Sears Could Be Target of States’ Review

Sears, Roebuck & Co. could be the target of a multistate investigation related to its admission it improperly collected debts from certain credit-card customers who had filed for bankruptcy, a Massachusetts state prosecutor said. Massachusetts has begun looking into the matter and will coordinate the effort, said Assistant Atty. Gen. Christopher Barry-Smith, who hosted a 25-state conference call among state investigators. Sears has been hit with a series of legal actions since it admitted April 10 it failed to file the proper papers in some cases after getting bankrupt credit-card customers to keep paying bills. The company said it would pay back customers as much as $400 million. Sears has also said Missouri was investigating it and that it expected other states’ attorneys general to become involved. No Sears spokesperson could be reached for comment.