1 2 3 4 5 6 STATE OF WASHINGTON KING COUNTY SUPERIOR COURT 7 8 STATE OF WASHINGTON, NO. 9 Plaintiff, 10 11 12 COMPLAINT FOR INJUNCTIVE AND OTHER RELIEF UNDER THE CONSUMER PROTECTION ACT, RCW 19.86 V. COMCAST CORPORATION, 13 Defendant. 14 15 COMES NOW PLAINTIFF, State of Washington, by and through its attorneys Robert W. 16 Ferguson, Attorney General, and Assistant Attorneys General Daniel Davies and Joel Delman, 17 and brings this action against Comeast Corporation ("Comcast"), alleging as follows on 18 information and belief: 19 20 I. 1.1 INTRODUCTION Comcast has violated Washington's Consumer Protection Act, RCW 19.86 (the 21 "CPA") over 1.8 million times through unfair and deceptive acts and practices relating to its 22 Service Protection Plan, service call fees it charges consumers, and deposits it obtained from 23 consumers. 24 25 26 A. Service Protection Plan CPA Violations 1.2 Comcast markets and sells its Service Protection Plan ("SPP") to its customers as a product that will allow them to avoid all service call fees should customers ever COMPLAINT FOR INJUNCTIVE AND OTHER RELIEF UNDER THE CONSUMER PROTECTION ACT, RCW 19.86 - 1 ATTORNEY GENERAL OF WASHINGTON Consumer Protection Division 800 Fifth Avenue, Suite 2000 Seattle, WA 98104 (206) 464-7745 I experience a service problem that requires an on-site Comcast technician visit. Through June 2 2016 it claimed the SPP was "comprehensive," and "cover[s] all chargeable service calls for 3 your XFINITY services without additional service fees." It further claimed that when the 4 5 6 7 customer signs up for the SPP, customers will: [E]njoy worry-free maintenance of all inside wiring for your cable TV, highspeed Internet and phone services. In addition, you'll enjoy knowing you're covered for service calls related to customer-owned equipment connected to Comcast services and on-site education about your products. 8 Comcast routinely made these representations through its website and they formed the basis of 9 sales scripts Comcast representatives used in marketing the SPP to consumers. 10 1.3 Comcast grossly misrepresented the SPP to consumers to induce them to 11 purchase the SPP. Contrary to Comcast's claims that the SPP provides "comprehensive" 12 coverage, the SPP covers only a narrow scope of repairs. For example, despite advertising to 13 consumers that the SPP covers all "inside wiring," the SPP does not include wiring inside the 14 walls of a residence—wiring that constitutes most of the inside wiring in the majority of 15 16 customers' homes. Comcast did not tell consumers this before signing them up for the SPP. 1.4 Likewise, although Comcast claimed the SPP covers all service calls related to 17 customer-owned equipment, it does not cover any actual repairs relating to customer 18 equipment. It simply covers the technician visiting the customer's house and declaring that the 19 customer's equipment is broken. 20 1.5 Comcast also marketed the SPP as covering service calls relating to Comcast 21 equipment and wiring outside a customer's house. However, these issues are already covered 22 for free by Comcast's Customer Guarantee promises. 23 1.6 Deception formed the core of Comcast's Service Protection Plan sales pitch. 24 Approximately 500,000 Washington customers subscribed to the SPP in the past five years and 25 Washington subscribers paid at least $73 million to Comcast for the plan during those years. 26 COMPLAINT FOR INJUNCTIVE AND OTHER RELIEF UNDER THE CONSUMER PROTECTION ACT, RCW 19.86 - 2 ATTORNEY GENERAL OF WASHINGTON Consumer Protection Division 800 Fifth Avenue, Suite 2000 Seattle, WA 98104 (206) 464-7745 I 2 B. Service Call CPA Violations 1.7 Comcast also deceives consumers through the Customer Guarantee it makes to 3 all 1.17 million-plus Washington customers. Comcast's Customer Guarantee promises: "We 4 won't charge you for a service visit that results from a Comcast equipment or network 5 6 problem." Comcast discloses no limitations on this guarantee. 