Ambit Energy Holdings LLC was hit with a putative class action in New Jersey federal court, claiming the energy company lured customers into switching providers with promises of lowered gas and electric bills, then slammed them with exorbitant rates. 

Michael Urbino, a New Jersey resident, and Brian Whitney, who hails from New York, filed suit against the Dallas-based utility, claiming the company has taken advantage of its customers in their states and others by shifting the risk of the volatile gas and electricity markets with variable rates that can spike quickly and leave customers promised lower rates holding the bag.

“Like the risky adjustable-rate mortgages that contributed to the financial crisis, Ambit’s variable energy rates can fluctuate rapidly and have no ceiling,” the complaint said. “Yet Ambit conceals this financial risk with an extensive marketing campaign that bombards consumers with promises of consistency and savings while failing to warn consumers of the factors affecting Ambit’s variable energy rates and that those factors can drastically turn.”

According to the complaint, Whitney was wooed into switching his gas and electric accounts to Ambit in January 2011, while Urbino switched carriers in early 2012. Both had been convinced they would see savings, the documents said, but Whitney

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