TruGreen settles N.Y. sales complaint

MEMPHIS, Tenn. – Memphis-based lawn care company TruGreen has reached a settlement with the New York attorney general over consumer complaints about sales and contract practices.

Atty. Gen. Andrew M. Cuomo announced the settlement, which called for the ServiceMaster subsidiary to pay $55,000 in penalties, fees and costs and to alter customer communications and contract practices in New York.

"My office received complaints that this company was not direct and forthcoming about its contracts, forcing consumers to pay for unwanted services," Cuomo says in a statement on the agency's website.

"TruGreen has agreed to revise its contract language and change its practices so that consumers don't get stuck in a web of misleading and deceptive statements and terms," Cuomo adds.

TruGreen director of communications Susanna Weston says in a statement, "TruGreen is pleased to have forged a collaborative relationship and ongoing, positive dialogue with the office of the Attorney General in the state of New York. Over the past several months, TruGreen has worked closely with the state to address its concerns and taken steps to better clarify messages to our customers."

Read more at The Commercial Appeal.