1.8 Contrary to this promise, Comcast charged thousands of Washington customers 7 for service calls that resulted from a Comcast equipment or network problem, including issues 8 with Comcast HDMI and component cables, Comcast cable cards, and the installation of drop 9 amplifiers, which fix Comcast signal problems. In addition, until approximately June 2015, 10 Comcast provided its technicians with a service call fix code that expressly allowed them "to 11 12 13 add service charges to a normally not charged fix code." (emphasis added). C. Credit Check CPA Violations 1.9 Comcast also improperly obtained a deposit from over 6,000 Washington 14 consumers in violation of the CPA. New Comcast customers must undergo a credit screening 15 prior to obtaining services unless they pay Comcast a deposit to avoid the screening. Comcast 16 also requires customers to pay a deposit if the credit screening process reveals the customer has 17 a low credit score. However, Comcast obtained a deposit from thousands of Washington 18 customers with high credit scores, revealing that they improperly ran credit checks on 19 customers who paid a deposit to avoid the credit check, and/or improperly collected deposits 20 from customers who were not required to pay a deposit. Comcast also ran credit checks on at 21 least 91 Washington consumers over a day after they paid a deposit to avoid the running of a Z2 credit check. II. JURISDICTION AND VENUE 23 24 25 2.1 This Complaint is filed and these proceedings are instituted under the provisions of the Unfair Business Practices — Consumer Protection Act, RCW 19.86. 26 COMPLAINT FOR INJUNCTIVE AND OTHER RELIEF UNDER THE CONSUMER PROTECTION ACT, RCW 19.86 - 3 ATTORNEY GENERAL OF WASHINGTON Consumer Protection Division 800 Fifth Avenue, Suite 2000 Seattle, WA 98104 (206)464-7745 1 2 2.2 The violations alleged in this Complaint have been made and are being committed in whole or in part in King County, Washington, by Defendant named herein. 3 2.3 The violations alleged in this Complaint are injurious to the public interest. 4 2.4 Authority of the Attorney General to commence this action is conferred by 5 RCW 19.86.080 and RCW 19.86.140. 6 7 8 9 10 III. FACTS D. Comcast 3.1 Defendant Comcast Corporation is a Pennsylvania corporation with its principal place of business located at Comcast Center, 1701 JFK Boulevard, Philadelphia, PA 19103. 3.2 Comcast is the largest cable television and home internet service provider in the 11 United States, and is the third largest home telephone service provider. It serves residential 12 and commercial customers in forty states and the District of Columbia. Comcast earned 13 approximately $74.5 billion in revenue, had a net income of approximately $8.2 billion, and 14 had total assets of approximately $159 billion in fiscal year 2015. It has over 1.17 million 15 16 customers in Washington. E. Comcast Deceptively Claimed the Service Protection Plan Provides 17 Comprehensive Coverage 18 3.3 Comcast advertised its Service Protection Plan as a method of avoiding all 19 service call charges. It promotes the SPP to Washington customers when they first sign up for 20 Comcast services, during technical support and service calls, and via its online description of 21 the service. 22 23 24 25 3.4 Comcast made broad claims regarding the SPP's scope in its online advertisements, sales scripts, and chat sessions with customers. 3.5 Online Description. Through mid-June 2016 Comcast's website claimed the SPP "eliminate[es] any concerns about being charged additional fees for service calls related to 26 COMPLAINT FOR INJUNCTIVE AND OTHER RELIEF UNDER THE CONSUMER PROTECTION ACT, RCW 19.86 - 4 ATTORNEY GENERAL OF WASHINGTON Consumer Protection Division 800 Fifth Avenue, Suite 2000 Seattle, WA 98104 (206)464-7745 I inside wiring, [and] cover[s] all chargeable service calls for your XFINITY services without 2 additional service fees." It further stated the SPP provides: 3 • Unlimited covered service calls with no contracts. 4 • 5 Troubleshooting and diagnosis of XFINITY TV, XFINITY Voice, XFINITY Internet and XFINITY Home service problems. 6 • Hassle-free replacement and repair of defective customer inside wiring. 7 • Hassle-free replacement and repair of cable jumpers, cable connectors, splitters 8 9 10 11 and phone jacks due to normal wear and tear. 0 Service calls due to customer education or customer owned equipment. connected to your XFINITY services. • Confidence that if there is a problem with any XFINITY service, Comcast will 12 take care of it without charging a service fee. 13 3.6 The online description did not identify or allude to any limitations on the 14 coverage described above. In fact, it did just the opposite. It claimed the list represented 15 examples of items covered by the SPP and "is not all-inclusive." 16 3.7 Comcast's website deceptively described the SPP since at least January 2011. 