-Caveat Lector- Fraud Lawsuit Filed Against Sears EDWARDSVILLE, Ill., Jun 16, 1999 (AP Online via COMTEX) -- Sears, Roebuck & Co. collected up to $400 million for tire balancing services it never performed, then paid millions to keep the fraud quiet, according to a lawsuit filed in Madison County Circuit Court. The lawsuit, filed Tuesday, also claims managers destroyed the tire-balancing machines with sledgehammers to cover up the fraud. The complaint, which seeks class-action status, estimates 7 million to 30 million people who purchased Sears AccuBalance service from 1989 to 1994 were potentially defrauded. The balancing machines were used to shave off a tiny layer of rubber to make sure the tires were round. Sears workers typically charged $12.50 to process each tire but often skipped the procedure, which was impossible for the buyer to detect, according to the lawsuit. It also contends Sears management knew that most of the balancing services never were performed, but pressured employees to sell the services anyway. Attorney Stephen Katz, who represents the plaintiffs, said he believes Sears failed to do the work up to 90 percent of the time in its 800 tire stores nationwide. Sears spokesman David Albritton declined comment today on the lawsuit, which he said the company had not seen. But he noted the case is the same as a federal lawsuit pending in Tampa, Fla. That lawsuit was filed in September 1991, thrown out and recently reinstated late last year by a federal appeals court that ruled notices Sears sent in 1992 for reimbursement of ''unnecessary and/or improper repairs'' were too vague to be understood. The lawsuit accuses Sears of paying almost $30 million in ''hush money'' to buy the silence of the machine's manufacturer, Assix International Inc., of Tampa, Fla., after that company's workers reported significant discrepancies between the services Sears sold and the work recorded by mechanical counters on the machines. Assix leased about 1,300 machines to Sears for $300 per month each, plus a royalty of 15 cents on every tire shaved, according to court documents. Sears paid Assix based on cash register receipts and not the counters, the suit said. In 1994, Sears paid $30 million in cash and property for a $6 million contract termination settlement and to acquire the AccuBalance machines, the lawsuit contends. The lawsuit alleges that Sears, based in the Chicago suburb of Hoffman Estates, distributed a ''secret video tape'' telling workers to destroy the machines and the counters with sledgehammers, then sell the remains for scrap. It claims Sears also acquired all Assix paperwork regarding its AccuBalance machines as part of ''massive cover-up efforts.'' Copyright 1999 Associated Press, All rights reserved. -0- News provided by COMTEX. [!COMMUNITY] [APO] [CONTRACT] [LAWSUIT] [MONEY] [NEWS] [NEWSGRID] [ONLINE] [PROPERTY] [RUBBER] [VIDEO] -- ----------------------- NOTE: In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. section 107, this material is distributed without profit or payment to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving this information for non-profit research and educational purposes only. For more information go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml ----------------------- DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion and informational exchange list. Proselyzting propagandic screeds are not allowed. Substance—not soapboxing! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory', with its many half-truths, misdirections and outright frauds is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRL gives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no credeence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply. Let us please be civil and as always, Caveat Lector. ======================================================================== Archives Available at: http://home.ease.lsoft.com/archives/CTRL.html http:[EMAIL PROTECTED]/ ======================================================================== To subscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SUBSCRIBE CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] To UNsubscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SIGNOFF CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] Om
