Attorney General James Sues Brooklyn Furniture Store for Cheating Hundreds of Consumers

 

1StopBedrooms Charged Customers Unnecessary Cancellation Fees, Falsely Promoted “Hassle-Free” Returns, Delivered Damaged Goods, and Lied about Delivery Dates

New York Attorney General Letitia James filed a lawsuit against Payless Furniture, Inc. d/b/a 1StopBedrooms, a Brooklyn-based furniture store, for cheating New York consumers. The Office of the Attorney General (OAG) opened an investigation into 1StopBedrooms after receiving hundreds of complaints and found that the store charged customers exorbitant cancellation fees, falsely promoted 30-day “hassle-free” returns, and delivered damaged products with no opportunity for a refund or exchange. Through this lawsuit, Attorney General James is seeking an injunction to stop 1StopBedrooms from continuing to cheat customers, restitution, and civil penalties.

“Furnishing a home can be expensive, and the last thing families should have to worry about is receiving furniture that is damaged, missing pieces, or excessively late,” said Attorney General James. “My office received hundreds of complaints against 1StopBedrooms for cheating New Yorkers and today we are taking action to stop this fraud and help consumers get back what they are owed. Businesses have a responsibility to honor the promises they make to consumers and when they do not, my office will step in to protect hardworking New Yorkers. I encourage all New Yorkers to contact my office if they believe they’re being taken advantage of or scammed.”

1StopBedrooms is an online furniture store headquartered in Midwood, Brooklyn. The OAG’s investigation found that 1StopBedrooms advertises furniture on its online store as in stock and displays a short “shipping” date. However, the actual delivery dates are much later than the advertised date once a purchase has been made. The store also charged customers a 15 percent “restocking” fee plus a $2.25/lb. return shipping fee to cancel orders that were significantly delayed. Additionally, the store did not refund customers for delivery fees on orders that were canceled. Several customers only received partial refunds, and others did not receive any refunds on canceled orders.

Once customers made an online purchase, 1StopBedrooms often contacted customers that an important part of the furniture they ordered was missing from their purchase price, and charged customers additional bogus fees. 1StopBedrooms also failed to correct or help customers who received damaged, missing, or incorrect furniture deliveries. The store advertises that customers have only 24 hours to report damaged furniture to receive a refund. However, 1StopBedrooms failed to adequately repair damaged furniture or respond to customers’ complaints. The store also told customers that a refund could be issued if they withdrew their complaints with the Better Business Bureau or other online review platforms.

Through this lawsuit, Attorney General James is seeking to stop 1StopBedrooms from continuing to cheat consumers and obtain restitution and civil penalties. 

Attorney General James encourages consumers who have been deceived or defrauded to contact her office by filing an online complaint or calling 1-800-771-7755.