminate any clients placing telephone calls that would violate the Telemarketing Sales Rule.
Mississippians can add their home telephone number to Mississippi’s No Call list by contacting the PSC at 1-800-356-6430 or online at www.psc.state.ms.us/nocall.
