Leon’s furniture loses a collective redress action

Vincent Larin

Wednesday, August 2, 2017 22:06

UPDATE
Wednesday, August 2, 2017 22:06

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The company Leon’s Furniture has been sentenced for misleading advertising and will have to pay $ 1.7 million to thousands of consumers who have been cheated.

The judgment July 31 in superior Court of Quebec following a collective action brought by Option Consumer in 2009.

An advertisement then aired on the tv between 2007 and 2011 and in some newspapers for several years was felt that customers had ” nothing to pay for 15 months “.

But customers who chose to pay for their purchases through the financing program offered by Citifinancial were charged 21 $ for a yearly membership fee that could be charged several times.

Contempt

“When we encourage people to obtain credit, by using, in addition, misleading representations, this is unacceptable,” says the advisor judicial for Option consommateurs, Élise Thériault, who represents the members of the class action.

Justice Marc-André Blanchard has not been tender towards Leon’s Furniture in its decision of 60 pages.

“The judicial history of Leo shows his contempt of the rules of consumer law, and more specifically those related to credit. This observation proves all the more disturbing in that it, in fact, its business model, ” he wrote.

7360 customers

Photo courtesy

Élise Thériault
Option consommateurs

The approximately 7360 persons affected by its decision, however, will have to wait to know if Leon’s Furniture will appeal the decision to the superior Court to obtain their money. This could take several months, according to Élise Thériault.

Every consumer that meet the criteria of the class action will be reimbursed the slices of $ 21 that it has overpaid because of deceptive advertising over a $ 100 in damages for the frustration he has experienced.

A million dollars in punitive damages will be divided equally between the registered members in the class action, though how this money will be divided remains to be determined, ” says Ms. Thériault.

Leon’s furniture we have not made our call on Wednesday. It was not possible to know if the company would be appealing the decision.