Careful When Ordering Online - New Scam For Profit

win231

win231

SF VIP
Location
CA
This isn't about online security, hacking, access to your accounts, etc.
My sister bought something on Amazon & after a few weeks, started getting $15.00 charges on her credit card.
She contacted Amazon & they told her she signed up for "Amazon Prime," which is free for a one-month trial, then you get charged every month. She NEVER signed up for it. They've learned to do what AT&T does - automatically sign you up for added features on your phone & charge you for it, hoping you won't notice. My sister got so mad, she told Amazon where to stick it & she'll never buy from them again.

Today, when I ordered something on Amazon, at checkout, It said "Fast, Free 1-Day Shipping." It's the first time I ever saw that. I got suspicious because I didn't ask for that; I always use their regular 6-day shipping. Before I completed the order, I phoned Amazon & guess what the lady said? She said I signed up for Amazon Prime, WHICH I DIDN'T.
I told her if Amazon does it again, I won't order anything else from them, ever. She said she would cancel it but I can still get it for one month, since it's free.
When you check out, there is NO mention of a charge for "Amazon Prime;" it just says "1 Day Shipping."

The economy is inspiring creative, dishonest business practices. I also frequently get magazine subscriptions I never ordered. They'll send me a few copies, then send me a bill, which of course, I throw away. Then, they'll call, asking why I haven't sent payment. After lots of laughter, I tell them.
 

Amazon has had this going for a while now. You really have to be careful to read every single thing and if something sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

Many companies are giving free trials and the scam part is that you literally have to cancel it or they will charge your card every month.

A lot of companies will offer free stuff. When you accept the offer the only thing you need to give your credit card for is to pay for the shipping . Unfortunately if you don’t read the fine print you can end up locked into a contract that charges you each and every month. It’s becoming increasingly popular.

In fact, it seems to be becoming popular to use unscrupulous ways to scam unsuspecting consumers. Even respectable companies seem to be doing these types of things. It’s worrisome.
 

Yes, when I wanted to speak to an Amazon rep, I had no problem and whatever issue I had was resolved to my satisfaction. I've been ordering from Amazon since 2001. It sure beats hunting the internet and ordering will nilly from whatever business I ran into. I hate having my info all over the planet. To wit, I had ordered a combo DVD/VHS player from an Amazon vendor which never arrived. The vendor turned out to be a fraud and I never received the player. Even though I had to wait until the deadline for receiving the product, Amazon refunded me the whole amount I paid.

I did have a trial Prime account for a month and when the month was over, that was it. It didn't get just automatically extended. I was of course reminded how I could save shipping costs if renewed but at that time I didn't. I finally have gone with Prime again and I'm very glad I did. I get shipping super fast and that's here to Hawaii. They do have a warehouse here so that's really helpful. I would never stop using Amazon.
 
I tried the trial Prime thing, then TOLD them to cancel it.
Nary a prob.
What I LOVE about Amazon is communication, and the ease of returning things.

Yeah, 'free' and 'trial' can getcha if yer not on it like a dog on a bone.
Those things niggle at me until there's resolution.

Now, I pay no attention to that bait.
This dawg no longer bites on those.

I will, however, now watch for any unauthorized changes
 
I agree. I truly like Amazon a lot and have never been scammed. You do have to be very careful what options you choose but their customer service is stellar. Their shipping is excellent. We have an Amazon plant not too far away from us also. If I ever order a book it’s usually delivered within a day and I’ve never had to return anything.

Can’t say that about eBay. I got scammed on eBay and trying to work it out with eBay employees wasn’t with the $80 I lost. I just never ordered anything from them again. They lost my trust and respect.

Oh! There IS one thing Amazon is guilty of and that’s allowing manufacturers of ‘live’ probiotics to be sold long distances. Live cultures are live and need to be shipped in a refrigerated truck in an ice pack. Once the package leaves the refrigerated truck the product loses potency. If it’s crossing the border and takes 2 to 3 weeks then you are basically throwing money away.

