New York seniors who were billed for books they believed were free can now seek refunds after Attorney General Letitia James announced a settlement with Frank W. Cawood & Associates, a Georgia company that sells self-help books geared toward older adults. The deal covers trial purchases mailed to New York addresses over the past six years and permanently ends the company's preview program in the state.
According to Newsday, FC&A advertised its hardcover books, which cover health, technology and personal finances, as free trials but then billed customers for the book plus shipping and handling. A typical bill came to $49.68, including a $36 book, $10 in shipping and handling, and $3.68 in New York taxes, the outlet reported. As part of the settlement, FC&A will refund eligible New York consumers and pay a $23,500 civil penalty, though the company neither admitted nor denied the attorney general's findings.
How the Offer Worked, and Fell Apart
Per Fingerlakes1.com, FC&A sent more than 4 million mailers to New Yorkers across more than 1,500 campaigns between 2021 and 2024, reaching roughly 10,000 individual New Yorkers in 2024 alone. The response certificates included a pre-checked box requesting a book to try with no obligation to buy, and once a response card was processed, FC&A would send the book along with a form letter and an invoice.
Consumers could pay in a lump sum or in four installments, but anyone who wanted to return the book had to cover return postage themselves. Investigators also found that books were sometimes mailed even when a sticker indicating acceptance of the preview offer was missing, and FC&A did not require a printed or signed consumer name on the preview certificates, instead retaining low-resolution scans of returned cards rather than the originals, according to the same report.
Persistent Billing Even After Confusion
If a bill went unpaid, FC&A could send 11 additional letters and invoices over roughly a year without the consumer paying or cancelling, and the company removed its phone number from invoices starting with the fifth notice, the outlet found. FC&A has represented that it did not turn accounts over to outside collection agencies or continue collection efforts after its 12th communication, and that it would cancel bills and remove consumers from mailing lists upon request.
The attorney general's investigation found that the free, risk-free preview promises obscured payment terms in fine print, leading officials to conclude that the sales and billing practices caused confused consumers or caregivers to pay for products they did not intend to buy. The state's review also turned up more than 650 caregiver calls between 2018 and 2024 from customers who said they didn't understand the terms or didn't remember ordering the books. Internal records showed some consumers said they believed the books were free but sent payment anyway, and the company was aware that some recipients had memory loss, dementia or other conditions affecting their ability to understand or recall the offers.
Who Qualifies and How Refunds Will Work
Under the settlement, eligibility covers products initially mailed on a preview or trial basis to a New York address within the six-year window, as the Fingerlakes1.com report detailed. FC&A must review its customer service, payment and refund records to find people who previously requested refunds but never received them, as well as consumers who paid after saying they didn't understand or remember requesting the trial or didn't intend to order anything.
Eligible consumers can submit claims during a six-month claims period even if they never previously contacted FC&A, and the attorney general's office must forward any timely eligibility inquiries to the company for handling as direct inquiries. Restitution is required to cover 100% of eligible consumers' payments for trial products, including shipping and any late fees, per the settlement terms described by Fingerlakes1.com.
FC&A will mail refunds by paper check to consumers' last known addresses and must search for updated addresses if restitution mail is returned. The company has to send restitution checks no later than 30 days after the six-month claims period ends, and it must report its compliance and payments to the attorney general within a year of the agreement taking effect. The settlement also bars FC&A from mailing or redeeming preview offers or seeking payment from New York consumers for preview-program products going forward.
Consumers who believe they qualify for a refund should contact FC&A before the April 23, 2027 deadline, according to the New York Attorney General's Office.
