Comcast Protection Plan Fraud Lawsuit to Move Forward

Comcast has lost the first round of a $100 million lawsuit that accuses the cable provider of fraudulent behavior. Washington State AG Bob Ferguson sued Comcast for $100 million last August, claiming Comcast misrepresented the scope of its Service Protection Plans, charged customers improper service call fees, and engaged in improper credit screening practices. The lawsuit claims nearly 2 million instances of deceptive behavior impacting half a million Washington state subscribers.

King County Superior Court Judge Timothy Bradshaw has denied Comcast's attempt to have the case dismissed.

The one page ruling (pdf) issued by Bradshaw allows the case to move forward, with a likely hearing now slated for July 2017.

"The court correctly rejected Comcast’s attempt to evade responsibility for deceiving its customers," Ferguson's office said in a statement. "Washington consumers deserve their day in court."

Comcast's service protection plan covers the cost of all service calls, including those related to inside wiring, customer-owned hardware connected to Comcast services, and on-site "education" about products. However, Washington's AG office claims Comcast did not appropriately disclose that the plan does not cover repairs to any “wall-fished” wiring -- wiring inside a wall -- which constitutes the vast majority of wiring inside homes.

The AG office found that 75% of the time, Comcast representatives told customers the plan covered all inside wiring. They also found that Comcast consistently and intentionally charged customers for work that should have been covered by this $5 monthly fee.

Unsurprisingly, Comcast continues to deny that the company has done anything wrong.

"As we’ve said, this lawsuit fails to demonstrate violations of the Washington Consumer Protection Act," the company said in a statement. "We continue to believe the claims have no basis in either law or fact, and we look forward to proving that as we move forward with this case."