We have “Truth in advertising” laws, but sometimes the truth is really a scam.
My mother just got caught in one. When you went through it, every line seemed
to be true, but it was a clear bait-and-switch. The banner ad said “Free Trial” then you
clicked and it said “Free Trial only $3.99 shipping” and when you entered your
Visa number they had you click on a box that said you read their disclaimer.
I checked later and the disclaimer ran 23 screens. Buried in all that were the Terms:
You can’t actually try the sample. You only get to look at the bottle. If it’s opened
it can’t be returned. To return the unopened bottle you must get a Return code
by calling a number that never is answered. And if you keep the bottle it’s $80 and
they will send you another at the same time for $80 so you are up to $163.99 before
you have opened it. And then you agree to $80 every two weeks until they answer
that Return phone, which they never promise to do. She was in tears, blaming
herself for not reading all 23 screens of drivel.
Then I saw where she was also being billed for other products from the same
company that she never heard of and which never arrived. And it was all
laundered through a British bank account so they are hard to sue.
I got Visa to block her card, give her one with a new number. and reverse all the
charges. And then the scammers sent her an innocent little email saying
“We have honored your request for a refund” Another lie, but presumably it covers their
tracks if ever in front of a prosecutor.
So they can make money selling these “Free” samples by tricking old women into
blaming themselves. Without actually saying an untrue word. Ach!
I’d contend that “Free Trial” is false in this context, because you can only try a product if you can actually use it. Otherwise, by standing in my local supermarket gazing at the bottles on the shelves I’m having a “free trial” of those products. Of course, I’m not in any meaningful way.
You know, I’m amazed that we’ve let credit card companies get away with cheesy tactics like this for years (pages of fine print, late billing, etc.) and are just now starting to make some small inroads into basic consumer protection. I’ve heard them complain about not being able to offer credit cards to as many people when the new regulations are instituted and I have absolutely no sympathy. Maybe having a pulse should not be enough to qualify for a credit card.
I’ve never seen a sleazier bunch of people, and that includes the assholes in the OP. How to ameliorate the credit card problem? Why, just make bankruptcy harder to declare. I swear, it’s enough to make this ex-Republican turn Socialist.
Is this a new complaint, which the OP’s troubles brought to your mind? Because the OP doesn’t complain about credit card companies, and in fact his story suggests that they acted appropriately and forced the scammer’s involuntary “refund” effort.
So it’s not quite clear to me why, in a story complaining about product scammers, which incidently mentions credit card processes and shows them to have saved the consumer’s bacon, you would seieze upon the evils that pervade the credit card business. Not to say that such evils are non-existent… just that this story doesn’t seem to highlight them.
Ive been hearing more and more dubious ads on the radio lately. Seems like the stations will take advertising money from anyone nowdays even if the products are scams. Most recent ones:
Australian Gold Koala coins- “Through an agreement with the Australian government and introduced by collector demand we can now offer you these coins!”
StopHardWaterNow- For those bogus “clip onto the outside of your water main” devices that are supposed to stop hard water. Complete scam.
FreeLaptop.com- “It was so easy, I logged on answered a few questions and they sent me a laptop!!” You need a credit card, have to sign up for services which you have to attempt to cancel before they keep charging you, you have to give them a bunch of your friends info, and then you have to badger the hell out of them and hope someday you may get a laptop. Most people give up.
I’d like to point out to the OP that the free sample company is almost certainly violating consumer protection laws, and their disclaimer would likely be worthless in a court of law.
Enforcement, rather than law, is at fault here. (Though “fault” is a bit misleading, because there is essentially no practical way to monitor the internet for scams.) If a “business” gets enough complaints, the gov’t will step in and punish them.
Report the company to the BBB and the credit card company and teach your mom about internet banner ads.
Yes. Like I explained to my mom: sometimes there will be cockroaches crawling on your screen, but you shouldn’t try to harm them or they’ll steal your money.
