The final defendant in the multiple lawsuits against Triad Discount Buying Services Inc. has agreed to settle FTC charges.
As part of the settlement, Bruce Turiansky must post a $100,000 bond before engaging in any further telemarketing, and a $500,000 bond before conducting negative option sales. He must also pay $10,000 in consumer redress.
Turiansky has reached similar agreements with several states, including Florida, Illinois and Missouri, according to the FTC.
Last year, Triad and its chief officer Ira Smolev agreed to pay $9 million to settle charges filed by the FTC and numerous states. Another officer, Richard Kaylor, settled charges in April.
According to court papers, the company deceived consumers into purchasing club memberships and billed their credit cards without permission. The operation, which was conducted with third-party marketers, netted $194 million and hooked 2 million consumers over several years.
Turiansky will be liable for the full $2.4 million he received from Triad if the court finds that he misrepresented his financial statements.
The settlement also requires that Turiansky obtain “express, verifiable authorization” for future telemarketing and Internet sales, and it prohibits him from sharing consumers’ financial information with third parties without consent.
The Commission authorized the settlement with a 5-0 vote. The deal still requires court approval.
Court papers state that Triad provided more than 200 “partners” with misleading scripts for upselling customers into joining the clubs. Turiansky helped develop the scripts, according to the FTC.
Smolev, who operated Triad and several other related companies that have since entered Chapter 11 bankruptcy, has at least two mail-fraud convictions on his record, and has faced numerous civil and administrative actions dating back to the 1970
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