A Baltimore-based company is back in hot water with the feds. ABC2 News Joce Sterman tells us why the Federal Trade Commission feels Blue Hippo is deceiving customers with its computer deals.
When Terry Wood saw ads from Baltimore-based Blue Hippo hocking computers on a payment plan, she was instantly intrigued. She says, “Your credit, your finances and your credit score did not matter."
The deal sounded good, so Wood says she put $99 down and agreed to pay $39 a week. After reading the fine print, she figured out the computer she was buying would cost nearly $2,000. Wood had second thoughts and decided to cancel her order. But the payments kept going through anyway and her calls to Blue Hippo went nowhere.
But Wood is not alone in her struggles. The Better Business Bureau says the Maryland company has an F-rating and has racked up more than 4,100 complaints in the last three years. Angie Barnett with the BBB of Greater MD says, "Blue Hippo ranks among the top 20 of all complaints in the U.S.."
The Federal Trade Commission reached a settlement with Blue Hippo last year. But the agency recently filed contempt charges, claiming the company continues to deceive customers. The FTC says the company continues taking money and orders, but has not been delivering in many cases. Barnett says, "That's enough of a warning sign that you should stay away from them."
Attorneys General in both Maryland and Ohio have taken action against Blue Hippo. But that action came too late for Terry Wood. She wishes she had known more about the company and how much she’d really pay, before handing over her money. She says, "You're paying a whole lot more for a computer than if you found a place that would allow a layaway."
We contacted Blue Hippo for a comment about our story but did not hear back. The Better Business Bureau says the company has not been responsive to the requests for action on the complaints they’ve received.