17 3.8 Sales Scripts. 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 Through mid-June 2016, Comcast directed its sales representatives to make the following claims when promoting the SPP to consumers: [S]ubscribing to [the SPP] will cover service call charges that require repairs to cable TV, high speed internet or telephone wiring inside your home. Comcast is now offering a comprehensive service protection plan, eliminating any concerns about being charged additional fees for service calls related to inside wiring. For a low monthly fee, our Comcast Service Protection Plan (SPP) will cover all chargeable service calls for all 3 lines of business. The plan provides you with the confidence that should you have a problem with any Comcast service, we will be able to take care of this for you without additional service fees. Subscribing to the plan will cover service call charges that require repairs to twisted telephone wiring, Comcast cable television wiring and/or Comcast cable internet service wiring located inside your home. COMPLAINT FOR INJUNCTIVE AND OTHER RELIEF UNDER THE CONSUMER PROTECTION ACT, RCW 19.86 - 5 ATTORNEY GENERAL OF WASHINGTON Consumer Protection Division 800 Fifth Avenue, Suite 2000 Seattle, WA 98104 (206)464-7745 I 2 ... Without the SPP, you will be charged a fee for repairs to the wiring located inside your home. 3 3.9 The sales scripts did not include any reference to limitations on the SPP's 4 coverage. Nor did Comcast's training manuals teach its employees to disclose the limitations 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 to Washington consumers. 3.10 Email and Chat Transcripts. Comcast representatives made similar promises to consumers in emails and chat sessions: Just one more thing, R, I would also like to let you know that I have added the Service Protection Plan for $1.99/month. It covers in-home visits for the diagnosis of video/data reception problems and the repair of in-home wiring. If you have the Service Protection Plan, you will automatically avail free of charge any wire-related service calls in the future.... For a small monthly fee, SPP provides the security of knowing you're covered for all inside wiring needs and for chargeable technical service. 12 http://forums.xfiniiy.com/t5/Billing/RESOLVED-Misled-About-Service-Protection-PlanHuge-S ervice-fees/td-p/8 61517 13 They also claimed that the SPP covers outside wiring, which already is Comcast's 14 responsibility: 15 16 17 The Fee for outside wirings is valid since there is no Service Protection Plan in your account. There is a fee for technician service since it is considered as special request. 18 http://forums.xfinity.com/t5/Customer-Service/Service-Call-Charges/td-p/1476159 I'm sorry for the frustrations we've caused you. I have applied a 1 time courtesy credit to your account. Without the Service Protection Plan SPP you will incur a 20 service fee when a technician has to make repairs in or outside your residence. Id. (transcript provided by a different customer than the above, but on the same 21 webpage). 19 22 3.11 Comcast directed its representatives to define "inside wiring" as: "wiring that 23 begins at the `Demarcation Point', which begins 12 inches outside of the customer's residence 24 and extends to the individual phone jacks, the back of the computer, and cable outlets and 25 extensions." Comcast did not tell representatives to disclose to consumers that in-the-wall 26 COMPLAINT FOR INJUNCTIVE AND OTHER RELIEF UNDER THE CONSUMER PROTECTION ACT, RCW 19.86 - 6 ATTORNEY GENERAL of WASHINGTON Consumer Protection Division 800 Fifth Avenue, Suite 2000 Seattle, WA 98104 (206)464-7745 I wiring is excluded from the "inside wiring" definition. The Agreement for Residential 2 3 Services also does not define "Inside Wiring" as excluding concealed wires. F. The SPP's Terms and Conditions 4 3.12 As with the sales representatives' statements, Comcast's Service Protection Plan 5 Terms and Conditions also initially defines "inside wiring" as "wiring within the point just on 6 your side of the terminating equipment or box located at or about twelve (12) inches outside of 7 your unit or residence and extending to the individual phone jacks and cable and internet g outlets and extensions in your home." The Terms and Conditions also states: "The Plan is 9 optional and covers all inside-wiring related service calls, pursuant to the Plan's terms, for as 10 long as the customer subscribes to the Plan." 11 3.13 Although the Terms and Conditions broadly defines "inside wiring" and claims 12 the SPP covers "all inside-wiring related service calls," Comcast buries a significant limitation 13 on coverage deep within its last paragraph: "The Plan does not cover the repair of wire 14 15 concealed within a wall (i.e. wire that is wall fished.)" 