How not to sell magazine subscriptions.

[kwetz]

First things first, I will not divulge who these companies are. But I know some of you have ordered from the initial company and want to make sure you keep your eyes open as you order. ( been sued before, I won but it was expensive )

You are ordering parts from a well known bike supply company. Sometime after you have entered your credit card information and finalized the order from the company a screen will pop up saying you are being offered something from an affiliate. Be very careful and look over the whole web page before you click out of it.

I recently started getting a new magazine that I had never seen before. I assumed at first since the first issue arrived in February that maybe a family member had sent a Christmas gift and forgot to mention it. No deal there so I inquired to the magazine itself and was told I had subscribed for a year through an intermediary company. After going back and forth a few times I finally was able to get the name of the company. Funny thing is I had never dealt with them and after multiple emails finally got a very snide email from them saying that I had accepted their offer and if I had buyers remorse it was already to late.
Googling the company I found many fellow suckers.

Here is how it works. The " special " offer that pops up is pre opted in. Somewhere on the page it has a box pre [X] ed in that you have to unselect. Canceling the page means you wanted the magazine. Be sure though, that X will be very hard to find.

So you were not interested in offers from affiliates and closed the page. Good luck , the magazine washes their hands of the problem and says you need to deal with the other company. You can cancel the subscription but any monies due to you will come from the intermediary not the magazine company. And after reading the complaints via Google you realize that the company automatically re ups your subscription every year and very few people have had much luck in getting refunds or canceling subscriptions. Mainly because the company hides that information and is in a state who's laws are encourage its kind of behavior.

So I've changed my credit card, next year they will find the card is no good and sent a registered letter and a reply to the snide email explaining I do not want the magazine.
I found the charge to my card and am contesting it, $29.50 for a years subscription that if I had wanted the magazine I could have gotten for $19.50 at the magazines own website.

And the bike parts company ? They got a small percentage of the affiliates sale. To bad that they will NEVER see another purchase from me or those I know in person.. I was getting ready to order some stuff I wanted, but will go elesewhere.

[KoolKat]

Thanks for the warning. The levels of deception many companies are stooping to is concerning. They will eventually learn when they get more complaints than orders. Keep fighting them all the way.

[TheKid]

Make sure you register complaints (state all the facts and present all the evidence) against all companies involved, including the bike parts company and the magazine publisher with the FTC, your state Attorney General, the federal Attorney General, all state, local and federal representatives, and the Postmaster General. In addition, if there are local news programs that have consumer fraud reports, call them.
You'd be surprised how many elected officials like to act on these things, especially if they're up for re-election. They look at it as word of mouth campaigning. It doesn't hurt to get to know your elected officials either. Since getting involved in my community, I've gotten to know most of my reps, and they all say the same thing. "If somethings wrong, I want to know about it." By reporting it to TV stations, you'll find people who were ripped off in the same scheme coming forward, which brings more attention to the problem, and most often, more complaints to the authorities. The more complaints they get, the less they can ignore it without hurting the chances of losing their jobs.

[SirJoey]

Thanx for the warning, Kwetz. It is most appreciated! I don't blame you for being leary after a lawsuit, but hopefully, if one of us discovers who it is, we'll be willing to post the name of the company. I know I will! (See my posts about the "Big Bearing Store", elsewhere here in the forum, also, the "Letter to Lowes" on the Rants page of my website: http://bikesandtrikesandmore.com/my_rants.html (http://bikesandtrikesandmore.com/my_rants.html))

[KoolKat]

You may see some tags attached to cartons of milk, juice or water, etc., to get three free magazines for a trial offer. I did this and got three issues of People Magazine. I keep getting notices that I owe them an annual subscription fee, despite already sending them a Cancel notice in the mail weeks ago. Thankfully, I didn't have to pay for anything up front. I'd be getting my credit card company after them pronto.

I also submit formal written complaints to consumer watchdog groups, the media and politicians about deceptive business practices and aggressive door-to-door solicitors. The police even called me a couple of times to follow up on my complaints to inform the public on sleazy utility salespeople plaguing our neighbourhoods.

Kwetz - you have a real public interest story that any reporter with an IQ would follow up on. I'd contact local, state and national media to tell your story. This really does need to be exposed. You'll be doing yourself and alot of folks a favor by telling your story. Remember - these sleaze bags get away with bilking millions of dollars from regular folks like us and think they are untouchable. Imagine how many people's credit ratings are damaged because of them. There are also lots of bloggers out there who will pick up and run with this story, so they are good contacts to get the word out, too. As long as you state the facts, the likelihood of a defamation lawsuit is slim. Freedom of Speech, Freedom of the Press.

[KoolKat]

update - received a card in the mail from People Magazine Customer Service dated March 14 that they have taken care of my request. So, I guess no more freebies for me! Nice to know that someone actually does process cancellation requests.