NJ Division of Consumer Affairs Settles Lawsuit by Permanently Shutting Down Three Monmouth County Companies that Targeted Seniors in Aggressive and Deceptive Telemarketing of Emergency Response Systems

NEWARK – Attorney General Gurbir S. Grewal and the Division of Consumer Affairs today announced a $296,000 settlement with two Monmouth County residents and their companies to resolve allegations they defrauded senior citizens by selling emergency response systems through highly aggressive and misleading telemarketing sales tactics.
The settlement requires that the companies be dissolved and permanently bans the owners from selling such systems in New Jersey.

According to a civil Complaint filed by the State in 2016, Ezra Rishty, of Oakhurst, and Larry J. Ansell, of Tinton Falls, and their businesses Life Aid Connect, Inc., Safety Alert USA Limited Liability Company a/k/a Med Aid Alert, and Mobile Alert, Inc. (“the defendants”) targeted senior citizens in a telemarketing blitz that employed deceptive and aggressive tactics to pressure them into buying emergency alert systems that sometimes were never delivered, often did not operate properly or, in some cases, could not be activated where the consumers lived.

Under a Final Consent Judgment that resolves the State’s lawsuit, the defendants agreed to be permanently barred from advertising and selling emergency alert systems in the state. Rishty is also permanently barred from owning or operating any business in the state that uses telemarketing to advertise or sell merchandise. Rishty and Ansell must dissolve the three businesses that advertised and sold the emergency alert systems and destroy all personal and health information obtained from consumers in connection with the businesses.

“Using deceitful telemarketing practices to exploit vulnerable seniors isn’t just cruel, it’s also illegal,” said Attorney General Grewal. “This settlement sends a clear message that we will vigorously enforce our consumer protection laws and prosecute those who break them, especially those who prey on the elderly.”

“Protecting consumers from being defrauded by New Jersey telemarketers is a responsibility we take seriously,” said Kevin R. Jespersen, Acting Director of the Division of Consumer Affairs. “Con artists and scammers will not be allowed to browbeat our consumers into buying goods or services that they don’t want or need or don’t work as promised.”

The defendants represented that the emergency alert systems they sold allowed users to summon medical help via home-based or GPS satellite systems. The systems ranged in price from $159 to $299, and cost between $34.95 and $39.95 a month in monitoring fees.

According to the State’s Complaint, which was filed in Monmouth County Superior Court, the defendants violated the New Jersey Consumer Fraud Act (“CFA”), the Advertising Regulations, and the Telemarketing Do Not Call Law and related regulations by:

Under the Final Consent Judgment issued by a Superior Court judge in Monmouth County, the defendants agreed to a settlement amount of $295,545, which includes $206,000 in civil penalties, $8,669 in consumer restitution, $57,980 in reimbursement of the Division’s attorney’s fees, and $22,783 in reimbursement of the Division’s investigative costs.

Chief Investigator Laurie Goodman of the Division’s Office of Consumer Protection conducted the investigation.

Deputy Attorney General Jeffrey Koziar of the Consumer Fraud Prosecution Section within the Division of Law represented the State in this action.

Consumers who believe they have been cheated or scammed by a business, or suspect any other form of consumer abuse can file an online complaint with the State Division of Consumer Affairs by visiting its website or by calling 1-800-242-5846 (toll free within New Jersey) or 973-504-6200.

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