Public Citizen threatens legal action against Kleargear on behalf of customers

We posted about Kleargear, the company that ruined a dissatisfied customer's credit rating and fined her $3500 for posting a negative review when she didn't receive her goods. The company went into "social media hiding" after the story hit the net, but that didn't help the customers whose lives they'd ruined.
Now, Public Citizen has threatened legal action against Kleargear on behalf of Jen and John Palmer, demanding that the company clear the couples' credit, pay $75,000 in restitution; and agree to refrain from similar future shenanigans. Go Public Citizen!

Public Citizen is representing Jen and John Palmer in seeking redress from KlearGear. Today, we sent this demand letter seeking three actions from KlearGear: first, clearing up John's credit; second, paying $75,000 in compensation for the Palmers' ordeal, which has lasted more than a year; and third, agreeing to stop using this non-disparagement clause to extort money from their customers.
KlearGear's conduct is part of a troubling trend of businesses trying to deter negative reviews by muzzling their customers. Another example is Public Citizen's case against a New York dentist who tried to make her patients agree, as a condition of treatment, that they would not criticize her. And TechDirt has reported about the use of such a clause in vacation rental agreements.
As our letter explains, KlearGear's actions violate state tort law and the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act. If KlearGear refuses to comply, we'll file suit to enforce the Palmers' rights and send a message to unscrupulous corporations that they cannot muzzle their customers, extort money from them when they post critical reviews, or ruin their credit when they refuse outragous demands for payment.

Utah couple seeks relief after credit ruined over "non-disparagement" clause in a website's fine-print