The New Jersey Attorney General filed a New Jersey Consumer Fraud lawsuit against an oil company after it failed to deliver heating oil to residential and commercial customers throughout northern New Jersey.
The New Jersey Attorney General’s Complaint claims that Able Oil Co. of Rockaway and Able Energy, Inc. (“Able”) violated the New Jersey Consumer Fraud Act by failing to honor contracts with customers. The customers either pre-paid for oil to be delivered to their residences or businesses throughout the winter or had entered into a monthly payment plan for oil deliveries. The New Jersey Consumer Fraud Lawsuit seeks restitution for consumers, plus civil penalties, attorneys’ fees and costs against the defendants.
The New Jersey Attorney General claims Able violated the New Consumer Fraud Act by committing unconscionable commercial practices and by making false promises or misrepresentations, including:
· Failing to deliver the contracted-for heating oil to Budget Plan Consumers (i.e. no delivery or inadequate delivery) but continuing to charge their credit cards or electronically debit their bank accounts for the monthly installment payments;
· Failing to deliver the contracted for heating oil to Pre-Purchase Consumers (i.e. no delivery or inadequate delivery);
· Making minimal deliveries of heating oil and thereafter failing to make any further deliveries;
· Failing to provide Budget Plan Consumers and Pre-Purchase Consumers who were enrolled in the Automatic Delivery Program with an automatic delivery of heating oil;
· Failing to deliver heating oil to Budget Plan Consumers and Pre-Purchase Consumers, resulting in damage to their heating systems;
· Failing to provide emergency and/or other service and repairs to consumers’ heating systems, in accordance with the terms of their Service Agreements;
· Failing to provide contracted-for heating oil, thereby requiring consumers to purchase oil from other fuel companies;
· Representing that consumers enrolled in the Automatic Delivery Program, including Budget Plan Consumers and Pre-Purchase Consumers will receive automatic deliveries of heating oil, when such is not the case; and
· Misrepresenting to consumers running out of heating oil that a delivery would be made.