HomeServe USA won a tax break from a Chattanooga panel Tuesday for an expansion, though the company drew fire from a board member over allegations that it misled customers in other states.
“There needs to be some consideration that if we give [Payment in Lieu of Taxes] agreements to companies, there ought to be some corporate responsibility requirement that comes with it,” said Industrial Development Board member Jimmy Rodgers.
Rodgers cited a Washington Post article from September 2016 that said HomeServe, which sells monthly household repair plans to homeowners, has paid more than $400,000 to settle allegations of misleading consumers in six states.
In 2015, HomeServe paid $115,000 to Maryland’s Consumer Protection Division after its attorney general said residents were “tricked” into signing up for a HomeServe plan “they might not have needed.”
Also, the story said, HomeServe signed agreements between 2010 and 2015 with attorneys general or state officials in Georgia, Kentucky, Ohio, New York and Massachusetts. All of those came amid investigations into the firm’s marketing materials, among other complaints, the story said.