Victim Location 95117
Type of a scam Online Purchase
The advertisement for a natural eye cream appeared on Instagram in early April. I happened to be out of eye cream at that time and considered the sticker price, $4.95, to be a good deal. I added the eye cream to my shopping cart and entered my personal and payment information. As I advanced the screen to finalize the purchase, a screen popped up with an easy-click option to add face serum for and additional $5.95. I went ahead and added the face serum to my cart. My final purchase confirmation included only these two items.
Within two weeks of purchase, my credit card was billed the additional amounts of $89.95 and $85.95. Upon seeing these charges, I immediately contacted my credit card company. The credit card associate advised me that these additional charges had been submitted as "subscriptions" by the merchant. The credit card rep advised me to contact the merchant directly about a refund since the charges were still listed as pending in my account. I promptly contacted the merchant. A man by the name of "John, employee ID#503" answered my call. He took some identifying information from me including my full name and shipping address. He confirmed that he was able to see the two disputed charges. When I informed John that I did not authorize these charges, he advised that these subscriptions are automatically billed after 14 days of purchasing the sample products. I informed him that I never received any information about the subscription during the original purchase or immediately following the purchase by way of an email confirmation. John advised that the subscription terms may be found on the company’s website only, and not via email. I asked for a full refund of the product and subscription charges, to which John replied that the products are non-refundable since they are "consumables." I advised him that the website checkout information does not make any mention of a subscription. John consistently referred me to the website terms. I visited the website using my computer browser. There is an inconspicuous link to "Terms" located at the bottom of their site that lays out terms of a subscription that goes into effect 14 days after product purchase. These terms were not, however, disclosed during the checkout process or in any confirmation email (as no confirmation email was ever sent). John proceeded to offer 30% off of the initial subscription and then 50% off of the initial subscription as I first disputed the overall terms and subscription purchase and later requested that he cancel and future subscriptions while I seek to resolve the issue with the initial subscription charges. John was increasingly argumentative during the call. He did not process a produce refund or subscription cancellation. I asked to speak with a manager or be redirected to legal counsel’s office, but he was unable to assist with either request. I asked if he was in a position to help me with my dispute. He advised that his role was a "co-worker." When asked, "A co-worker to whom?" he advised "to the company."
I have disputed the original purchase transaction with my credit card company. I have also taken screenshots of the site and I’ve downloaded all content as it appears today. I will be reporting this activity to my credit card company, the Department of State, and Instagram (where the ad appeared). If you have any other suggestions, I am more than happy to pursue them as I want to protect other consumers.