FTC Cancels Postal Exam Scam
A Tennessee company will pay the Federal Trade Commission $105,000 and will cease marketing material it claimed would help consumers pass an exam necessary to earn a job with the U.S. Postal Service. Court papers had asked for more than $2 million, but that amount was reduced based on the defendants’ alleged inability to pay.
According to the settlement papers, at least as far back as January 2004 Job Resources Inc. and Jeffrey Charles Lord placed a series of advertisements advertising positions with the Postal Service that paid between $15 and $45 per hour. Consumers calling a number within the ads were told that jobs were available in their area, and that passing an exam would guarantee them one of those jobs, according to the FTC. Consumers were charged a “registration fee” of $108.80 for test preparation materials, the FTC said.
While many entry-level postal jobs do require a test, within any given area the test is given usually once sever few years. Furthermore, passing the test does not guarantee employment, but rather places the individual on a registrar based on their test score, according to the FTC. Finally, the test score is only one of several criteria the U.S.P.S. considers as part of the employment process.
The materials the defendants sent out contained false and misleading information, and could not help respondents pass the exam, according to a permanent injunction filed in the U.S. District Court, Middle District of Tennessee, Nashville Division. The exams test general aptitude, and scores cannot usually be improved by studying, the FTC said.
