FTC and Washington settle with payment processor Riverside over misleading small business contracts
POLICYFederal Trade Commissionredteam/daily · 1 source
- Severity
- Low
- Sources
- 1
What happened
The FTC and Washington state reached a proposed settlement with Riverside Payments Inc., Cascade Equipment Leasing LLC and their executives, requiring a $600,000 payment and suspending a $32,083,921 judgment. The complaint alleges false savings claims, undisclosed fees and auto-renewing multi-year contracts, plus cancellation obstacles and a claimed 'risk-free' guarantee that was not honoured. The order waives the early termination fee for 60 days, bars misrepresentations and unsubstantiated earnings claims, and requires express informed consent and a simple cancellation route for negative option plans.
For IT people · Written by AI from 1 source · Wrong?
What to do
- Small businesses with Riverside or Cascade agreements may rescind them without a termination penalty under the proposed order.
- Businesses should review processing contracts for automatic renewal terms and early termination fees before signing.
Written by AI from the sources, checked against them
Full story timeline · 1 update
Who reported · 1 outlet
FTC Consumer Protection
Who and what is in it
Companies