May 17, 2002
A New Jersey woman has filed a proposed class-action lawsuit against the manufacturer of the battery-powered AB Energizer belt, claiming their claims that the electronic belt somehow produces a muscular midsection.
The lawsuit on behalf of a Camden County woman and others who bought the battery-powered AB Energizer comes 10 days after the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) filed similar lawsuits.
The lawsuits charge that the six-pack-ab promises are false, as are assurances that the companies provide a "money back guarantee."
The belts cost $40 to $120 and have earned the companies about $100 million so far, the FTC said. They are sold mainly through 30-minute informercials on national cable television stations.
The lawsuits seek refunds for consumers of the belts, and a halt to advertisements containing false claims. Additionally, the New Jersey action could give purchasers triple refunds under the state's Consumer Fraud Act, said Philip Stephen Fuoco, a lawyer involved in the case.
Friday's lawsuit names as defendants three companies based in the same suite in San Diego, Electronic Products Distribution, Abflex USA Inc. and Ab Energizer; and Energizer Products Inc. of Tarzana, Calif.
