Free trials sometimes costly
Read the fine print before accepting samples of products and services
[March 8, 2010]
If you saw a dollar bill in a parking lot, you'd probably bend over and pick it up. That small bit of effort is worth the payoff.
You might think the same of Internet offers for free trials of certain products and services. Why not fill out a short online form to get something in the mail that would otherwise cost money?
Maybe it's something you'd buy anyway, or something you've wanted to try. It could be a product that offers whiter teeth, better health, or fuller hair. Or maybe it's a service you'd like to try once before deciding whether it's worth a regular place in your budget. Perhaps it's a company that promises to help you land a government grant.
Yet, some of these so-called "free" offers are costing a lot of consumers a lot of money. And it can happen even if the offers are found on websites you trust, or are endorsed by celebrities you admire.
Writing about one offer for an anti-aging pill, the Better Business Bureau reported that thousands of people nationwide had complained about charges costing them "hundreds of dollars, month after month." It was No. 1 on the BBB’s list of the top 10 scams of 2009.
We've even heard from a few STCU members who have discovered monthly charges on their credit cards, as a result of accepting such efforts. Sometimes, they're for more than $100 a month!
How can that happen?
It's what attorneys call "negative option" billing, which requires you to take action – return an item, maybe, or notify a company that you're declining an offer – to avoid making a purchase. It's the opposite of what happens in a store, where you take action to make a purchase.
An offer's fine print – the legal mumbo-jumbo that many of us often scan without really comprehending – may stipulate that you must return the product, or cancel a service, after your "trial."
You could face a variety of fees or recurring charges if you don’t take the stipulated action within the time allotted in your contract. Or you may be obligated to pay for additional products and services.
The Federal Trade Commission offers these tips to anyone considering a free trial:
- Read the terms and conditions of the offer, and make sure you understand them. You don’t want to unknowingly commit to recurring charges.
- Watch for pre-checked boxes that may bind you to terms and conditions you’re not ready to accept.
- Look for information about cancelling future shipments. Do you have to pay? Do you have a limited time to respond?
- Examine your credit and debit card statements for charges you don’t recognize or didn’t authorize.
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