BALTIMORE, MD—Online lingerie retailer AdoreMe, Inc. has settled an investigation with the Maryland Attorney General’s Office over allegations of deceptive marketing practices. The settlement (PDF), announced by Attorney General Anthony G. Brown on Thursday, resolves claims that AdoreMe failed to adequately disclose the terms of its VIP membership program, which led to consumers being billed monthly fees after accepting discounts.
The investigation revealed that AdoreMe’s website offered discounted lingerie purchases but required customers to enroll in its VIP program to receive the discount. This program entailed monthly payments of $39.95, which could be used for future purchases. Consumers who wished to cancel their memberships faced difficulties doing so.
Under the settlement terms, AdoreMe will continue to offer its VIP program but must obtain explicit consent from consumers and clearly disclose the program’s terms before billing them. The company is also required to provide better monthly billing notices, easier access to membership terms, and a simple online cancellation mechanism. AdoreMe must promptly process cancellation requests and issue timely refunds. Additionally, the company will automatically stop billing accounts with credit balances exceeding twelve months.
“Maryland consumers deserve transparency in their online purchases and should not face hidden monthly fees,” said Attorney General Brown. “This settlement secures refunds for affected Marylanders and sets clear guidelines to prevent similar deceptive practices.”
The settlement will see refunds issued to Maryland consumers who enrolled in the VIP program but never used it. These refunds are expected to be mailed within the next two to three months. Consumers with active memberships will be contacted by AdoreMe in the coming one to two months about obtaining refunds for up to one year of payments.
Consumers with questions about this restitution program may call the Consumer Protection Division at 410-528-8862.
In addition to consumer restitution, AdoreMe will pay a $250,000 settlement fee to the Attorney General’s Office.
This article was written with the assistance of AI and reviewed by a human editor.
Photo by Sora Shimazaki from Pexels
Do you value local journalism? Support NottinghamMD.com today.
