COLUMBUS, Ohio (CN) – Two lawsuits filed in state court claim an Ohio furniture store refused to honor its advertised promotion after promising free furniture if 69 percent of Ohio voters turned out for the 2016 presidential election.
Wilfred Muiche of Franklin County and Linda and Patrick Mescher of Montgomery County claim in separate complaints filed this week that Morris Furniture Company, which has several locations throughout Ohio, advertised its “vote for free furniture” promotion in an effort to entice buyers “to make qualifying purchases of thousands of dollars’ worth of furniture” with the promise that the retailer would issue refunds if 69 percent of registered voters in the state voted in the 2016 election.
The 69 percent figure was chosen to coincide with Morris’ 69th anniversary in 2016.
However, Muiche and the Meschers, represented by lead attorney Timothy Cook with Doucet & Associates, claim Morris did not live up to its promise when more than 69 percent of voters showed up to the polls on Nov. 8, 2016.
According to the Ohio secretary of state’s office, 71 percent of registered voters in the state cast their ballot, or 7.8 million residents.
Muiche and the Meschers allege that Morris – despite having advertised the free-furniture promotion on TV, in print and online – backed out of its promise by claiming a distinction between “eligible” and “registered” voters.
They say the Dayton-based furniture store “manufactured a reason not to honor” its promotion.
“The real reason Morris did not honor the promotion is because it learned that the insurance policy it took out for this promotion would not cover the cost of the free furniture because the policy had different terms than those advertised by Morris,” the lawsuit states.
Muiche brought his complaint in Franklin County on Tuesday and the Meschers filed in Montgomery County on Monday.
Neither Morris nor the plaintiffs’ attorney, Cook, immediately responded Friday to requests for comment.
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