Membership Scam
Complaint
MGN
Country: United States
I feel stupid that I did not check this site before I went in for the open house and signed up for membership. I signed for Silver Membership and the Sales agent told me that I have access to 700 suppliers (Vendors). Two days later when we went to buy some items and filled out the order form they told us that for Silver membership we have access only to about 150 vendors. Since that time I am trying to cancel my membership.
I signed up for same as cash - three installments to be paid in three months. I paid my first installment with a credit card. I have tried both the local store and Corporate office to cancel the membership with no luck. Few questions that I have are -
1. What happens if I talk to my Credit card company and dispute the charge, will they recover the first installment from DB?
2. Even if they dont cancel the memebership, can I just not pay the last two installments?
Any help in this matter would be helpful.
Thanks!
I signed up for same as cash - three installments to be paid in three months. I paid my first installment with a credit card. I have tried both the local store and Corporate office to cancel the membership with no luck. Few questions that I have are -
1. What happens if I talk to my Credit card company and dispute the charge, will they recover the first installment from DB?
2. Even if they dont cancel the memebership, can I just not pay the last two installments?
Any help in this matter would be helpful.
Thanks!
Comments
Why don't you contact your local District Attorney's consumer protection unit?
Most people who do come here already have a problem, generally one that has already cost them money. These comments are for them.
Deceptive and predatory sales practices are often reported in products like "memberships", where the payments are front-loaded, and the "product" is mostly promise or of indeterminate value at the time of closing the sale. With such products, consumers often rely on representations made by sales people, and in many cases sign contracts that lock them in to extended and costly fees before they even have any way to evaluate the quality or usefulness of the product that is promised.
Typically sales people in these businesses have substantial incentive to close the sale, in the form of commissions or bonuses, and as a result there is often a steady stream of complaints resulting from misrepresentations combined with hard sell sales tactics. The consumer is generally locked in to the full costs of some contract for an extended period of time, with total costs typically in the range of $600 to several thousand dollars.
Companies employing such sales tactics often "launder" the transaction, by representing it as a "monthly charge", sometimes even claiming it can be cancelled for a nominal fee or under conditions such as if the consumer moves, while contractually setting it up as "financing" of the whole amount passed off to a separate loan company. This artifice is often used to block attempts to actually cancel, even if the contract allows for cancelling under some conditions.
Another deceptive practice is to verbally "agree" to cancel when a consumer calls to do so, but just let the charges continue, or the membership run out, after which the loan is sold off to a debt collector partner. "Too bad. You didn't cancel the right way, and now it is too late. Pay us the full amount."
Businesses employing such sales tactics typically include store memberships or more than nominal cost that cannot be terminated early, health clubs and gym memberships, telemarketed magazine subscription scams, cell phone and satellite TV companies, burglar alarm service contracts, annuity contracts, and timeshare sales, to name a few. In fact, any time you run into a multi-year contract for some consumer service that makes more sense to pay for on a monthly basis, you should question whether the "product" has been packaged and exhorbitantly repriced by a predatory marketer.
If you look at how the business is set up, the product sold, what types of deceptive claims are made, and how the business has already planned how it will pressure the consumer to pay off the full contract despite a history of complaints of similar deception, often across multiple locations, it becomes clear you are not dealing with just some "misguided" sales person (who "was fired last month"), or some consumer who "heard what they wanted to". Sales scripts aren't accidents, particularly when they are used at multiple sites or for long periods of time. They are constructed so that the consumer hears what was intended to be heard, and if they leave the consumer hearing something different from what is in the contract, then that is deception.
Often when there is one kind of deceptive practice, there are others as well.
When dealing with a contract which you may have been deceived into agreeing to, what are your choices? You might sue, either to invalidate a contract due to fraud, or to try to force the company to deliver what was promised (but not put in writing), but generally the amounts are often too small to justify hiring an attorney, and the companies that pull this stuff generally protect themselves well in their contracts. They designed the game before you walked in the door.
