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BJ’s Settles Maryland BOGO Dispute

BALTIMORE — BJ’s Wholesale Club has agreed to pay Maryland’s Consumer Protection Division here a $40,000 penalty and said it would refund money to as many as 2,000 Maryland shoppers who paid for items that should have been free, Douglas F. Gansler, Maryland’s attorney general, said.

Jon Springer, Executive Editor

April 5, 2010

1 Min Read
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JON SPRINGER

BALTIMORE — BJ’s Wholesale Club has agreed to pay Maryland’s Consumer Protection Division here a $40,000 penalty and said it would refund money to as many as 2,000 Maryland shoppers who paid for items that should have been free, Douglas F. Gansler, Maryland’s attorney general, said.

The Consumer Protection Division alleged that BJ’s, Natick, Mass., during late 2008 and early 2009 provided consumers with buy-one, get-one-free coupons for certain items, but the coupons’ fine print limited their value to an amount that in some cases was less than the cost of the item. Consumers who used those coupons were required to pay the difference between the limit of the coupon and the actual cost of the goods purchased.

BJ’s denied violating consumer protection laws. The retailer operates nine stores in Maryland.

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About the Author

Jon Springer

Executive Editor

Jon Springer is executive editor of Winsight Grocery Business with responsibility for leading its digital news team. Jon has more than 20 years of experience covering consumer business and retail in New York, including more than 14 years at the Retail/Financial desk at Supermarket News. His previous experience includes covering consumer markets for KPMG’s Insiders; the U.S. beverage industry for Beverage Spectrum; and he was a Senior Editor covering commercial real estate and retail for the International Council of Shopping Centers. Jon began his career as a sports reporter and features editor for the Cecil Whig, a daily newspaper in Elkton, Md. Jon is also the author of two books on baseball. He has a Bachelor of Arts degree in English-Journalism from the University of Delaware. He lives in Brooklyn, N.Y. with his family.

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