FTC warns: Be very skeptical of 'free' samples
Here's a reminder of why you need to be very skeptical of ads that promise "free" samples. This week, the feds shut down a California company that used a free giveaway to allegedly scam people.
The company advertised a free book that promised to show consumers how to get free gas for life, says Carmen Christopher with the Federal Trade Commission.
But, Christopher says, that claim was bogus.
To get the "Green Millionaire Book" people had to give the company their credit card number - to supposedly cover the small shipping and handling fee.
"Many consumers found that after they took advantage of the, quote, 'free book' that they were in fact charged a significant amount of money they did not intend to spend," says Christopher.
These charges were as much as $90.
The FTC has been able to get $2 million to return some of this money to victims of this scam. But that's rarely the case.
This is an ongoing problem. That’s why I steer clear of free-trial offers from unknown companies that want a credit or debit card number to cover shipping and handling. It’s simply not worth the risk.
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More information at ftc.gov/opa/2012/04/greenmill.shtm
The company advertised a free book that promised to show consumers how to get free gas for life, says Carmen Christopher with the Federal Trade Commission.
But, Christopher says, that claim was bogus.
To get the "Green Millionaire Book" people had to give the company their credit card number - to supposedly cover the small shipping and handling fee.
"Many consumers found that after they took advantage of the, quote, 'free book' that they were in fact charged a significant amount of money they did not intend to spend," says Christopher.
These charges were as much as $90.
The FTC has been able to get $2 million to return some of this money to victims of this scam. But that's rarely the case.
This is an ongoing problem. That’s why I steer clear of free-trial offers from unknown companies that want a credit or debit card number to cover shipping and handling. It’s simply not worth the risk.
----
More information at ftc.gov/opa/2012/04/greenmill.shtm
