Tennessee has filed suit today against several related businesses alleged to have made false statements to lure low-income and credit-challenged consumers to use their financing services for electronic items while failing to disclose the exact terms of the agreements.
Attorney General Bob Cooper, on behalf of Mary Clement, the Director of the Division of Consumer Affairs, named in its civil lawsuit BlueHippo Funding, LLC, a Maryland corporation, BlueHippo Capital, LLC, Virginia, a Virginia corporation, and BlueHippo Capital, LLC, Nevada, a Nevada corporation. The businesses, which operate under the names “BlueHippo,” “Digital Boulevard,” www.bluehippo.com, and www.bigbluead.com, have allegedly sold computers and other electronics to at least 4,500 Tennesseans, many of whom are on fixed or limited incomes and/or have poor credit. The prices were often up to three times higher than what consumers would pay if they bought the product directly from the electronics outlet.
The defendants are alleged to have made false statements about the so-called “free” items, about the exact terms of their offers, including the claim that no “credit checks” are required, and failed to disclose key terms of their offer to consumers.
The State also filed a motion for temporary injunction with an asset freeze seeking to stop the alleged unlawful conduct. The State is asking the Shelby County Chancery Court to place $2,571,601 in a special account. A hearing on the case is set for 10 a.m. November 19 before Chancellor Walter Evans. The State has previously filed two motions against BlueHippo for its failure to comply with pre-filing investigative subpoenas for information.
If you have purchased a product from BlueHippo and had a problem or complaint regarding your experience with these companies, please contact the Attorney General’s Office at (615) 741-1671 or toll free within Tennessee at 1-877-275-7396. The State is still trying to determine how many consumers across the state may have sent payments to BlueHippo. For more information on this lawsuit, please visit the Tennessee Attorney General website: http://www.tn.gov/attorneygeneral/ then click on Office Information and Cases of Interest.