3.14 Similarly, the Terms and Conditions contains the following limitation: "The 16 Plan does not cover repair to customer premise equipment (i.e. TV, DVD player, surround 17 sound, faxes, scanners, printers, external devices, telephones, etc.); however, customers 18 subscribing to the Plan will not pay for a service visit even if the Comcast technician discovers 19 that the trouble is within the customer's equipment." 20 21 3.15 The SPP also does not cover repairs to Comcast equipment or outside wiring because these repairs are already covered by Comcast's Customer Guarantee. 22 3.16 In short, due to limitations in the Terms and Conditions, the SPP often ends up 23 failing to cover any repairs at all. The short coaxial cable running from a customer's outlet to 24 the cable box is typically Comcast Equipment that is covered by the Comcast Guarantee rather 25 than the SPP, as are the HDMI cables provided by Comcast, and in many houses all of the 26 COMPLAINT FOR INJUNCTIVE AND OTHER RELIEF UNDER THE CONSUMER PROTECTION ACT, RCW 19.86 - 7 ATTORNEY GENERAL OF WASHINGTON Consumer Protection Division 800 Fifth Avenue, Suite 2000 Seattle, WA 98104 (206)464-7745 1 remaining wiring is wall fished. And as noted above, the SPP does not cover repairs to 2 customer equipment, Comcast equipment, or outside wiring either. 3 3.17 In its advertisements and sales scripts, Comcast omitted the fact that repairs to 4 customer equipment are not considered part of a "service call." Likewise, the advertisements 5 failed to disclose that the Comcast Guarantee already covers service calls that "result[] from a 6 Comcast equipment or network problem." 7 8 G. Comcast Does Not Adequately Disclose the SPP's Terms and Conditions 3.18 Comcast does not require Washington customers to sign any agreement or 9 confirm they have read the SPP Terms and Conditions before they subscribe to the SPP. 10 Instead, Washington customers can subscribe over the phone or through an oral request made 11 to an on-site technician. Comcast does not train or require its representatives to email or mail a 12 copy of the SPP Terms and Conditions to Washington consumers. 13 3.19 Comcast also does not provide sales representatives copies of the SPP's Terms 14 and Conditions as part of their training, and many of them do not know the SPP's true scope of 15 coverage. Thus, if a customer asks questions about the SPP's Terms and Conditions, the 16 17 representative may be unaware of the significant limitations on the SPP's scope. H. Comcast Obtains Millions of Dollars from Washington Consumers Through Its 18 Deceptive Service Protection Plan 19 3.20 Comcast earned substantial profits in Washington by deceptively advertising the 20 SPP. The Plan currently costs customers $4.99 per month, and approximately 500,000 21 Washington consumers subscribed to the SPP at some point in the past five years. Washington 22 consumers paid Comcast over $73 million in SPP subscription fees since January 2011. In the 23 narrower time frame of January 2013 through July 2015, Washington consumers paid Comcast 24 $41.6 million in subscription fees for the SPP. During that time, Washington consumers 25 avoided only approximately $5 million in service call charges by subscribing to the SPP. 26 COMPLAINT FOR INJUNCTIVE AND OTHER RELIEF UNDER THE CONSUMER PROTECTION ACT, RCW 19.86 - 8 ATTORNEY GENERAL OF WASHINGTON Consumer Protection Division 800 Fifth Avenue, Suite 2000 Seattle, WA 98104 (206)464-7745 1 Thus, Comcast earned approximately $36.6 million in profits from Washington consumers 2 3 over a two-and-a-half year period by deceptively advertising the SPP. 3.21 Comcast claims it discusses the SPP with customers when they sign up for 4 services and before every service call. Comcast performed 742,052 service calls for 5 6 Washington customers between July 28, 2013 and July 27, 2015. 