Attorney General's Office
The Attorney General’s Office protects Nebraskans from unfair, unconscionable and deceptive trade practices, ensures fair competition between businesses, and is responsible for oversight of charitable assets and entities. Our office’s Consumer Protection Division accomplishes this through:
One way we protect consumers is by equipping them to protect themselves. We educate consumers about identity theft, Internet safety, and how to recognize the warning signs of fraud and scams.
In addition to news releases and offering educational materials, we provide community outreach by speaking directly to groups and organizations.
Disputes that a consumer may have with a business can often be resolved as a result of the mediation process. Our office offers mediation through our Consumer Protection Division Mediation Center. Mediation relies on the voluntary cooperation of both the consumer and the business. The mediation process is started by filing a consumer complaint with our office. Each and every consumer complaint is reviewed by a mediator. The mediator, who is independent and neutral, acts as a "go between" for the consumer and the business. The consumer will always be kept apprised of the status of his/her complaint, including whether a complaint has been referred to another governmental entity.
If, the parties don’t reach a resolution through mediation, the consumer may choose to go through the legal process to have a court resolve the dispute. The consumer may want to consider small claims court or hiring an attorney. Please note that the Attorney General's Office cannot represent or provide legal advice to individuals.
If you are a victim of a crime, contact your local law enforcement immediately.
The Attorney General’s Office protects Nebraskans from unfair, unconscionable and deceptive trade practices, as well as ensures fair competition between businesses, through enforcement actions.
File a complaint regarding charitable assets or entities, click here.
Attorney General Doug Peterson today announced a settlement with Dallas based MoneyGram Payment Systems, Inc. resolving a multistate investigation which focused on complaints of consumers who used MoneyGram’s wire transfer service to send money to third parties involved in schemes to defraud consumers. In addition to Nebraska, 48 states and the District of Columbia participated in this settlement.
Attorney General Doug Peterson is issuing an alert for Nebraskans to be wary of a postcard being sent to Nebraska companies. Several businesses have reported receiving the official-looking postcard purporting to be from “United Business Services Compliance Division” providing a “Notice of Potential Compliance Violation” and listing a phone number to call immediately to avoid fees and penalties.
This is a scam. The mailing appears to be an official government document, but it is not. Currently, there is not an entity registered to do business in Nebraska by the name of “United Business Services.” The address used by this questionable entity is that of a downtown apartment complex. We believe the scammers are preying on newly registered limited liability companies, who may not know what rules they actually need to follow.
Recipients of the postcard have reported that when calling the number provided they are directed to pay a one-time fee of roughly $70 to apply for a Certificate of Good Standing or to pay for a similar service that is not necessarily needed. Official, correct certificates may be requested from the Secretary of State’s office online or by mail.
Today, the Nebraska Attorney General’s Office announces Operation Collection Protection (OCP) which is a national coalition of federal, state, and local enforcement and regulatory organizations committed to working cooperatively to address illegal debt collection practices. Led by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), more than 75 organizations participated in OCP, including the FTC, CFPB, Department of Justice, 47 other state attorneys general and the District of Columbia, 17 state regulatory agencies, one Canadian provincial regulatory agency, and a number of local authorities.
In 2010, the total amount of U.S. consumer debt reached nearly $2.5 trillion. Nearly 30 million consumers have an account in collections. Debt collectors make as many as 1 billion contacts a year with consumers. The vast majority of these contacts are perfectly legal. Unfortunately, many are not.
Today, the Nebraska Attorney General’s Office announces Operation Collection Protection (OCP) which is a national coalition of federal, state, and local enforcement and regulatory organizations committed to working cooperatively to address illegal debt collection practices. Led by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), more than 75 organizations participated in OCP, including the FTC, CFPB, Department of Justice, 47 other state attorneys general and the District of Columbia, 17 state regulatory agencies, one Canadian provincial regulatory agency, and a number of local authorities.
The Attorneys General have reached a $71 million settlement with Amgen Inc. to resolve allegations that Amgen unlawfully promoted biologic medications Aranesp and Enbrel. Aranesp is used to treat certain types of anemia by stimulating bone marrow to produce red blood cells. Enbrel is used to treat a number of conditions, including plaque psoriasis. The Complaint and Agreement to Entry of Final Consent Judgment (Agreement) filed today alleges that Amgen violated state consumer protection laws by: (1) promoting Aranesp for dosing frequencies longer than the FDA approved label without competent and reliable scientific evidence to substantiate the extended dosing frequencies; (2) promoting Aranesp for anemia caused by cancer without having FDA approval or competent and reliable scientific evidence to support it; and (3) promoting Enbrel for mild plaque psoriasis even though Enbrel is only approved by the FDA to treat chronic moderate to severe plaque psoriasis.
Nebraska Attorney General Doug Peterson announced an agreement today with the nutritional supplement chain Vitamin Shoppe, Inc. that permanently bans the sale of products that contain BMPEA, a powerful stimulant and amphetamine-like substance. Products containing BMPEA are sometimes sold as weight loss or performance enhancing nutritional supplements.
According to the agreement, Vitamin Shoppe, Inc. will not sell products containing or suspected of containing BMPEA. If a product is at risk of containing BMPEA, Vitamin Shoppe, Inc. must perform testing to prove it does not contain the substance. The Oregon and Vermont Attorneys General have recently announced similar settlements.
