Fighting a company committing fraud (1 Viewer)

[Dean Cooper]

My wife found an advertisement in the paper that stated that she could make some money on the side just by clipping coupons out of the junk mail that we get. She thought what the hell lets try it out, so she sent the $35 application fee (for a processor kit that includes 3 photocopied sheets) and started collecting the coupons. Well now that she has mailed in a few submissions she has hit a problem. The company (Supermarket King) won’t pay her for anything she has done. After 15 emails and 3 different people she has managed to get some condescending vague emails that basically say the same thing, “follow the instructions you moron.” I have checked over what she has submitted and there is absolutely nothing wrong with what she has sent them and they can’t provide a specific reason as to what the problem was. So now I want to get involved and at least have them investigated for fraud as after doing some research I have found that my wife’s problem is a very common thing with this company.

Has anyone out there dealt with Supermarket King? I need some ideas on who I can get involved so they are held accountable for their actions. I would really appreciate any thoughts you might have as I feel its time to start fighting back with these damn companies that get away with scams like this.

 

[Vince Maskeeper]

This is as common as air- every single "build crafts at home" or "execute a task in your spare time" have some loophole allowing them to reject your submissions and not pay you. I can't count the number of "investigative reports" I've seen on things like this, both on the local level and national media.

You can go after them, if you choose, but rest assured that 100 people probably already have, and they have just changed states or changed names or filed the right paperwork to extend their existence.

These companies don't "get away" with it because nobody fights them, they get away with it because there are always folks like yourself sending $35. The "trying to take action" after that point is where the real hassles start-- involving the wonders of paperwork and hoop jumping with state Attorney General's offices and commerce commissions...

I would say, unless you have tons of spare time an energy to pursue it, consider the $35 a learning experience on what some already know-- if it sounds too good to be true...

-Vince

 

[Marc S Kessler]

Not only has she been ripped off by this all to common scam it seems the company probably is using the coupons to scam the issuers. That is illegal and can be prosecuted.
I suggest she contacts the authorities.

 

[Chris Derby]

not related but similar:

http://www.cnn.com/2003/TECH/interne....ap/index.html

 

[Chris Lockwood]

Just curious- what is the supposed reason why a company would pay someone to clip coupons? The fact that I can't think of one makes me think "scam".

 

[Charles J P]

My mom did this one time. She was making "holiday hotpads (oven mits)" at home. Now my mom sews like a professinal. She has been doing it for 40 years. They rejected every single one of her hotpads (yeah right). My mom was pissed because she knew it was a scam so she said OK, send them back then. They wouldnt, even when she offered to pay to have them shipped back. Now if they dont meet their standards, what use would they have for them? Pretty fishy.

 

[Dean Cooper]

Just curious- what is the supposed reason why a company would pay someone to clip coupons?

They sell them..

We have developed a unique way for consumers to get their Coupons of Choice....not coupons of Chance!!!

Their unique way is to steal the coupons and then sell them, pretty good eh?

 

[Glenn Overholt]

Many, many moons ago I used to collect the coupons that were in the Sunday paper and take them to a store close by the grammar school that I went to.

I forgot the percentage, but he'd take like a 25 cent coupon and get like 5 cents for it, and give him as many as we could to buy candy with.

Yeah, at least half of the students were doing this, and he wouldn't take any coupons for products that he didn't carry.

You can see where this is going. He'd turn them in and get the full coupon price back. It lasted for a couple of years, and then the place just closed up one day. I never could figure that one out.

Glenn

 

[Jack Briggs]

Any classified ad reading "make money from home" is either for a scam such as this or for a "multi-level" pyramid. As Vince says, "If it sounds too good to be true..."

 

[Chris Lockwood]

> They sell them..

Geez. I'm guessing they also sell the coupons that they refused to pay the "home workers" for.

Personally, I've found that instead of looking for coupons to use, it's just as cheap to buy generic/store brands, buy sale items, shop at places like Sam's club, etc. I can't imagine taking the time to order them from a place like this; even if they sent what I wanted, I'd be lucky to recover the cost.

 

[Don Black]

Any classified ad reading "make money from home" is either for a scam such as this or for a "multi-level" pyramid. As Vince says, "If it sounds too good to be true..."

That's not necessarily true. A lot of companies operate virtual call centers that let people work from home. It's a win/win situation for both parties usually. But do be careful. There are indeed a lot of fake "work from home" programs out there.