The complaint alleges that Trustpilot did sell its integrity, to companies reviewed on its site. earns billions of dollars a year posting consumer reviews of businesses by claiming to offer a platform internet users can trust, because its integrity is not for sale. 18, 2021), Trustpilot sent one of the Auto-Enroll Emails as defined below.** This class action, filed in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, is brought on behalf of: the Class of all persons or entities living in the United States to whom or which, within six years before the date of the commencement (Jan. and Trustpilot A/S (together, “Trustpilot” or "Defendants"). 21-cv-432 (SDNY)įRANK LLP has filed a class action lawsuit against Trustpilot Inc. That's not uncommon, according to Barber.īarber says the first step in filing a case is to send out a notice and give a person time to respond accordingly before filing suit.Trustpilot Damages LLC et al. 1, court records don't show any current lawsuit filed against Liz right now. "It's patently false and it damages the reputation of the company," he said.Īs of Dec. Why do they think they can get money out of me for nothing?"īarber feels differently about her posting. "I don't feel that there is anything to quantify that with a dollar amount," Liz said. Liz says she stands by her review and believes the letter she received threatening legal action is only meant to get her to pay $10,000. "They really tend to my schedule with three children." "The Smith company has really taken me in and they are very accompanying," employee Samantha Heron said. To prove his point, he brought in a single mother with three kids who works for Smith Plumbing and Heating during our interview. "What she wrote was patently untrue in terms of comparing estimates that are not comparable and then accusing a company of being basically predators and taking advantage monetarily of single mothers," Barber said. He says Liz' online review questioning the price discrepancy was not an apples to apples comparison-claiming both companies provided estimates for different equipment, work and warranties. It cannot be false and it cannot cause damage." "I've written unfavorable reviews for places I've eaten and for other businesses and I get that, but there are elements for a review to be lawful, it has to be true. "This is a reputable company that takes care of customers, cares for its customers and the customers reciprocate by coming back," James Barber, General Legal Counsel and VP of Operations for Smith Plumbing and Heating said. News 5 reached out to Smith Plumbing, Heating, Cooling and Electrical to hear its side of the story. "My response was that they can put a lawsuit together and I'd be happy to defend myself to the judge," she said. Liz says in her case, she's prepared to fight after receiving Barber's letter asking her to remove the post and pay for damages. In that case, the business owner was ordered to pay hundreds of thousands of dollars in damages. In Lubbock, TX, a business owner was sued by a third-party company he hired to help grow his business but when things didn't work out, the business owner left a negative review online and the company sued. In northern Virginia, a child care provider sued a mother over negative feedback that was posted. In Illinois, a window and blinds company sued a couple over a negative Yelp! review.
We found several cases of businesses going after customers over what they write in online reviews. Getting sued by a business or company is not uncommon according to research News 5 Investigates conducted.
"I definitely felt like they were trying to take advantage of me," Liz told News 5. In it, Barber states that a portion of Liz' review is "defamatory" and he asked her to "remove the post" and pay $10,000 in damages to settle the claim in lieu of a lawsuit.
The letter is titled "Potential Lawsuit in Defamation Per Se". Shortly after writing that review, Liz said she received a letter from attorney James Barber. In her posting, she said that Smith Plumbing and Heating "tried to charge $23,000 for $10,000 in work" and then said "they really tried to take advantage of this single parent." Facebook post on Smith's business/company page Online review Liz posted on Facebook