Business ProfileforSchool District Publishing
Current Alerts For This Business
Since 2011 BBB has received numerous inquiries/complaints that allege company sends out erroneous invoices to businesses (sometimes for years) stating that business owes company $595 for advertising agreement with them. When company is approached by victim to straighten out the error, company continues to use harassing tactics and threatens to send outstanding bills to collection company.
BBB of W.PA investigated using BBB inquiry & complaint information locally & nationwide, as well as various web searches which discovered many online warnings of this scheme from school districts nationwide.
Additional information discovered during investigation includes; company is not at address stated of 414 S Craig St, Pittsburgh PA 15213, “company complaints have been received as far back as 2011 in Western Pennsylania, company has been in operation nationwide and advertises in local school publications. Company uses illegal tactics to try to collect erroneous debts, & search could not find a Pennsylvania State registration for company although W-9 information from 2015 shows School District Publishing’s legal name is “2012 USP Holdings, Inc.” with address of: 1148 Pulaski Highway, Suite 107-341, Bear, DE 19701. Company has advertised address on 2016 invoices of P.O. Box 489, Riesel, TX 76682 and phone: (800) 380-5563. Review shows “2012 USP Holdings, Inc.” was registered with the Delaware Department of State (DOS ID # 4947427) and New York Department of State shows company’s address as: 570 Elmont Rd., Elmont, New York 11003.
Additional business information
On February 20, 2018, BBB has verified that the company is not registered with the Pennsylvania Department of State as required by Pennsylvania law. Also, mail was returned from address used by the company at 5750 Centre Ave, Pittsburgh, PA 15206.
Although anyone can be a target, businesses who have advertised in similar publications may be targeted.
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the nation’s consumer protection agency, cautions businesses that unscrupulous promoters are soliciting advertising for online, alternative, or nonexistent business listings promoted in school publications. Although the advertising appears to be legitimate, they are not distributed to the public, posted on the Web, or promoted as promised. As a result, the directories — if they exist at all — offer no benefits to businesses that pay to advertise in them.
The solicitation to buy directory ad space or membership may look like an invoice but it is just a solicitation although fraudulent promoters are able to lead businesses to believe they have agreed prior to this advertising invoice.
Of course, not all solicitations you receive in the mail look like bills, invoices, or account statements. Your business may receive a check that looks like a refund or rebate check. Read the front and back carefully. By cashing the check, you may be agreeing to be billed monthly for something you don’t want or need, such as Internet access or membership in an online directory. Be skeptical when you receive offers from strangers. Some solicitations could violate the law if they misrepresent information.
The U.S. Postal Service requires solicitations that look like invoices, bills, or account statements to carry one of the following notices:
“THIS IS NOT A BILL. THIS IS A SOLICITATION. YOU ARE UNDER NO OBLIGATION TO PAY THE AMOUNT STATED ABOVE UNLESS YOU ACCEPT THIS OFFER,” or
“THIS IS A SOLICITATION FOR AN ORDER OF GOODS OR SERVICES, OR BOTH, AND NOT A BILL, INVOICE OR STATEMENT OF ACCOUNT DUE. YOU ARE UNDER NO OBLIGATION TO MAKE ANY PAYMENTS ON ACCOUNT OF THIS OFFER UNLESS YOU ACCEPT THIS OFFER.”
Before you buy directory advertising space, membership through a mail solicitation, or pay an “invoice,” take the following steps:
· Check out the company and its publication.
· Ask for a copy of a previous directory edition.
· Ask for the online directory’s Web address and call advertisers in the directory to ask if their listing has been a good buy.
· Ask the publisher for written information about where the directory is distributed, how it is distributed, how often it is published, and distribution or circulation figures.
· Check with your local BBB and state consumer protection agencies to determine if any complaints have been filed about the publisher.
For more advice you can trust from your local BBB on avoiding scams and fraud, go to www.bbb.org.
At-a-glance
Related Categories
Business Details
This is a multi-location business.
- Location of This Business
- Unknown, Oakland, PA 15213
- BBB File Opened:
- 8/5/2011
- Alternate Business Name
- University Sports Publications
- Business Management
- Ms. Jennie Smith
- Contact Information
Customer Contact
- Ms. Jennie Smith
- Additional Contact Information
Phone Numbers
- (800) 380-5563Other Phone
- (800) 380-5563
Customer Complaints
0 Customer Complaints
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