Consumers feeling warmth on couch, in wallet

Not only are savvy infomercial consumers warmer on the couch and less inconvenienced by a blanket with sleeves, they are richer in their wallets after the Federal Trade Commission approved refunds for such as-seen-on-TV products as Snuggies.

The FTC is mailing 218,254 refund checks totaling more than $7.2 million to people who bought products deceptively marketed as “buy-one-get-one-free,” including Snuggies, the Magic Mesh Door and other “as-seen-on-TV” type products, the FTC announced Monday. 

Specifically, consumers who bought products marketed by Allstar Marketing Group L.L.C. will receive checks averaging $33.14.

In March 2015, the FTC alleged that since at least 1999, Allstar has used direct marketing television commercials to sell its products with a “buy-one-get-one-free” offer that did not disclose all the costs. Because the ordering process was confusing, some customers were also charged for more products than they wanted, according to federal regulators.