Attorney General sues Tampa surrogacy firm for failing to deliver services

Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody filed suit late last month to shut down a Tampa surrogacy firm that connects hopeful parents with paid surrogates.

Moody claims The Surrogacy Group failed “to deliver services that consumers paid hefty deposits for in advance and failing to pay some surrogates’ medical costs.” The total estimated losses to clients totals $270,000.

“Couples invest a lot of time, money and emotion in the surrogacy process, and it is shameful that anyone would exploit this intimate and personal journey to steal their money. Our court action seeks to prohibit the defendants from offering surrogacy services in Florida,” Moody said in a news release announcing its legal action.

Moody is also seeking a permanent injunction against the company, run by Tampa resident Gregory Blosser, prohibiting it from providing surrogacy services.

The Surrogacy Group matches hopeful parents with surrogate mothers with an emphasis on providing services for LGBTQ families. Moody’s office began investigating the company after receiving “multiple complaints” from clients and surrogates who were deceived and lost money.

The company also operates businesses in Annapolis, Pittsburgh, and New York City.

Maryland Attorney General Brian Frosh last week filed a civil suit in his state alleging Glosser and his company failed to follow through on services, according to the Capital Gazette. 

In 2018 the Wells Fargo Center in downtown Tampa sued the Surrogacy Group for eviction and unpaid rent on a 63-month lease it signed in March of 2017 but failed to pay rent since August of 2017, according to that suit. Records show the court ordered the company to vacate the space last April. Sunbiz lists the Tampa business as inactive. Online records in Maryland show the company in that state was forfeited, but does not say when.

The website for the Surrogacy Group in Tampa is “under construction” and no contact information is available. The site claims to have assisted in “456 babies born and counting.”

The site lists a hefty fee schedule for hopeful parents including $25,000-$30,000 in surrogacy payments, a $750 a month maternity clothing allowance and requires compensation to surrogates for things like mileage and travel, life insurance, additional medical expenses. It also requires additional payments if a surrogate mother requires bed rest, a cesarean section or invasive medical procedures.

The company has a F rating on the Better Business Bureau and its profile includes 10 customer complaints, most arguing the company had failed to provide services and financial losses up to $45,000.

Surrogacy is an agreement between a woman agreeing to carry a child for an individual or couple who are unable to carry a pregnancy due to gender, health issues or choice.