Recently, I’ve been receiving Netflix DVDs for someone who previously lived at the house I rent. She moved out over a year ago. When the first one came a month ago, I called Netflix and told them the problem. They said they’d take care of it, and I didn’t get another one for a few weeks. Then they started again. Now I seem to get them as soon as I return the other one.
The upside is that the movies she has picked have been pretty good so far.
In college, I ended up subscribed to about a half-dozen magazines all at once. Sports Illustrated, Field and Stream, Scientific American, and Mother Jones were among them (I have to imagine that the intersection of Field and Stream subscribers with Mother Jones subscribers is rather small). At first I assumed that someone with an odd guess at my interests had given them to me as a gift, or that someone had pranked the magazine companies by filling out “bill me later” cards. But I never got a bill or any explanation. After a year, they all started sending resubscribe notices, then eventually quit.
I get free stuff in the mail at least a couple of times a week. Last week, I had waiting for me all at once a free t-shirt from Wendy’s that says Hot and Juicy, two bottles of shampoo and two bottles of conditioner that I had agreed to try out and fill out a survey on, and about 6 months worth of cleaning supplies that I had won in a sweepstakes. That was a pretty good haul for one day!
This happened to me once after I filled out one of those mail in surveys you get every so often that asks about your interests, etc. I think I heard they do it to a) sell more ads because they can claim they have this many subscribers, and b) they hope that you’ll get hooked on the mag and renew. Most Doctors/Dentists/etc get their subscriptions free for this reason. They’re counting on the inflated subscriber numbers and that some of the waiting room people will become interested in the publication.
When I moved in here the last person didn’t transfer their phone service. The phone company gave me some story about how he’d have to cancel it before I could get mine installed.
For more than three months I had free local and long distance service. As far as I can tell, I was the only one looking for him. It was sort of interesting, how much I learned just snooping around and that month’s bill was nice to receive!
I’m getting Hollywood Reporter for free. They offered X number of free copies to Entertainment Weekly subscribers over a year ago, and they’re still sending them. As soon as they send an invoice I’ll let them know, but in the meantime, what the hell.
I signed up for a year of SPIN magazine and ended up getting it for like 4 years or something bizarre. Would’ve been awesome but for I realized I hated it after three issues, lol.
The articles are a mixed bag, and I don’t care about all the backroom stuff (which agent is representing who, etc.), but it’s sure as shit interesting looking at the ads, including “for your consideration,” etc.
I’m still have a paid account on a certain dating site that I never use–all because I won a free trial for some reason. I was very clear to cancel it, but they never noticed. And while the site itself is now overrun with spammers, my paid account is still there.
Years ago a friend of mine was a local DJ. I never listened, but she would register me as the winner of call in contests every so often. So maybe once a month I would get a CD, T Shirt, concert tickets, etc in the mail.
This went on for a good while until there was a station audit. Nobody got in trouble, but my friend had to stop my gravy train.
I used to get Sports Illustrated, Time, National Geographic, and Playboy for many years, 3 years at least, except I had never subscribed to any of them and never paid them a dime. They were addressed to me and everything, and nobody ever 'fessed up to ordering them for me. One day it just stopped just as inexplicably as it had started. Weird.
I also used to get HBO and Cinemax but cancelled them a few months back. I no longer get any of the channels, but due to some oversight, I presume, I still have full access to their On-Demand stuff. Bonus!
I feel like I did my due diligence when I called them and informed them of the problem. They clearly did something that fixed it for a while, so the message was received. But then they started again. If I were receiving personal correspondence or important documents or something I’d make more of an effort.
And I am returning the DVDs. I just sometimes watch them first
I don’t think you’re doing anything wrong, Walrus - you did do your due diligence, and if they happen to get watched, well, that’s what dvds exist for.
But that’s the thing, they are coming back watched as if there were no problem. If they came back RTS, I’d imagine it’d trigger some flags and get the problem fixed.
