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OH has been ' lured ' by a Free trial offer. Only £1.95 p&p..or so she thought. Turns out that if you don't return the product/s within 14 days your liable to pay the full amount ( £79 + £85 ) and have entered into an agreement/ monthly subscription where you are charged monthly ( £79 + £85 ) for more of the product.
We knew nothing about it until the debit-card was declined at the supermarket but could use it at the ATM. Thought nothing of it until I went to use the card again elsewhere a week later and the same thing happened. Phoned the bank this morning and they've said it's had a restriction put on it due to dubious transactions on the account. Turns out 2 monthly payments have been taken to the tune of £330. The bank have said they Will put the money back into the account and they'll look into it but we might have to pay it back depending on the findings.
[url= http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.php?t=4963577 ]seems like I'm not the only one[/url]
Quite a few mentioned on the MSE forum have had their money back.
My wife hasn't received the last lot so she phoned up and was told the t&c' s state that we are responsible for all the packages they send out...eh? I'm responsible for something I don't receive..
Long story short
Wife phones to cancel immediately as shes not received goods, company offer standard 35% refund, not enough I say, company man says with his company discount he can offer to return 50% but I must agree not to take any further action against the company.
Should I take the £80 or wait to see what the bank says..what else can I do?
Please, I don't need any advice about reading t&c's as I think I reached my limit of how many times I can tell my wife.... ( almost to the point of tears..she's absolutely gutted, £330 is a lot to us ).
Report online to ActionFraud. I did this for parents and it worked really well. You will get a crime reference number immediately so your banks fraud dept will take you seriously. Hope it works out for you.
Please, I don't need any advice about reading t&c's as I think I reached my limit of how many times I can tell my wife.... ( almost to the point of tears..she's absolutely gutted, £330 is a lot to us ).
The terms & conditions are their [u]exclusion clause[/u] to con people.
Don't let that deter you as Free trial should mean free trial and anything more than that is simply misleading people. They are trying to con people by manipulating the term Free by attaching conditions to this word. If they really want to have limited free trial then they should mention that clearly on their advertisement.
I will thanks RD. Is it fraud then as my wife would of clicked ' agree to terms and conditions' . The guy I spoke to did say that maybe they could make it more clear what people are actually entering into.
@ chewk- apparently it was free trial period..which lasted 14 days,
tymbian - Member@ chewk- apparently it was free trial period..which lasted 14 days,
It is the usage of the word "free" which should be free. The implied term although sounds very difficult to challenge they are Not explicit as they are confusing or to the point of misleading.
However, they will argue that the second word is "trial" which to certain extend may means Not free (or may need to sign up etc later on once trial is over if you do not return the product).
They are also attaching a condition that you should return it within 14 days to indicate that you do not want the product and if you do not do so you are in agreement. This is like "being silent means agreement".
My point is that they are abusing the exclusion clause using implied terms. Please check Sales of Good Act 1979 ...
Please note that I am not a lawyer so can only point to the obvious above. If you get a lawyer they will argue alone that points and their lawyer(s) will argue against you by saying you have signed your life away because you should have read the small print.
My wife hasn't received the last lot so she phoned up and was told the t&c' s state that we are responsible for all the packages they send out...eh? I'm responsible for something I don't receive..
Well distance selling regs have your back on that bit for a start.
From reading the Mse link I don't think soga or DSR applies because the 'company' is based in the states so our/eu laws don't apply.
They are obviously preying on folk not reading the t&cs so will have put all sorts of shit in there that, while being morally wrong, isn't illegal to the letter of the law, hence credit card companies saying 'sorry but it is in the t&cs you agreed to' and I imagine the Small claims court will yield similar results.
Shysters
Did your OH apply direct or was it through a pop-up ad?
If this company has a web site, go on use false details to get through to payment details page, you might be able to open the T & C's to know exactly what you are up against before accepting any offer. Personally I would aim for a full refund from the bank or CC company, rather than let these scumbags get anything and you can't really trust the guy you have spoken to either..
It seems there are a few doing the same type of scam, usual language is a 'Risk free trial' or similar. I have seen where the T & C's include a clause where delivery is assumed once the item has been passed to the shipping company, more BS.
tomhoward - MemberFrom reading the Mse link I don't think soga or DSR applies because the 'company' is based in the states so our/eu laws don't apply.
Ahhh, so they are based in Merica. Complication.
I wonder if you instruct your bank to stop paying them or cut your loses etc, will the company challenge you here? Bear in mind they have to come over here to challenge if they do so they have to abide by soga/DSR or EU laws ...
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There is a UK office.
AgeRenew Skin Care
RMA: 3XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX05
P.O. Box 17453
Edinburgh
EH12 1LD
UK
If you have any further questions, please respond to this email or call us at:
UK Freephone 0800 249 4323
UK Local Phone 020 7442 5849
& OH says she saw an advert somewhere, clicked on the link and here we are.
If they have an office here then they must comply with UK & EU laws.
I think they will argue like hell to fleece you off.
The small claim court will come into play now.
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Do nothing until you've spoken to your bank.
As it turns out, Mrs Slack was duped on this last year. She eventually got her money back although after much perseverance and ruthlessness on her part.
Her approach was to tell them that the product did not work and caused a reaction. They will try and wriggle their way out of any responsibility and she had to make at least three lengthy calls to them, on each occasion repeating that their product was not as described in its claims and misleading advertising about the products' supposed benefits. Our bank was excellent throughout, they immediately stopped all payments.
The company eventually refunded all monies.
Bit of a nightmare to go through and my advice would be to support her unconditionally, it was touch and go for a time as to whether we would see any of the money back. She felt ashamed and embarrassed and kinda stupid for falling for it and is now much wiser.
Good luck OP and persevere.
slackalice - Member
The company eventually refunded all monies.
Yes, that's an easier technique as it is 'goods not fit for purpose'.
In a serious case the company can be countered sued for supplying harmful products.
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