3.22 Between October 2013 and September 2015, Comcast charged 2,007 SPP 7 subscribers for service calls it claimed were covered by the SPP, and numerous additional 8 9 10 individuals were forced to pay for their own repairs because of the SPP's lack of coverage. I. Comcast's Service Call Fees 3.23 Comcast charges customers a fee when a technician visits the customer's 11 premises to resolve a service issue that originates from the customer's equipment, inside 12 wiring, or improper customer use. Comcast currently charges Washington customers between 13 $36.50 and $70.00 for service call visits. 14 3.24 Comcast directs its customer support representatives to inform customers there 15 may be a charge if a technician visits for a service call. However, Comcast's customer support 16 representatives failed to disclose the service call fees to numerous Washington consumers. 17 3.25 Comcast also claims it discloses the service call fees on its rate cards. The rate 18 cards, however, do not fully disclose the service call rates. They refer only to a fee for "In19 Home Service (XFinity TV)," under its TV Installation section of the rate cards. Comcast does 20 not mention a fee for internet or telephone service calls. 21 3.26 Comcast does not charge customers for all service calls. Instead, it promises 22 customers: "[W]e won't charge you for a service visit that results from a Comcast equipment 23 or network problem." Comcast advertises this Customer Guarantee online and in welcome 24 packets it provides to consumers when they first sign up for services. 25 3.27 "Comcast equipment" that should be covered by the Customer Guarantee 26 includes a variety of items, including "any equipment provided by Comcast such as gateways, COMPLAINT FOR INJUNCTIVE AND OTHER RELIEF UNDER THE CONSUMER PROTECTION ACT, RCW 19.86 - 9 ATTORNEY GENERAL OF WASHINGTON Consumer Protection Division 800 Fifth Avenue, Suite 2000 Seattle, WA 98104 (206)464-7745 1 routers, cable modems, voice-capable modems, wireless gateway/routers, CableCARDs, 2 converters, digital adapters, remote controls, and any other equipment provided or leased to 3 you by us or our agents, excluding equipment purchased by you from Comcast and Customer 4 Equipment." 5 J. Comcast Service Call "Fix" Codes 6 3.28 Comcast determines whether a service call is chargeable or covered by the 7 Customer Guarantee based on "fix" codes applied by the technician who visits the customer's 8 house. Technicians can select from approximately 200 fix codes, approximately 80 of which 9 are chargeable. 10 3.29 A technician can select up to six fix codes for each service call. Comcast 11 charges the customer for a service call if one of the fix codes applied is chargeable. For 12 instance, if a technician selects five non-chargeable fix codes and one chargeable code, 13 Comcast charges the customer for the service call. Thus, if a technician fixes a broken 14 Comcast cable box but also provides "customer education" during the service call, the 15 customer will be charged for the service call if the technician applies the customer education 16 code because customer education fix codes are chargeable. This occurred 2,078 times between 17 June 2014 and June 2016. 18 3.30 Technicians receive little training on proper application of fix codes. Comcast 19 supervisors tell them to apply the most relevant fix codes available so that Comcast has a log 20 of the problem in case a follow-up call is necessary. However, Comcast does not formally 21 train the technicians on what each fix code means. The technicians are expected to understand 22 them based on their general knowledge of the repair and customer education services they 23 provide. 24 3.31 Technicians do not always apply the correct fix codes, and neither the 25 technicians' supervisors nor anyone else review the fix codes applied by technicians for 26 accuracy. This can result in Comcast charging customers for non-chargeable service calls. COMPLAINT FOR INJUNCTIVE AND OTHER RELIEF UNDER THE CONSUMER PROTECTION ACT, RCW 19.86 - 10 ATTORNEY GENERAL OF WASHNGTON Consumer Protection Division 800 Fifth Avenue, Suite 2000 Seattle, WA 98104 (206)464-7745 I K. Comcast Does Not Honor Its Customer Guarantee Because It Improperly 2 Designates Certain Fix Codes as Chargeable 3 3.32 Comcast deceives its 1.17 million-plus consumers when it promises them in its 4 Customer Guarantee that they will not be charged for issues with Comcast equipment or the 5 Comcast network. In truth, many of Comcast's chargeable fix codes improperly apply to 6 repairs that should fall within the Comcast Customer Guarantee's scope. Examples include the 7 following: 8 a. Until approximately June 19, 2015, Comcast technicians could apply a 9 chargeable fix code titled "T43 CUST-CCG-REF BY CUST," which applied "when customer 10 refuses customer guarantee." This code recognized that the service call was covered by the 11 Customer Guarantee but charged the consumer anyway. Technicians did not receive any 12 training on proper application of this fix code, and no customer would intentionally refuse the 13 Customer Guarantee. 