AG: Energy Company Scammed Hudson Valley Customers

A lawsuit claims a local energy company misled Hudson Valley customers, overcharging them and changing their accounts without consent.

New York Attorney General Letitia James announced this week that her office is suing the energy company for "misleading New Yorkers and falsely promising lower prices, but actually overcharging consumers to make a profit."

Since at least 2011, the company allegedly used "deceptive marketing tactics" with false promises of savings to lure in customers. The Attorney General says that employees of Major Energy misled consumers by falsely claiming that they represented the customer's local utility company. The lawsuit says the company even went so far as to present phony badges and wear construction hard hats and vests during the door-to-door solicitations.

The object of the deception, according to James, was to get customers to change their services to Major Energy. The lawsuit also maintains that consumers didn't even know they were signed up for Major Energy because some employees enrolled them without their consent.

According to the Attorney General's office, their investigation revealed that Major Energy charged customers "tens of millions of dollars more" for services than they would have paid to local utilities, despite promising that they would save on their electric bill.

The practice of deceiving customers is allegedly documented in paperwork obtained by the Attorney General's office

Records obtained by OAG show a Major Energy representative responding to a complainant saying, “I’ve worked here for a long time…I’ve heard some amazing lies, let me tell you.” In a separate instance, another Major Energy representative admitted the company receives a lot of complaints because of “misinformation” provided by the door-to-door representatives.

Consumer watchdog groups warn utility customers to remain vigilant when being offered deals and promises of unrealistic savings from energy service companies.