AFSCME 3357-HOF'S BLOG

Unauthorized Charges by Echostar (Dish Network)
Have you or a client had unauthorized charges placed on your credit card, debit card or credit card. I've run into these complaints, and searched Google and came up with some interesting results, 395 hits. In 2003 the Attorneys General in 13 states settled claims against Echostar. The settlement, among other things, was to result in early termination charges being cancelled or refunded to a large group of consumers and Echostar was supposed to establish procedures to avoid unauthorized charges.

One of the things I've noticed is that Echostar (and for that matter Directv rely on third party companies to sell and install their systems. These companies often are pretty seedy. They regularly violate the Home Solicitation Sales Act and the FTC door to door rule. The contracts frequently do not have proper FTC Holder language, and Echostar claims third party beneficiary or holder status on these contracts. The bottom line is that there are usually good defenses to claims by Echostar. If you are a UAW-LSP attorney, e-mail our consumer group for additional information. If you are a private consumer or a private attorney, contact a member of the national Association of Consumer Advocates (www.naca.net) for help.



Google Search: ("dish network" OR echostar) unauthorized (draft OR eft OR DEBIT)