Comments on: Is This Maryland Power Company Committing Mail Fraud?

By: Jill Foster » Blog Archive » Fraud is the new … green?! charging customers for bulbs they didn’t buy

Wed, 11 Jun 2008 18:03:16 +0000

[...] More from: An Allegheny Power customer in the thick of it, Jimmy Gardner reports at East Coast Blogging. [...]

By: Sharon

Sharon — Sun, 17 Feb 2008 20:14:13 +0000

Dear Sir, It is not just Allegheny power abusing this mail order business. I have been trying to get a company called crafterschoice to NOT send me any of the products that they wish to send to my mother. The products were never ordered and for her to be billed for them or to have to go to the hassle to try and return them to the post office when she does not drive is obsurd. Now they do not even have to get out of their cars to solicit you. They simply send anything they want to your home and it is your problem. I have to believe that if we do not stop this unwanted sales practice then we are in for more headaches in the future. As one of your bloggers put it “where will it all end”? This has to stop and the government and the postmaster general has to get more involved.

By: Dashana

Dashana — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 13:55:19 +0000

Update
I made a complaint on better business bureau and the bureau took on the case. here is the response they got back from Allegheny
On January 21, 2008, the business provided the following information:
Contact Name and Title: Rosemary Spoljarick, Mgr
Contact Phone: 724-523-1028
Contact Email: rspolja@alleghenypower.com
As of January 16, 2008, customers will no longer be charged for Demand Response initiatives which included compact flourescent bulbs. In addition, customers will be in receipt of a credit for monthly surcharges previously assessed.

By: jonolan

jonolan — Tue, 22 Jan 2008 02:06:15 +0000

Allegheny Power is heinous. MD would be better served if some right thinking people started blowing up their offices.

Just kill the scum! At most Animal Control will complain; it’s not like they deserve to be considered human.

Of course this is just sarcasm and hyperbole. I could not legally advocate the commission of such acts.

By: Bu11d09

Bu11d09 — Sun, 20 Jan 2008 13:13:11 +0000

NOT A VICTIM OF ALLEGHANY POWER? BE PRO-ACTIVE, DON’T LET THIS HAPPEN TO YOU!

Allegheny Power is not my utility company,I use NYSEG in upsatate NY. I am going to foward this information to all my friends who use NYSEG and my local state representatives before it happens here. I encourage everyone else who does uses another utility company other than Alleghany power to become pro-active with thier utility company and do the same. Power to the people ; )

By: puttputt

puttputt — Thu, 17 Jan 2008 22:53:04 +0000

According to the patriot act you must use these light bulb and be happy or you’re a terrorist.

You see, this is a big cover-up sting operation to ferret out anti-corporation sleeper cells.

By: East Coast Blogging » Blog Archive » Follow Up: Allegheny Power Bulb Fiasco

Wed, 16 Jan 2008 00:34:48 +0000

[...] I wanted to post a follow to my recent post on Allegheny Power, the Maryland power company that got itself inot a bit of hot water recently. Reference my original post here. I want to start by thanking everyone who read the post and passed it on. We generated a lot of page views (thousands) and a lot of support. It really was, as my friend Andrew said, a case study in social media and using it as a tool. [...]

By: Law

Law — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 22:30:41 +0000

It is lawful to send the bulbs unsolicited, (unless the mercury within them is considered hazardous… or something) but billing you for them is completely unlawful.
Title 39, United States Code, Section 3009:

TITLE 39–POSTAL SERVICE

PART IV–MAIL MATTER

CHAPTER 30–NONMAILABLE MATTER

Sec. 3009. Mailing of unordered merchandise

(a) Except for (1) free samples clearly and conspicuously marked as
such, and (2) merchandise mailed by a charitable organization soliciting
contributions, the mailing of unordered merchandise or of communications
prohibited by subsection (c) of this section constitutes an unfair
method of competition and an unfair trade practice in violation of
section 45(a)(1) of title 15.
(b) Any merchandise mailed in violation of subsection (a) of this
section, or within the exceptions contained therein, may be treated as a
gift by the recipient, who shall have the right to retain, use, discard,
or dispose of it in any manner he sees fit without any obligation
whatsoever to the sender. All such merchandise shall have attached to it
a clear and conspicuous statement informing the recipient that he may
treat the merchandise as a gift to him and has the right to retain, use,
discard, or dispose of it in any manner he sees fit without any
obligation whatsoever to the sender.
(c) No mailer of any merchandise mailed in violation of subsection
(a) of this section, or within the exceptions contained therein, shall
mail to any recipient of such merchandise a bill for such merchandise or
any dunning communications.
(d) For the purposes of this section, “unordered merchandise”
means merchandise mailed without the prior expressed request or consent
of the recipient.

(Pub. L. 91-375, Aug. 12, 1970, 84 Stat. 749.)

By: Fraud is the new … green?! charging customers for bulbs they didn’t buy « Housewifery

Mon, 14 Jan 2008 20:17:41 +0000

[...] More from: An Allegheny Power customer in the thick of it, Jimmy Gardner reports at East Coast Blogging. [...]

By: Emmet

Emmet — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 17:28:11 +0000

There must be consumer law for this. There is no way that what they did can be legal. Unsolicited services with obligatory payment, thats nonsense. They have gone way beyond their contracted services and are on very shaky ground legally. Just imagine for one second the precedence that this sets if it was legal. I myself never use direct debits for this exact reason…