14 b. Until Approximately June 19, 2015, Comcast technicians could apply 15 chargeable resolution codes titled "U52 Charge TC" and "U53 Charge TC-Adv-SCVS." 16 Technicians applied these fix codes specifically "to add service charges to a normally not 17 charged fix code." The U53 fix code also added the Service Protection Plan to the customer's 18 account. These fix codes' descriptions openly acknowledged that they applied when a service 19 was not normally chargeable. Comcast applied Resolution Code U52 almost 1,000 times 20 21 22 between December 2013 and December 2015. C. Comcast charges for the repair or replacement of cats jumpers, coax jumpers, HDMI cables, and component cables (four different codes cover these repairs). In the 23 overwhelming majority of households, these items are Comcast equipment that should be 24 covered under the Customer Guarantee. Comcast claims it does not charge customers for 25 repairs to these items unless the customer purchased and/or installed them. But its fix codes 26 contradict this claim. In Washington, Comcast applied chargeable fix codes to non-SPP COMPLAINT FOR INJUNCTIVE AND OTHER RELIEF UNDER THE CONSUMER PROTECTION ACT, RCW 19.86 - 11 ATTORNEY GENERAL OF WASIUNGTON Consumer Protection Division 800 Fifth Avenue, Suite 2000 Seattle, WA 98104 (206)464-7745 1 subscriber's accounts 4,204 times for service visits relating to these repairs between December 2 2013 and December 2015. 3 d. Comcast charges customers when a technician applies a fix code titled 4 "T86 CC-Other." This is a blanket resolution code that applies to any cable card issue not 5 covered by four other standard cable card resolution codes (two chargeable codes for customer 6 cable cards and two non-chargeable codes for Comcast cable cards). Although some 7 customers own their cable cards, many lease them from Comcast, making them Comcast 8 equipment. Comcast's resolution code does not distinguish between the two, so application of 9 Fix Code T86 can result in service call charges for Comcast equipment issues. 10 e. Until approximately January 2015, Comcast charged customers when it 11 installed a drop amplifier. Drop amplifiers boost the cable signal's strength within a house. 12 Comcast initially sends the same strength signal to all houses, but the signal can deteriorate 13 before it reaches a house if the "tap," which is the cable running from the telephone pole to the 14 house, is degraded. Comcast's signal strength, and the "tap" is Comcast's responsibility and 15 repairs to it should not be charged to the customer. Comcast technicians, however, frequently 16 install a drop amplifier to fix the tap problem rather than climb the telephone pole and fix the 17 tap itself. Notably, technicians received extra time credit for installing drop amplifiers, 18 incentivizing them to install them when no real signal problem existed. In Washington, 19 Comcast applied the chargeable drop amplifier resolution code 7,687 times to non-SPP 20 21 subscribers between December 2013 and December 2015. f. Comcast charges customers when a technician replaces Comcast 22 equipment that the technician believes is not broken. Sometimes the customer demands that 23 unbroken equipment be replaced. However, a Comcast telephone representative—not the 24 customer—often insists that the functioning equipment is broken and must be replaced. 25 Comcast does not distinguish between circumstances in which a customer requests 26 replacement of functioning equipment and circumstances in which a Comcast representative COMPLAINT FOR INJUNCTIVE AND OTHER RELIEF UNDER THE CONSUMER PROTECTION ACT, RCW 19.86 - 12 ATTORNEY GENERAL. OF WASHINGTON Consumer Protection Division 800 Fifth Avenue, Suite 2000 Seattle, WA 98104 (206)464-7745 1 requests the replacement. In Washington, Comcast applied the "swap equipment" resolution 2 3 4 code 2,087 times to non-SPP subscribers between December 2013 and December 2015. L. Comcast's Credit Screening Policy 3.33 For all services other than Limited Basic Cable and Internet Essentials, all new 5 Comcast customers must either pay a deposit prior to receiving services, or undergo a credit 6 screening to determine if a deposit is necessary. In some circumstances, existing Comcast 7 customers must pay a deposit or have a credit check run when adding new services or 8 9 upgrading their services. 