Ware v. CleanChoice Energy, Inc.

A customer of the independent energy service company CleanChoice Energy, Inc. filed a proposed class action in the federal district court for the District of Massachusetts alleging that the company misrepresents how its electricity rates are calculated and “takes advantage of environmentally conscious consumers by promising to provide ‘pollution free’ electricity sourced from local renewable sources when it does no such thing.” The complaint alleged that the company made false and deceptive statements about the source of energy it supplied, including by describing electricity sold by the company as “produced from wind and solar sources” that “do not produce carbon dioxide or contribute to air pollution.” The complaint alleged that the only difference between the energy provided by the company and the “brown” energy provided by customers’ existing utilities was that the company purported to purchase renewable energy credits to offset the “brown” energy’s emissions. The plaintiff asserted that the company violated the Massachusetts Consumer Protection Act and also asserted breach of contract and unjust enrichment claims. The plaintiff sought compensatory, statutory, punitive, and treble damages, as well as injunctive relief and attorneys’ fees.