ANDY MARTIN
BoycottAmericanExpress.blogspot.com
BoycottThePlumCard.blogspot.com
P. O. Box 1851
New York, NY 10150-1851
Tel. (866) 706-2639
CONSUMER ACTIVIST ANDY MARTIN LAUNCHES BOYCOTT, LAWSUIT AGAINST AMERICAN EXPRESS COMPANY
ANDY SAYS AMEX IS SYSTEMATICALLY VIOLATING FEDERAL CONSUMER PROTECTION LAWS
ANDY CALLS AMEX CONSUMER ARBITRATION DEMAND A "CONTACT OF ADHESION" THAT IS IGNORED BY CEO KENNETH CHENAULT, SAYS BOARD OF DIRECTORS SHOULD BE HELD RESPONSIBLE
(NEW YORK)(May 20, 2008)(Exclusive) When an arrogant and abusive American Express Company employee began harassing a customer on May 13th he had no idea he was speaking with legendary Illinois consumer advocate and U. S. Senate candidate Andy Martin.
Today, May 20th, Martin will launch a boycott of American express and its products.
"Someone called me up and said I was past due $21.14 on one of my accounts and he was suspending my account. I was flabbergasted," says Martin. "When I protested he said he would cancel all my accounts. This type of corporate arrogance and abuse has to stop. Kenneth Chenault was notified of the vicious and vindictive actions by his staff, and has ignored the matter. Maybe when I send my process servers out to serve his board of directors members with a lawsuit he will start to pay attention.
"Ever since I went to Washington in 1966 and worked on the staff of Senator Paul Douglas, the founding father of modern federal consumer protection legislation, I have been offended by arrogant corporate behavior and have done my best to combat it.
"In the course of trying to understand why I had been attacked, I came to realize that AmEx employees were systematically violating Federal consumer projection laws, in particular the Fair Credit Billing Act, and the Fair Debt Collection Procedures Act. We are looking for other statutes that may be applicable. Moreover, the retaliatory action by the AmEx employee is itself a consumer violation. American Express has refused to turn over a tape of the incident."
Martin has lunched two new blogs, BoycottThePlumCard.blogspot.com and BoycottAmericanExpress.blogspot.com to solicit complaints from the public. Complaints may be sent by e-mail to: AndyMart20@aol.com.
Martin's lawsuit challenges American Express' mandatory consumer arbitration clauses and its refusal to allow customers to go to court to resolve grievances. "In the case of American express, you get screwed both ways," says Andy. "They try to prevent you from going to court, which Congress should flatly outlaw, and then they ignore demands for arbitration. They just treat customers like dirt and think they can get away with it. This is not acceptable corporate behavior. I expect a judge to put an end to this consumer fraud."
Martin has a long history of successful consumer litigation and activism, see Andymartin.com.
NEWS CONFERENCE DETAILS:
WHO: Chicago Internet Columnist-editor/media critic and consumer advocate Andy Martin
WHERE: New York City, SE corner of 57th Street &
Sixth Avenue (Rue 57 corner)
WHEN: Tuesday, May 20, 5:00 P. M.
MEDIA
CONTACT: (866) 706-2639; cell (917) 664-9329
------------------------------------------
Chicago-based Internet investigative columnist, broadcaster and media critic Andy Martin is the Executive Editor and publisher of http://www.ContrarianCommentary.com. © Copyright by Andy Martin 2008. Martin covers regional, national and world events with more than forty years of experience. He holds a Juris Doctor degree from the University of Illinois College of Law. Comments? E-mail: AndyMart20@aol.com. Media contact: (866) 706-2639. Columns also posted at ContrarianCommentary.blogspot.com; contrariancommentary.wordpress.com.
Tuesday, May 20, 2008
Boycott the American Express Company
Welcome to a new blog that will be critical of the American Express Company and its products.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
