A couple times a year I post an article warning people about travel scams that surface unexpectedly. Usually it is the same type scam - go to a 90 minute presentation to get a free vacation but there is no freebie afterwards. Just a solicitation to join a "Travel Club" offering discount vacations.
I happened to be surfing Consumer Complaints on a well know blog site called Wallet Pop and in the course of reading about a 'rebate check scam', it occurred to me that because the scam involved 'entertainment' discounts, many travelers may fall for it. Hence, this warning for any or all who see the name "Great Fun" entertainment.
The scam goes something like this. You innocently order a product (online or off a TV advertisement) and the company you did business with sells your name AND credit card information to another party. In the case I was reading, it was a company called Great Fun which sends a 'rebate' check (usually for $8.25) from the purchase of products as varied as animal accessories to blankets. In the fine print on the back of the check will be wording that says you are signing up for some costly product or service - often a monthly rotating charge too.
What is so insidious about this scam is that the check looks like it was sent by the company you did business with. So assuming you were/are happy with their products or services, you wouldn't think twice about receiving the 'rebate' and cashing it. But the rebate applies to the charge you are about to incur, not because of what you already purchased. And the charge will come from a company you never heard of either.
While all the companies involved insist it is not meant to mislead, I mean come on! How stupid do they think people are? If you can't simply send a solicitation with a rebate check offered (I get them occasionally too) under the company name that WANTS to charge you, then they are assuming you will cash the check becuase of your prior arrangements/business.
In our lobbyist filled world (remember when enacting the Do Not Call list was going to forever end the telemarketer business and it hasn't?) this is all perfectly legal.
So watch what you buy and from whom, and if you see a company called Great Fun offering (supposedly) hotel discounts or airfare discounts, I say think twice. It could be a costly mistake.
Comments