3.34 Washington customers pay a $50.00 to $150.00 deposit to avoid a credit check, 10 with the amount depending on how many services the customer received from Comcast. 11 Comcast credits customer deposits toward the customer's monthly account balance after six 12 months as long as the customer has a clean payment history for the prior six months. 13 3.35 As part of the credit screening process, Comcast asks a commercial credit 14 company like Equifax to perform a credit check on the consumer and provide Comcast with a 15 credit risk assessment analysis. The credit check results in a "hard hit" on the consumer's 16 credit profile that can negatively affect the consumer's credit score when future credit inquiries 17 are performed. 18 3.36 From January 2013 through January 2016, Comcast obtained a deposit from 19 over 6,000 Washington customers with credit scores that were sufficient to avoid Comcast's 20 deposit requirement. These Customers either paid a deposit to avoid having Comcast run a 21 credit check and had a credit check run on them contrary to Comcast's promises, or were 22 improperly required to pay a deposit despite having a sufficient credit score to avoid the 23 24 25 deposit requirement. 3.37 In addition, Comcast ran credit checks on at least 91 Washington consumers over a day after they paid a deposit to avoid the running of a credit check. 26 COMPLAINT FOR INJUNCTIVE AND OTHER RELIEF UNDER THE CONSUMER PROTECTION ACT, RCW 19.86 - 13 ATTORNEY GENERAL of WASHINGTON Consumer Protection Division 800 Fifth Avenue, Suite 2000 Seattle, WA 98104 (206)464-7745 1 IV. CLAIM — VIOLATION OF THE CONSUMER PROTECTION ACT, 2 RCW 19.86.020 3 4 5 4.1 Plaintiff realleges paragraphs 1.1 through 3.37 and incorporates them as if fully set forth herein. 4.2 Comcast has made numerous implied and express deceptive statements in trade 6 or commerce to over one million Washington consumers, including but not limited to the 7 following: 4.2.1 Comcast's unfairly and/or deceptively guarantees its over 1.17 million 8 9 Washington customers that they will not be charged for any service visit that results from a 10 Comcast equipment or network problem. However, Comcast has repeatedly failed to honor its 11 guarantee and charged its Washington customers for certain Comcast equipment and network 12 problems, including the following: 13 4.2.1.1 Instances in which a technician applies chargeable resolution 14 codes U52 Charge TC and U53 Charge TC-Adv-SCVS, which expressly "add service charges 15 to a normally not charged fix code." 4.2.1.2 Repair or replacement of cats jumpers, coax jumpers, HDMI 16 17 cables, and component cables provided by Comcast. 4.2.1.3 Cable card problems, designated as"T86 CC-Other," which 18 19 does not distinguish between customer and Comcast cable cards. 4.2.1.4 Installation of drop amplifiers to correct a weak Comcast signal 20 21 being sent to the customer's house. 22 4.2.1.5 Replacement of unbroken Comcast equipment that a Comcast 23 telephone representative (rather than the customer) claims is broken and directs the technician 24 to replace. 25 26 COMPLAINT FOR INJUNCTIVE AND OTHER RELIEF UNDER THE CONSUMER PROTECTION ACT, RCW 19.86 - 14 ATTORNEY GENERAL OF WASHINGTON Consumer Protection Division 800 Fifth Avenue, Suite 2000 Seattle, WA 98104 (206)464-7745 1 4.2.1.6 Instances when a customer—according to an untrained 2 technician—refuses the customer guarantee, even though no customer would willingly pay 3 Comcast money for repairs that should be free. 4 5 4.2.1.7 Instances when a service call relates to both a Comcast equipment or network issue, and a customer education, equipment, or inside wiring issue. 