United States authorities are taking legal actions against a Californian based company for tricking UK consumers into thinking the company was based in the UK. The company, Balls of Kryptonite, sold electronic goods to UK nationals on the websites bestpricebrands.co.uk and bitesizedeals.co.uk.
According to the Federal Trade Commission the company’s use of .CO.UK domain names made customers believe they were dealing with a British-based company, meaning they were protected by UK trading regulations and warranties.
When customers received their goods they suddenyl found that they had been charged unexpected import duties and had invalid warranties. In some instances users received goods that was not the same product advertised on the websites. The company also charged draconian cancellation fees if goods were to be returned.
The Federal Trade Commission has taken the company to court, in the first ever case brought against a US company that did all of its trading abroad.
This is a lesson to be learned by webmasters involving themselves in online buying and selling. Always ensure that proper measures are in place in order to ensure that your consumers are protected at all times.
