|
Ralph M
March 21, 2011
Book Company with hidden Fees
I purchased a book online from this company in Oct 09. When placing order there was a box to check if you wanted to get a discount and reduced shipping. I checked the box without reading the small print.(My Fault). I didn't realize I was signing up for some kind of buying service that authorized them to charge $9.95 to my credit card every month forever. I didn't pay too much attention to the monthly charge because I figured my wife was ordering books which she frequently does. In Jan, 2011 I noticed the charge on our credit card statement and asked her about it. She said it wasn't hers. I called this company and they said it was for the buying service I signed up for whith my book purchase. I explained I wasn't aware that I was paying for a buying service, I didn't know I had it, and I've never used it. They claimed they sent me an e-mail after the purchase explaining the whole thing. I told them I don't believe I ever received such an e-mail. It certainly would have alerted me to what was happening. Reviewing my credit card statements revealed I had been charged 15 times @ $9.95 for a total of $149.25. I made numerous frustrating phone calls and also used a chat line on their website 4 times. They finally refunded 4 months of charges, 4x$9.95 = $39.80 leaving a balance of $109.45. They said if I wanted to go further than that I had to send a written letter to their Boca Raton address. So I sent a letter with all these details. It was a registered letter sent Jan 31, 2011. Thet signed for it Feb 4th, 2011 at 5:07 pm. They responded with a large enevelope with numerous pages explaining what I had supposedly signed up for. They also refused to refund the rest of the charges, $109.45. The letter said that when I checked the box on their online order form I agreed to their terms. I sent a follow up letter 2 weeks ago stating that I never received their e-mail describing the buying service I supposedly signed up for, and that their records would clearly show that I never used this service as I didn't know I had it. They did not respond to the 2nd letter.
|