The fraud and deception is real, but it is perpetrated verbally, which may be harder to prove. More accurately, what you are really dealing with up front is a consumer that just realized that they have been conned, with a company that knew this was likely, so it planned on how to bluff the consumer into taking no action other than paying, using legal threats, collection agencies, threats of credit damage, etc.
The playihg field in this game was never level, nor was it intended to be.
Unfair and deceptive business practices are, however, violations of a number of state and federal laws. FTC, state Attorneys General, and local District Attorneys have jurisdiction in enforcing such laws.
What consumers should keep in mind is that if they got deceived, probably others did too. This is the value of seeing whether others have made similar complaints. It tells you that you are not dealing with some "misunderstanding", or that you must have "misheard" what was being sold, but that this is a particular company's standard business practices. You may even find that a particular business has been caught in some particular illegal practice before, possibly reaching a settlement, and be under a court order to cease.
In determining what state or federal agency might be most effective at assisting you, look at where they have jurisdiction, what types of complaints they act on, and what degree of interest they have in the practices of particular industries.
Local DAs answer to local votors, and will often act in cases involving consumer fraud or deceptive practices involving companies located in their county, or that have affected a number of residents of their county. State AGs are often effective against either in-state or out of state businesses, in particular in industries that have high levels of ocmplaints, or where there are specific regulatory requirements. Many states have licensing agencies with jurisdictions over specific industries, with assistance from AGs in enforcement.
FTC has nationwide jurisdiction, but is spread pretty thin. In many cases, state AGs may be more responsive that FTC. And in some cases where a pattern of complaints against a company starts appearing in multiple states, the state AGs often work together to combine their legal actions.
To some degree, when deceptive sales tactics are systematically employed, there is an element of bluff on the part of the seller. They want to succeed at the game they set up, but they can't be too visible doing it, or they might get attention they don't want. A complaint to a DA or AG is exactly what they DON'T want, but since most consumers can be bluffed into not going that far, it is cheaper for them to cave if they get an inquiry letter from a DA or AG, even if they haven't been sued. If they are engaged in deceptive practices, they must still maintain the appearance of a "respectable" business. In some cases, being a BBB member can help deflect consumer complaints before they become AG complaints, since BBB typically only reports that complaints were "resolved". Paying off a few squeeky wheels is cheap.
I haven't a clue what "other companies" somehow have an unfair advantage. Are those the ones that unfairly treat their customers right?
There is plenty of deceptive advertising on TV, radio, and especially the internet. One of the companies offering "free credit reports" that aren't free has settled with FTC twice, and they still advertise deceptively on radio and TV.
In fact, with the recession and transfer to digital TV, TV advertising is especially cheap now, so if you want to base your trust on whether they advertise on TV, good luck. TV stations sell time, they don't in any way claim to check out their customers or vouch for their honesty.
As for whether being a "good size company" (whatever that is) has any bearing on trustability, we have just seen some of the largest banks and insurance companies (industries that supposedly depend on their reputation for trust) reveal what they have really been up to with their customer's money. (Look up Wachovia, for example, if you want to see how low a bank can stoop. It cost them their independence.)
Thanks for your feedback.
It is ironic that you have never been to a Direct Buy, neither do you know what transpired in my case. But you have an opionion that I am wrong.
SO LEAVE T.J. alone and crawl back into the hole you came out of!!!
Why Won't you put your name? Does it start with D and end with B????
Why Dont YOU do something better with your time than interrupt someone who is giving advice to someone who asked for it. You need to BUTT out!!!!Why don't you post your real address and phone number?!!!?#@!!
Thanks for being a good role model.
Please click on the following title:
"DIRECT BUY COMPLAINT- DON'T MAKE OUR MISTAKE"
& Post a letter at the end of the file.
I promise to do my best to help you, & I give on-going support & encouragement & I help to lead you to the laws you need.
