Angie’s List Reviews and Ratings

January 2017: The appeal was voluntarily dismissed, the reasons for which have not been disclosed.

December 2016: A federal judge granted final approval of the settlement. Later in December, an objector filed a Notice of Appeal regarding the decision to grant approval.

July 2016: A federal judge preliminarily approved a settlement of this lawsuit. According to the settlement terms, class members may elect to receive a monetary benefit (estimated to be either $5 or $10 depending on when the class member purchased or renewed a membership) or a membership benefit (i.e., one month of free membership for every year they paid to be a member). In addition, the company agreed to modify its materials – including its Membership Agreement and FAQs on its website — to enhance its explanations of Angie’s List policies, such as that the company gets money from service providers offering coupons and discounts through Angie’s List and that service providers offering discounts or coupons are placed at the top of search results. For more information, go to https://www.moorevalsettlement.com/. A final fairness hearing is scheduled for December 5, 2016.

March 2015: A class-action lawsuit was filed against Angie’s List for allegedly falsely promising consumers that if they pay for a membership they will get other consumers’ unfiltered reviews, ratings, and search result rankings of local service providers (such as contractors, dentists, and mechanics) when, in reality, the company “secretly manipulates” reviews, ratings, and search result rankings. The complaint alleges that the company falsely promises consumers that local service providers cannot influence ratings when, in reality, service providers can pay “advertising fees” to appear higher in the search results, to suppress negative reviews, and to ensure positive reviews appear. (Moore et al v. Angie’s List, Inc., Case No. 15-cv-01243, E. D. PA.).