The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida entered an order in April 2023 requiring Legacy Cremation Services, LLC, Funeral & Cremation Group of North America, LLC, and owner Anthony Joseph Damiano to pay $275,000 in civil penalties and comply with injunctive relief after the FTC and DOJ found the companies misrepresented locations, advertised deceptively low prices, withheld cremated remains to extort payment of undisclosed fees, and failed to provide required Funeral Rule disclosures.

Legacy Cremation Services / Funeral & Cremation Group — FTC Civil Penalty, Remains Withholding (2023)

Outcome: In April 2023, a federal court ordered Legacy Cremation Services, LLC, Funeral & Cremation Group of North America, LLC, and owner Anthony Joseph Damiano to pay $275,000 in civil penalties and submit to permanent injunctive relief following FTC and DOJ allegations that the companies withheld cremated remains as leverage for payment of undisclosed fees, made deceptive location and pricing representations, and violated multiple provisions of the Funeral Rule.

Anthony Joseph Damiano operated an online cremation and funeral services network operating under brand names including Heritage Cremation Provider, Evergreen Funeral Home and Crematory, and Carolina Central Crematory. The companies operated primarily in Florida and marketed direct-cremation services online, presenting themselves as local providers in geographic areas where they had no physical presence.

The FTC and DOJ filed their complaint in April 2022 in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida, alleging the following: (1) the companies misrepresented their geographic location, creating false impressions of local availability; (2) they advertised deceptively low prices that did not reflect the true cost consumers would ultimately be charged; (3) when consumers who had paid based on the advertised price objected to subsequently disclosed higher charges, the companies withheld or threatened to withhold the cremated remains, death certificates, or information about remains' location unless consumers paid the higher undisclosed fees; (4) the companies added additional charges if consumers chose to transfer their business to a different funeral provider; and (5) the companies failed to provide disclosures required by the FTC Funeral Rule.

The April 2023 settlement required $275,000 in civil penalties and permanent injunctive compliance requirements, representing one of the largest cash penalties imposed by the FTC in a Funeral Rule enforcement action.

Primary Source: FTC Action Leads to Civil Penalties for Funeral and Cremation Provider | FTC