I HAVE HELPED PEOPLE GET FULL REFUNDS!!!!!!!!!
I need to know that you are still with this site.
MY questions always start with, Where do you live, when did you join
& have you bought anything.
I just skimmed through this file & I just found people arguing & I did not bother reading it all. Please join us by going back to the main page
& click on the title I mentioned above.
I just sent you a reply at the bottom of this file, but I am not sure if this response will be at the top or bottom.
UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES, CAN YOU IGNORE BETA.
YOU must immediately make a payment, even if it is a partial payment.
They are unfortunately entitled to the payments, until you get them to agree to rescind the contract, which is not easy,
BUT we are getting successful refunds by sending registered mail, telling them the laws that apply to your STATE.
They have Misrepresented the contract...
More details will follow,
if you respond to the title lead that I mention in my other posting on this site.
I sent you another reply that ended up in the middle of this page.
I am very serious about helping people get refunds...Please join us at the other lead!!!!!!!!Your case is quite urgent!!!!!!!!11
Too bad you can't file a BBB complaint against the BBB. :-)
You should still file the complaint with them. The more complaints the worse their rating, resolve complaints or not.
Immediately send a registered letter, call to confirm the full mailing address, & address it directly to the owner of the location where you joined.---------DO NOT TALK TO THEM, THAT'S HOW THEY CONNED YOU!!!!!!!!!
The letter should say that you are exercising your right to cancel the contract.
Ask for confirmation, in writing, of the cancellation of the contract.
include that you will not accept e-mails or telephone calls.
Tell db that you will only accept their response by mail, within 10 busines days of receipt of your letter.
Sign by all names on contract.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
IF THEY IGNORE IT - THEN YOU WILL HAVE PROOF IN WRITING TO SHOW THAT YOU
CANCELLED IMMEDIATELY.
IF they try to say that you cannot cancel,
THEN you will have to use step 2- Whatever Consumer Protection Act applies to where you live.
Good Luck!!!!!!
Please help. I live in Woodbrige Virginia
One day I was talking to a co-worker of mine and mentioned DirectBuy to him. Low and behold he was a member. he stated that unless we were building or remodeling it would not be worth us to get a membership. But we have to fill an entire house with appliances, furniture ,etc.
We knew that there were 3 big ticket items that we are going to need so he said get him the information on them and he would price them for us. So, my wife did her research and found what she wanted. I gave him the information and we were able to save $2,000 over Lowes and Best Buy. Of course he stated he is not allowed to purshace items for other people.
But now I'm reading all of these horror stories. I'm wondering if the items we purchased are of any quaity. As I stated earlier, we are in the process of buying a house so those items are currently in storage.
So, we are wondering if this is the way to go for us.
What category is your Direct Buy - Don't Make Our Mistake under?
We signed up for the $5000 membership in July have found nothing we could not get less expensively from Lowe's or HomeDepot or local furniture stores. We've contacted Beta Finance to discuss reduced or closing the payment options.
We've contacted Member Services of DirectBuy
DirectBuy, Inc
Attention: Membership Department
8450 Broadway, P.O. Box 13006
Merrillville, In 46411-3006
(800)827-6400
and our local Jacksonville, Fl DirectBuy office.
We are also in financial hardship due to lost jobs and wages. We've tried to speak to the folks to cancel or close the account. We've only been in the "showroom" once and that was the day we unfortunately agreed to their plan.
So if you would post the category I'd love to contact you about getting our debt stopped if that is an opportunity.
DirectBuy is a pressure sales program that offers the idea of a discount and a ONE-TIME only opportunity if you DON'T SIGN today! This is not done in many places and is ALWAYS A SIGN OF A SCAM. Sure some people will say they saved money, but they probably don't ever look for price value opportunities in the local markets, they most likely have considerable expendable cash reserves not to consider the costs of things.
Any way, how about the category I can find your thread under.