UPS to return $4 million in 14-state settlement over pricing

New York state and some of its local governments will receive $1.2 million from UPS Inc. as part of a multistate settlement following allegations that the shipping company overcharged government customers in 14 states.

Attorney General Eric Schneiderman announced the agreement Wednesday. The overall $4 million settlement covers 13 other states and the cities of Washington, D.C., New York City and Chicago.

Schneiderman's office says UPS employees inaccurately recorded delivery times and took other steps to prevent government customers from claiming refunds for late deliveries.

A former UPS employee exposed the practice.

The other states are California, Delaware, Florida, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Montana, New Mexico, North Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia.

A company spokeswoman says UPS values its government customers and took action once it learned of the issues.