Local restaurants "crossed a line to deception: with unfair marketing practices according to an Ohio State law professor.
Attorney General Marc Dann and attorneys from the Moritz School of Law filed two lawsuits Wednesday aimed at ending deceptive marketing strategies targeting college students.
The lawsuits, filed against Citibank, Potbelly Sandwich Works, La Bamba and Campus Dimensions, a marketing firm, alleged restaurants handed out fliers advertising free meals without clearly stating the promotion involved signing up for a credit card.
Michelle Gatchell, a spokeswoman for the attorney general's office, said because OSU students were not given all the details ahead of time, the marketing practices are a violation of the Consumer Sales Practices Act.
"They were not giving the students all the facts," Gatchell said.
If imposed, each violation could result in a fine up to $25,000, she said.
Ohio State Law professor Gregory Travalio worked with the attorney general's office on the lawsuit. He said the Moritz Civil Law Practicum handled a similar case two years ago. Based on the outcome of the previous case and further research, they moved forward with the attorney general's office.
Travalio said these aggressive credit card marketing strategies are prevalent around OSU.
"We think they have crossed the line to deception," he said. "That's illegal."
Faculty member attorneys from the Moritz Civil Law Practicum will serve as special counsel throughout the case. Two third-year law students will also help with the case.
Jim Andrioff, the lawyer representing La Bamba, said Citibank approached the restaurant management and said they would pay for the burritos for their customers at the end of the day.
He said the restaurant did not know signing up for a credit card was part of Citibank's approach to students and did not take part in the distribution of fliers.
"The only thing La Bamba did was get paid for the burritos by Citibank," he said.
Matt Revord, general counsel for Potbelly's, said he could not comment on the pending litigation because of company policy but said, "we are in the business of making great sandwiches for great customers. We are not a credit card company."
Representatives from Citibank and Campus Dimensions did not return phone calls.
Gatchell said students should be aware of promotions that are too good to be true.
"Make sure you do your homework before you get involved,"she said. "That free T-shirt could end up costing hundreds if not thousands of dollars in the long run."
Alaina Busch can be reached at busch.61@osu.edu.
Be the first to comment on this article!