Better Business Bureau Not Warm On Mail Order Heaters
FORT WORTH (CBSDFW.COM) - The Better Business Bureau is issuing a warning to consumers about an advertisement popping up in some North Texas newspapers or on late-night television.
In the ad an Ohio company called Heat Surge is selling an electric heater that resembles a fireplace. The advertisement promises the heater comes with a hand-finished wooden mantle made by Amish craftsman.
The BBB says in the last three years it has received hundreds of complaints saying the ad is misleading.
Brian McLaughlin of Fort Worth says he's held on to two heaters ordered during a buy-one-get-one free promotion. McLaughlin says the heaters were purchased by his 81-year-old mother, who suffers from Alzheimer's disease.
McLaughlin says the heater does not live up to its claims.
Better Business Bureau President John Riggings says the company that makes the heaters is one of several businesses owned by Arthur Middleton Capital Holdings of Canton, Ohio. Three of its companies, World Reserve Monetary Exchange, PatentHEALTH, and Heat Surge have generated several hundred complaints over misleading claims, thirty-five of them from Texans.
"The ad talks about lowering expenses, like the cost of heating an entire room for what it costs to fuel a coffee maker," says Riggings.
He says consumers have complained about not saving money, that they don't get their delivery on time or at all, and the quality of the heater isn't very good.
The BBB says it's contacted Arthur Middleton Capital Holdings about changing its advertising, but the complaints keep coming in.
CBS 11 contacted the company as well, without a response.
Brian McLaughlin just wants his mom to get her money back before winter sets in. "I don't even have a good heater to plug in and set up in the house to keep my mother warm."
Consumers can learn how to protect themselves or find reviews of businesses or charities by calling (817) 332-7585 or by going online to www.fwbbb.org.
