bernmart

About two months ago I received an e-mail offering me a chance to "qualify" for a free sample of Force Factor pre-workout capsules. Seemed worth a try, so I filled out the form, and agreed to provide my credit card # to pay for shipping. Got the pills in a few days, tried them, jury's still out as to whether they help or not.

Then I got a full-size jar in the mail. No bill or invoice included, so I wondered if they'd screwed up and put it aside. Today I got another one. I scrutinized the label carefully, and found a billing number. I googled them, got a customer service #, called it, and found out that I'd been charged almost $75 for the two bottles. According to them, the terms and conditions automatically enroll me in a monthly purchase plan unless I pro-actively opt out of it!

Obviously I wouldn't have proceeded if I'd spotted this in the small print. I opted out of the "plan" immediately, but it looks like I'm out some serious money, and I doubt that I have any practical recourse.

Somehow, in my naievete, I've assumed that sports and nutrition people don't pull sleazy scams like this. Live and learn.

BE CAREFUL WITH THESE PEOPLE!!

Southpaws

Wow, don't just lay down and take what they give you! Try to get the company to allow you to return the product and give you a refund, and let them know that you believe the way they handled it was unethical. Beyond that I would at least try to contest the charges with your credit card company.

Nothing will happen if you do nothing.

Machka 

This sort of situation is actually quite common. Remember all the book clubs and music clubs where you order a selection of music or books at a greatly reduced price, and then you're "locked" into receiving music or books on a monthly basis until you've reached some sort of quota when you can opt out? I don't know if those are still around but they are also a couple examples of this same sort of thing. It's sneaky, but probably legal.

And why would you assume that sports and nutrition people don't pull this sort of thing? They are probably among the worst for it and have been doing it for years. Think about the "magic potions" sold by travelling sales people back in the 1600s, 1700s, 1800s ... take these tablets and they'll cure you of everything and make you feel great. Have a look ... https://www.discoveriesinmedicine.com...-Medicine.html And think about all the exercise stuff sold with claims that if you use this particular piece of equipment for 15 minutes a day you'll drop 20 lbs in no time. Open a magazine and have a glance through the ads ... especially the collection of smaller ones at the back of the magazine.


Anyway, you might try to return the product and get your money back, but be prepared for a bit of a fight because if it is legal for them to do that, they are not obliged to "fix" the situation for you.

dploy

This is becoming very prevalent in all kinds of businesses today. Best way to avoid it is to have your credit/debit cards re-issued every couple months - stops them cold.

bernmart

Thanks, Machka et. al. You are collectively convincing me that my own naivete is really at the center of this incident. But still. Machka, I was a member of various clubs of the sort you describe--Musical Heritage Society, Book of the Month Club, History Book Club, etc. They were all quite up front about what my obligations were, and nothing was concealed in the fine print.

ericm979

The best way to avoid this is to not reply to "offers" you receive in email, and certainly not to give them your credit card. Unless it's a business that you already know, consider any commercial email as a scam... because almost all of them are. If you really think it's appropriate to do business with spammers, then at least check them out beforehand. 30 seconds with Google will usually tell you if someone's legit.

Pat2012

We are so sorry for any inconvenience this may have caused you! We do have a 30 day money back guarantee. To return product in order to get a refund please call our toll free number at 877-492-7243. A customer representative can help you further with any questions or concerns.

Thank You,
Force Factor