6 Comcast failed to clearly disclose any of these limitations to the consumer. Comcast's 7 Customer Guarantee is deceptive, and it gives the consumer the net impression that they will 8 not be charged for anything relating to a Comcast equipment or network problem in violation 9 of the CPA. 4.2.2 Comcast unfairly and/or deceptively represented the scope of the SPP's 10 11 coverage to hundreds of thousands of consumers by: 4.2.2.1 Claiming it covers repairs to all inside wiring, when it does not 12 13 cover repairs to any concealed wires; 14 4.2.2.2 Claiming it covers service calls relating to customer equipment 15 without clearly and conspicuously disclosing it does not cover repairs to customer equipment; 16 and 4.2.2.3 Claiming the SPP covers repairs to Comcast equipment and 17 18 19 network problems, when these problems are already covered by the Comcast Guarantee. Comcast's online and oral advertisements to the consumer regarding the SPP were 20 deceptive because they contained both blatantly false statements and because they gave the 21 consumer the net impression that the SPP covers all repairs a customer may require for the 22 cable, phone, or internet services, when it frequently does not cover any repairs a consumer 23 requires at all. 24 4.2.3 Comcast obtained a deposit from over 6,000 Washington customers with 25 high credit scores, revealing that they unfairly and deceptively ran credit checks on customers 26 who paid a deposit to avoid a credit check, and/or unfairly and deceptively collected deposits COMPLAINT FOR INJUNCTIVE AND OTHER RELIEF UNDER THE CONSUMER PROTECTION ACT, RCW 19.86 - 15 ATTORNEY GENERAL OF WASHINGTON Consumer Protection Division 800 Fifth Avenue, Suite 2000 Seattle, WA 98104 (206) 464-7745 I from customers who were not required to pay a deposit. In addition, Comcast ran credit checks 2 on at least 91 Washington consumers over a day after they paid a deposit to avoid the running 3 of a credit check. 4 4.3 Comcast's actions affect the public interest because it repeatedly engaged in the 5 conduct described above. Comcast improperly obtained deposits from and/or ran credit checks 6 on over 6,000 Washington consumers. Comcast made claims regarding the scope of the SPP 7 to over 700,000 Washington consumers. Comcast deceptively represented the scope of its 8 Customer Guarantee to over 1.17 million Washington consumers. In total, Comcast has 9 violated the CPA over 1.8 million times. 4.4 10 The conduct described in paragraphs 1.1 through 4.3 constitutes unfair and 11 deceptive acts or practices in trade or commerce and unfair methods of competition in violation 12 of RCW 19.86.020 and is contrary to the public interest. V. 13 14 15 WHEREFORE, Plaintiff, STATE OF WASHINGTON, prays that this Court grant the following relief: 5.1 16 17 PRAYER FOR RELIEF That the Court adjudge and decree that Defendant has engaged in the conduct complained of herein. 5.2 18 That the Court adjudge and decree that the conduct complained of in the 19 Complaint constitutes unfair or deceptive acts or practices and unfair methods of competition 20 in violation of the Consumer Protection Act, Chapter 19.86 RCW. 5.3 21 That the Court issue a permanent injunction enjoining and restraining Defendant 22 and its representatives, successors, assigns, officers, agents, servants, employees, and all other 23 persons acting or claiming to act for, on behalf of, or in active concert or participation with 24 Defendant from continuing or engaging in the unlawful conduct complained of herein. 25 H 26 H COMPLAINT FOR INJUNCTIVE AND OTHER RELIEF UNDER THE CONSUMER PROTECTION ACT, RCW 19.86 - 16 ATTORNEY GENERAL OF WASHINGTON Consumer Protection Division 800 Fifth Avenue, Suite 2000 Seattle, WA 98104 (206)464-7745 1 2 5.4 That the Court assess civil penalties, pursuant to RCW 19.86.140, of up to $2,000 per violation against Defendant for each and every violation of RCW 19.86.020 alleged 3 herein. 4 5.5 That the Court make such orders pursuant to RCW 19.86.080 as it deems 5 appropriate to provide for restitution to consumers of money or property acquired by 6 7 Defendant as a result of the conduct complained of herein. 5.6 That the Court order such other relief as it may deem just and proper to fully 8 and effectively dissipate the effects of the conduct complained of herein, or which may 9 10 otherwise seem proper to the Court. DATED this s day of August, 2016. 11 Presented by: 12 ROBERT W. FERGUSON Attorney General 13 14 15 16 17 < c~DANIEL DAVIES, WSBA 441793 JOEL DELMAN, WSBA #16688 Assistant Attorneys General Attorneys for Plaintiff State of Washington 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 COMPLAINT FOR INJUNCTIVE AND OTHER RELIEF UNDER THE CONSUMER PROTECTION ACT, RCW 19.86 - 17 ATTORNEY GENERAL OF WASI-ENGTON Consumer Protection Division 800 Fifth Avenue, Suite 2000 Seattle, WA 98104 (206)464-7745