AUGUSTA – Call it the “orizon” scam.
The consumer division of Maine’s Attorney General’s Office is cautioning people to be wary of callers reminding business owners – and in some cases, churches – that it’s time to renew their “yellow pages” listing.
The Attorney General’s Office has received what it described as “numerous complaints” about a company that people thought was Verizon saying it was time to re-up the advertising listing.
According to AG spokesman Charles Dow, the caller pronounced the name in such a way that it sounded like Verizon. Once customers received their bill – for $400 a pop – they learned they were being dunned by an outfit calling itself “Horizon E-Yellow Pages.”
Dow said the duped customers quickly realized that they had never heard of “Horizon” and since they hadn’t listed with it previously, they couldn’t possibly be renewing a listing.
“If you have been fooled into contracting with Horizon E-Yellow Pages, contact the Attorney General’s Consumer Division at 1-800-436-2131 or send an e-mail to consumer.mediation@maine.gov,” Dow said.
Send questions/comments to the editors.
Success. Please wait for the page to reload. If the page does not reload within 5 seconds, please refresh the page.
Enter your email and password to access comments.
Hi, to comment on stories you must . This profile is in addition to your subscription and website login.
Already have a commenting profile? .
Invalid username/password.
Please check your email to confirm and complete your registration.
Only subscribers are eligible to post comments. Please subscribe or login first for digital access. Here’s why.
Use the form below to reset your password. When you've submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code.