Amazon shouldn’t be allowing companies like these to sell such products because if you don’t know this info, you won’t be inclined to ask and will definitely be ripped off.

That’s the only thing I’ve been disappointed with.
I did however get my money back but the company is still selling their products long distance.
 
Even Medicare pulled the same crap on me.
A few months ago, I received a letter from Social Security saying I qualify for Medicare Plan B (which covers outpatient Dr. visits). No mention of cost. I wasn't interested, so, of course I ignored it.
My next SS check was shorted by $200.00. When I phoned, (after an hour on hold) I was told I signed up for Plan B & it cost $200.00/month. I said I NEVER signed up for Plan B. She put me on hold for 15 minutes, came back & said, "You're right; our records show you never signed up for Plan B." She also said she didn't know why they signed me up for it, which is B.S. But it will take several months to straighten it out. She did say I will receive whatever money I was shorted.
 
I may have posted about this previously:
A few weeks ago, a tree in my back yard fell - half of it fell in my yard & half of it fell on my neighbor's balcony. They are both large properties, so I wasn't aware of it until my neighbor left a note in my mailbox.
I went to his house so he could show me where it fell & I told him I have a tree company I've done business with twice before; I'll call them right now & take care of it. They are licensed & insured. I also told him to let me know if there is any damage to his balcony.

This is a tree company that removed two other HUGE trees in my back yard & trimmed lots of shrubbery; I did over $6,000.00 in work with them last year & I also posted a great "Yelp" review, so, of course I trusted them.
They came out & gave me a quote of $1,800.00 to remove the tree and also trim some overgrown bushes. I said, "Great."
They took care of the tree the next day & I paid them in full. The foreman said they'd be back later for the bush trimming, since it was 5:00pm.
When I didn't hear from them for a week, I called & the owner said "The bush trimming was not included in the original estimate; I must have misunderstood."
I said, "Excuse me?? YOU misunderstood. Your foreman wrote on my invoice "Paid in Full, Pending Brush Clearance."
"Nope," said the owner - it's not included.
I said, "Fine, I'll edit & update my review...I hope the bad advertising is worth ripping me off for 30 minutes of work."
While I was editing my review, my phone rang. It was the foreman (who's much smarter than the owner). He said, "We'll be there in 30 minutes for the brush clearance." There were here in 10 minutes & completed the work.
 
Amazon has updated its return service. Now you don’t even have to print a label or provide a box with many returns. Upon requesting a return, Amazon generates a return code which I can access on my phone. I take the item to a ups store, they scan the code, and that’s it.

They also have locations, like Kohl’s for example that will do the same thing, only those locations send through usps. Makes things so easy.
 
I have used Amazon, both as a buyer and a seller, for many years, and have had almost 100% good experiences with them. I have been saved umpteen trips running around to stores to shop for various items which may or may not be there. And Amazon's prices are always cheaper.

The only thing I've had problems with has been trying to reach them by phone, to talk with a real human being. (Remember how people used to do that?) :rolleyes: Sometimes I get the feeling that Amazon is run by one guy in a back room somewhere, and a lot of automated technology.
 
Keesha said:
Amazon has had this going for a while now. You really have to be careful to read every single thing and if something sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

Many companies are giving free trials and the scam part is that you literally have to cancel it or they will charge your card every month.

A lot of companies will offer free stuff. When you accept the offer the only thing you need to give your credit card for is to pay for the shipping . Unfortunately if you don’t read the fine print you can end up locked into a contract that charges you each and every month. It’s becoming increasingly popular.

In fact, it seems to be becoming popular to use unscrupulous ways to scam unsuspecting consumers. Even respectable companies seem to be doing these types of things. It’s worrisome.
Click to expand...
Keesha...its called "the cable model" after the cable TV services that offered a rock bottom first year plan, then automatically upgraded it big time the second year. We got a ridiculous charge on our credit card from Sirius. Called them up and cancelled the car service. We get Sirius free as part of Dish in the house, so this crazy high bill was just for the auto!

