Consumer Fraud Claims

“I’ve been cheated.”

Have you found yourself saying those words after you purchased a product or service?

People who have been defrauded by businesses may be able to take legal action in order to get compensation for the damages suffered because of the company’s wrongdoing.

Types of Consumer Fraud

Consumer fraud can come in many forms. It can be obvious, such as selling a product that doesn’t do what it’s supposed to do. It can be devious, such as mislabeled products or hidden charges on credit card bills. For example, Caddell & Chapman was Co-lead Counsel in a national class action against McDonalds concerning its claim that its French fries were fried in all-vegetable oil. In reality, McDonald’s restaurants in the U.S. continued to serve french fries and hash browns that were cooked using flavoring derived from beef. Many Americans have deep convictions—religious, moral or otherwise—against eating food that contains beef. Caddell & Chapman brought a class action against McDonald’s seeking to halt this deceptive practice and seeking restitution and a corporate apology. Judge Seibel of the Cook County Circuit Court in Illinois granted final approval to a proposed settlement in this class action, which provided for a published apology (McDonald’s acknowledged that “meat flavoring” was added to its french fries when they were parboiled at the factory), $10 million in contributions to affected groups, a disclosure commitment, creation of a consumer advisory board, attorney’s fees of $2,465,000, and expenses of $85,000.

Consumer fraud cases can also involve defective products. The real fraud isn’t that a company sold a defective product. The real fraud is when a company continues to sell a defective product after they have become aware of the problems with the product. This issue has arisen frequently with defective computers.

Consumer fraud cases can also involve a billing issue of some sort. These situations can also involve anything from unauthorized billing to hidden charges on a cable or cell phone bill.

You May Not be the Only One Who Has Been Victimized

The lawyers at Caddell & Chapman have more than two decades of experience handling nationwide consumer protection cases, such as those involving businesses engaging in deceptive and fraudulent practices.

When a business victimizes one customer, they often victimize many customers. When you contact us about your case, we will immediately determine whether other people have been hurt by the same actions.

If they were, we will pursue a class action lawsuit. We will seek compensation not only for you, but for every consumer who has suffered damages because of the fraud.

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