Luke Combs Reacts to Lawsuit Against Fan: 'It Disgusts Me'
Luke Combs is deeply disturbed by the lawsuit against a fan selling tumblers featuring his image The country superstar expresses his shock and disappointment, emphasizing his strong disapproval of the legal action
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Luke Combs has stepped in to rectify the situation. The country star, known for his hit "Fast Car," took to social media on Wednesday, December 13, to speak out about a story from Tampa. The story involved one of his fans facing a lawsuit for selling merchandise with his image.
Nicole Harness, a resident of Pinellas Park, Florida, was shocked to discover that her online handmade gift shop had been sued in Federal Court by Combs upon her return from a hospital stay for heart failure. Even more devastating was the news that the judge had ruled against her, ordering her to pay Combs $250,000. In an emotional interview with WFLA News Channel 8, Harness tearfully expressed her disbelief, stating that she never thought she was doing anything wrong by creating and selling tumblers and T-shirts featuring some of her favorite celebrities. Her Amazon storefront is her sole means of income.
After attending Combs' show in Tampa last summer, Harness was inspired to create a tumbler in his honor for her online shop. She had only sold 18 of the tumblers when she found out about the lawsuit, which accused her and other vendors of selling "unauthorized merchandise."
Unfortunately, due to a cyber mishap, Harness was completely unaware that she was being sued until it was too late. In Florida, lawsuits must be personally served, but the suit was filed in Illinois where a defendant can be served via email. This was the case with Harness, but her email ended up in the spam folder and she never received it.
Harness' Amazon storefront is allowed to remain active as part of the ruling, however, all her sales will be directed to Combs until she has fully paid off the $250,000. "It's causing me a lot of stress," Harness shared with WFLA. "I'm struggling to make ends meet and just want this situation to be resolved."
Combs appeared in a video on social media to apologize to Harness and reassure fans that he was not involved in the lawsuit. "It's 7:27 a.m. here in Tennessee," he said in the video, with WFLA footage playing behind him. "I woke up to use the restroom and the first thing I saw was this. I've spent the last two hours trying to make this right...because I was completely and utterly unaware of this."
The singer of "Hurricane" stated that he hires a company to pursue large corporations that operate internationally and make millions of dollars from illegal businesses. He expressed disgust at Nicole being involved in this and was able to contact her directly after getting her information from Harness.
“She said she was completely shocked,” he continued. "I'm deeply sorry...it truly disgusts me that this happened, especially during the holidays. I can't imagine how she must feel." Harness informed Combs that there was $5,500 locked in her Amazon account. Combs pledged to match that amount and revealed that he was sending her $11,000 today.
"She should never have been caught up in something like this. No fan should have to deal with anything like this," he remarked.
Combs promised to create and sell his own custom tumbler on his official website, with all profits going to Harness to support her medical expenses. Starting today.
Combs expressed his shock, stating, "Once again, I was completely shocked when I saw this this morning. This is not something that I would ever do. This is not the kind of person I am. Money is the last thing on my mind, I promise you guys that."
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Combs also shared that he was planning to make it right with Harness face to face.
"I invited Nicole and her family to a show this year to apologize to her in person and give her a hug. It really upsets me that anyone would think I'm that kind of person, because I'm not. Love you guys and I'll keep you updated."
