Q: I own a small restaurant, and a new employee recently allowed a telemarketer to sell us two boxes of a product at $245. They said they were our normal supplier but are not, and we normally pay $24 elsewhere. I wanted to return it, but there was a hefty restock fee. What are my rights as a consumer when dealing with less-than-honest telemarketers?— Peter Schultz, Fort Collins
A: Good news and not-so-good news.
The office-product scam violates the state Consumer Protection Act, the Federal Trade Commission Act and, the folks at the Colorado attorney general’s office tell me, maybe even a few federal postal laws.
Misrepresenting that they are your normal supplier alone raises the flags. Shipping additional products unrequested also brings to question their tactics.
Most important, though, the state’s No-Call Registry applies only to residential phone lines and cellphones. It does not apply to a business line.
The problem with telemarketer solicitations has been widespread, and businesses often find themselves caught by the effort to sell them products.
There is law to protect consumers from having to pay for anything they did not order.
You can complain to various authorities, but know investigations or resolution might rely on the volume of complaints filed or whether the offenders can be located.
To that end, I’d return the material via registered mail with a note specifically stating you did not order it, nor was it ordered by anyone authorized at your business to make such purchases.
That will probably do the trick.
