Have You Received a Rebate Check From Snuggies??? I have!!! Read On...
By LadyMarissa
@LadyMarissa (12148)
United States
July 14, 2009 8:30pm CST
I received one of these checks & in my paranoia, I read carefully & figured it out. Then I received an email from my brother who asked me to share the news with my friends. OK friends, here we go...
How cashing a Snuggie rebate could cost you $150
Josh SmithJosh Smith RSS Feed
Jul 13th 2009 at 12:00PM
Filed under: Credit, Ripoffs and Scams, Fraud
A company is using the warm and cozy covering to try and extract $150 from your credit card by pretending to send you a rebate check for $8.95. Snuggie lovers aren't the only ones at risk by these As Seen On TV scammers: People who purchased a Ped-Egg or an Aqua Globe are also receiving the same check.
Small checks that enroll you in some service aren't new; credit card companies have used them for many years to trick customers into signing up for balance insurance and other extras. As horrible as these tactics are, they always have a paragraph on the back of the check telling you what will happen if you cash it. According to user stickig on The Consumerist boards the warning on this check reads;
"I authorize Great Fun to charge the annual membership fee after my free trial. I agree to a thirty-day trail offer in Great Fun. I understand that the $149.99 annual membership fee will be charged to my credit card on file with Snuggie unless I cancel my membership by calling 1-866-709-4170 before the end of the trial period. My membership will be automatically renewed and I will also be charged every year thereafter at the then-current fee unless I call to cancel for a refund of the unused portion of the current year's fee. By cashing this check I authorize Snuggie to securely transfer my credit card information to Great Fun for enrollment, billing and benefit processing"
It's pretty clear what will happen once you cash this check. What you really need to ask yourself is whether or not the "rebate" -- which won't even cover the cost of a movie ticket -- is worth the time and hassle to call and cancel your membership to Great Fun. If you have any doubts about the danger of dealing with Great Fun, the 24 pages of complaints at the Complaints Board should make it very evident that you're not dealing with a straight-up company.
OK, since this was more to warn you than anything else, will you please help turn this into a discussion??? Give me your thoughts!!!
5 people like this
8 responses
@sparkofinsanity (20471)
• Regina, Saskatchewan
15 Jul 09
Do I have to have a baby in diapers to qualify? Well it ain't gonna happen. And I never cash a cheque from a company I don't do business with and expect one from (like a dividend cheque) anyway. I mean, it's been a known fact for years folks that there's no longer any such thing as a free lunch, so if it's too good to be true it usually is!
2 people like this
@LadyMarissa (12148)
• United States
15 Jul 09
Well, I had done some business with them this past Christmas...As a matter of fact I love my Snuggie....It was a buy one, get one free, By times they finished charging me for them, I had paid 4 times what they claimed. My Dad stays cold & I got him one for Christmas. He loves it. I bought my Chiropractor one & she says she loves it, And I love mine. Since it appeared that I'd never get my money back, I just accepted my defeat because with 3 happy people, I got my money's worth....even though not the money I had agreed on!!! So, there was NO freakin way I was going to give them any more money!!!I was PO'd when I thought they were sending them to past customers. Now to find they are mailing them out to people who've had NOT a dayum thing to do with them, really gripes me!!! If this stops even one person from giving them $149.99 it has been worth it!!!
1 person likes this
@dncmanning (770)
• United States
15 Jul 09
This an aged old trick that tons of companies have been trying to get away with for years. Buyer be ware- people/ companies will not send you a check for nothing- never ever sign this- you deposit these and now the underhanded crooks have your bank account information too.
Good luck to you all and happy mylotting!
@LadyMarissa (12148)
• United States
15 Jul 09
I had purchased several Snuggies back at Christmas 2008 & they had overcharged me & I had been trying to get a refund. I was excited when I saw it was a check in the envelope. That excitement quickly turned to my being PO'd when I saw the check was only for $8.95 claiming that they will pay me a rebate of 20% of what I spend. My PO'd turned to rage when they asked for my credit card info as they already had it. So, I quickly understood that I had received a scam check. I didn't read the small print on the back as I was already pssd beyond belief. I tore up the check (made me feel better) & then put it through my shredder (got rid of some rage)!!!
1 person likes this
@mentalward (14690)
• United States
15 Jul 09
I've seen this kind of scam before. The way companies like Great Fun make all their money is claim they never received any cancellation from you, or that it was not received in time, or any number of other tactics that they can use that would be perfectly legal in any court, but we all know that it was a scam on their part.
It makes me sick that people can come up with tactics like this, and actually lie about the real facts, such as they really did receive your cancellation in time, but never opened it until after the 30 days was up or whatever lies they can come up with.
GREAT POST, Marissa! It's always good to get information like this out to warn people who may not notice that fine print or don't do what I always do... check the internet for complains against certain companies before dealing with them.
@psphacker (1053)
• United States
15 Jul 09
No I have received a rebate check from snuggies.
1 person likes this
@olydove (1209)
• United States
15 Jul 09
Yet another reason why I love Mylot. It's so good to know these kinds of things because so many people will unknowingly cash those rebate checks. I'm so sick and tired of these companies ripping people off, as if we aren't in difficult enough times as it is sheesh.
I will be sure to pass your discussion on to friends and family because I know of a few that have purchased the snuggie and a few other items "as seen on tv."
Thank you for letting us know.
P.S.- Would you happen to have a link to the complaints board?
1 person likes this
@OpinionatedLady (5965)
• United States
15 Jul 09
This has been going on forever and it just proves that you really do need to read the fine print. If this really bothers you though write to your senator. The are coming up with new rules and regulations for the Creditors right now in Washington. Complaints like these need to be made by everyone so that these government officials do something to stop them. If you don't like it do more then just come on here and complain call your congressman, your senator,or state rep. Email them, something
1 person likes this
@KrauseHome (36447)
• United States
19 Jul 09
You would think that these type of things would be outlawed, but they are becoming a BIG thing again, and I have received 3 from my Credit Card company in the last month. I wish there was a way to STOP these type of things from happening to people, and these would be Stopped, but I guess they are just hoping that NO one will notice and they can end up charging people more money like this and not get in trouble for it as well? Makes you wonder.
@dragon54u (31634)
• United States
15 Jul 09
I've received these things before but I ALWAYS read every word of the literature accompanying it. Unfortunately, my mother didn't and she found out the hard way that she subscribed to a magazine service that charged her card every month. After a few months we finally got the charges canceled and the money back but it was only after she examined her bill-after 3 months of the charges-that she found out!
ALWAYS read everything! Use a magnifying glass if you have to. Small print is small for a reason, they hope you'll just skip it thinking it's just legal jargon.
This world is getting to be so complicated with all the rip off scumbags that soon we'll all need an in-house attorney so I hope you have a spare room!
1 person likes this