Woman angry as her image used to sell diet pills

Maree Briggs' image has been used to sell diet pills in the US. Photo / Anthony Phelps

A Palmerston North woman is angry, embarrassed and out of pocket after an American company used her photograph without permission to sell "celebrity" diet pills.

Maree Briggs, a mother of two, says the photograph was used without her knowledge in an online testimonial for Metabo-Speed XXX, a dietary supplement touted as "the diet pill of the stars" and supposedly endorsed by Oprah Winfrey and Bette Midler.

It is one of several weight-loss pills sold over the internet by Lab 88.

While not sure how Lab 88 got hold of the photograph, Maree believes it may have been lifted from the website of an Australian-based company she was involved with in the late 1990s.

The picture was taken by her husband, Steve, and used in magazine advertisements here and in Australia to promote The Natural Way, a diet plan that Maree completed in 1999, and later held the local franchise for.

Natural Way paid the Briggs $250 for its use.

But unbeknown to them, Lab 88 - a New York-based "health centre" - was using the same photograph to accompany the "success" story of "Jessica Daniels".

"When I turned 40 I lost over 100 pounds thanks to Metabo Speed... I feel like a brand new woman and boy, so does my husband", the "all new Jessica" states at the beginning of a 14-paragraph testimonial for the pills.

After several attempts at contacting the company, the Briggs took the costly step of getting legal advice and the photograph was removed this year.

However the couple said it was not the end of the matter and they were now seeking compensation.

A letter from a Californian lawyer noted that under US law Maree could claim damages for false advertising, unfair business practices, copyright infringement and commercial misappropriation of her likeness.

"It's not the money, but the principle," said Maree. "How dare they put my face to something like that. It's a cock-and-bull story, it's a lie and it's conning people."

Lab 88 was also using spurious celebrity endorsements, she said. "They get away with it by adding a footnote that says they [Winfrey, Midler] have been associated with products they sell, or specific ingredients contained within their products."