OTHER NEWS - May 26, 1993

SDG&E; Files Suit Against 4 Appliance Retailers: San Diego Gas & Electric Co. charged the San Diego County appliance retailers with “falsely and fraudulently” claiming rebates in a program that rewards buyers of energy-efficient refrigerators. In a suit filed in San Diego County Superior Court, SDG&E; said an in-house audit found that Circuit City, Silo, ANA Photo & Appliance and Cousins Photo & Appliance Warehouse stores submitted nearly 100 false claims for rebates ranging from $25 to $225 each. About half the frauds involved double submission for rebates on the same sale and the other half for refrigerators sold to buyers outside the SDG&E; coverage area, mainly in Mexico.