Wonder how many folks don't notice? Thinking if its a smaller charge, probably not, its the big bumps that people would normally pay attention to. Years ago there used to be a scam for 9 bucks or something. Like folks didn't notice a 9 buck charge on their monthly statements.
 
I did notice that they made it easier to sign up for Prime by mistake.

I did that. But then immediately cancelled it. I think they give you a 30 day window to do that, but I did it within a day. I was never charged.
 
We already have Prime, but what I've noticed on Amazon is the bogus products - be careful when ordering a brand name something or other - pay attention to the packaging and check out the manufacturer/sender if you aren't sure its the same thing. Years ago I mistakenly ordered a "rebuilt" countertop oven. It banged and clanged when baking and didn't last long at all. It wasn't till then I realized it was a rehab'd one...as I'd had a new one of the same model that I was replacing.
 
It is hard not to sign up for Amazon Prime when you're at the site. You don't actually have to do something, like signing your name. If you don't do anything, you are automatically signed up. Unless you check the "no" box, you're signed up. Another thing I don't like is when sites use Facebook as a form of ID. If you don't subscribe to FB, they have a second method of ID, which is so complicated and hard to make work that it is useless-forcing you to use FB.
 
I ordered a free deal (CBD OIL) just pay a shipping fee of $6.95. I always preach do not use your credit card on line. I used my credit card and that was not good. I got my free item then a text from my credit card company about a suspected fraud charge. To clear this up my card was cancelled after two fraud charges was made on my account to stop them. I had to sent a letter confirming the unauthorized transactions. It will take two to three months to clear up this mess and removed from my account. The original charge was to a company in Florida and the two fraud charges originated from California. :sick:
 
I absolutely despise Amazon and all they stand for and never shop there. It's bad enough I shop at Whole Foods which is now Amazon owned and totally ruined by them. This fall I'll be switching over to a Trader Joes store, but it's a long distance from where I live. while Whole Foods was only 4 or 5 blocks away and just so convenient, but since Amazon bought them the food is cheap garbage, often spoiled, or labeled "fresh" when it's obviously frozen solid. I have to buy so many items at other stores now because the brands Amazon orders for Whole Foods are discount low quality and tastes terrible. It's time to just leave the Amazon monster behind and move forward. Didn't Jeff Bezos make $117 million last year while paying $0. in taxes. Yeah, right.
 
It's easy to say forget Amazon when you don't live in the most isolated islands in the world in the middle of the Pacific. It's not "paradise" when you can't get so many things that you're looking for. I for one am very thankful to have Amazon to have choices for things I want. And I feel secure in doing it. I have had nothing but the best luck with purchasing from there. You all on the mainland have many choices as to find what you need and want. We here do not. For you all who don't want to use Amazon then don't. For people like myself, please don't just wish it away.
 
They tried to pull that on me with my last order, but I saw it and disabled it before they had a chance. Between having to disable this each time I order and where they leave my packages sometimes, I will only order from them when there is no other alternative and I won't want to then. We shouldn't have to tell them but one time that we don't want prime. I don't order enough to pay me to get it. I don't appreciate companies trying to trick us into joining anything.
 
AprilSun said:
They tried to pull that on me with my last order, but I saw it and disabled it before they had a chance. Between having to disable this each time I order and where they leave my packages sometimes, I will only order from them when there is no other alternative and I won't want to then. We shouldn't have to tell them but one time that we don't want prime. I don't order enough to pay me to get it. I don't appreciate companies trying to trick us into joining anything.
Click to expand...

Could someone explain to me how that happens that you get tricked into signing up for Prime? I am not the most aware person on the planet and if someone could be tricked into something that would be me. So, I am totally flabbergasted. Maybe I'm more detailed oriented than I think I am. That would nice, but I doubt it.
 
Amazon is much easier to deal with than most any online retailer, they respond very fast. There are some really great deals on Amazon Prime day.
 

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