DirectBuy

Another controversial store is back in the news tonight. Direct Buy, the membership club that promises big discounts on furniture and housewares, now faces a lawsuit from our neighboring state of West Virginia. The reason? It's high pressure sales pitches. You may have seen or heard Direct Buy's commercials, where they promise to save you a bundle on home furnishings. We start our kitchen alone. We saved almost $10,000. It adds up to about a $30,000 to $40,000 savings overall. One Western Hills couple was sold. After seeing these slick brochures and attending an open house, Robert Lind, a sergeant in the Army Reserves, and his wife, Jamie, agreed to join the buying club. As their contract shows, they agreed to pay Direct Buy $379 a month over several years for a total of over $6,000 after interest. Our partners at Cons After you sit through an hour and a half pitch, you find out at the end that you have to sign up for a three-year contract, which costs $5,000. And if you don't sign up immediately, you can never come back. Now, West Virginia's attorney general is suing Direct Buy. The AG is accusing its Charleston franchise of deceptive and high-pressure sales tactics. He says promised freebies are often not available, and says Direct Buy does not always give the lowest price on items. Direct Buy denies the charges in the lawsuit. Meantime, former Ohio attorney general Mark Dan reached a settlement with Direct Buy back in 2008, and now Ohioans do have a three-day right to cancel a contract with Direct Buy. Kentucky and Indiana residents do not have that same right. And five years later, the AG's attorney general has been accused of a fraud. He's accused of a fraud.