Did anyone fall for this? Snuggie Warning

angelaid

17 years ago

Snuggie warning

09:28 AM PDT on Monday, July 27, 2009

By ERIC WILKINSON / KING 5 News

KING

The Better Business Bureau is giving a stiff warning about The Snuggie.

The Snuggie is a wearable blanket that was a hot seller last Christmas.

Ã¢ÂÂIt conjures up visions of coziness and relaxation, but itÃ¢ÂÂs now making some consumers uncomfortable with its new rebate program,Ã¢ÂÂ says BBB spokeswoman Niki Horace.

After purchasing a $20 Snuggie, consumers receive a rebate check for $8.95 from Snuggie distributor Great Fun, which features the following inscription on the back:

"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."

By cashing this check, consumers are inadvertently agreeing to these trial membership termsÃ¯Â¿Â½"and if the consumer does not cancelÃ¯Â¿Â½"Great Fun will charge $150 on the credit card used to pay for the Snuggie.

In the last 36 months, Connecticut's BBB has received more than 3,000 complaints against Great Fun, also known as Affinion Group or Trilegiant.

"Those who cash the rebate check, without reading the back, may find themselves paying hundreds of dollars for a product that's worth very little,Ã¢ÂÂ said Robert W.G. Andrew, President and CEO of Better Business Bureau serving Alaska, Oregon, and Western Washington. The BBB recommends the following tips when shopping for infomercial products:

Shop carefully. Before you buy, check out companies at www.bbb.org.

"Free" offers may cost you. When you purchase a product, beware that some companies share or sell your information to cover their costs. Get reassurance that your information will not be redistributed; look up the company's privacy policy or request a written contract before you pay. When buying from an infomercial, consider contacting your credit card company first to create a onetime use number with a limit for the exact cost of your purchase.

Cash checks with caution. Cashing checks from unknown parties could end up costing you more than it's worth. If you didn't work for the money, weren't expecting a check, or don't read the fine print, you could be at risk for inadvertently signing up for an unwanted serviceÃ¯Â¿Â½"or worseÃ¯Â¿Â½"check fraud or an advance fee scam. The bottom line: Never deposit unsolicited checks from unfamiliar sources.

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Comments (12)

sjerin
17 years ago
Isn't that rotten?? The consumer affairs writer of our local paper just wrote about this. Unfortunately, it's legal, if not unethical.
trishaw
17 years ago
I bought one of those Pedi Paws- big mistake by the way, and now I am getting those check things in the mail. I shred every single one of them!

Trish
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iowagirl2006
17 years ago
That is just rotten! I am so suspect of anything now days - but it would be so easy to fall for one of those checks.

My credit card company (an upstanding bank, btw) does the same dang thing!
cheri2008
17 years ago
Just this morning, I opened my credit card bill and found a charge for $39.00 that I questioned, I called the 800.# for the company that the tranaction in question.. turns out I ordered flowers from 1-800-flowers back in May. and this was somehow connected with that.. some sort of travel club with 'SUPPOSED' discounts. I of course let them know I was not interested and was not aware of signing up.. they say they will credit my account with in 72 hours.. we will se.. I will call on my account to check... how many people never check these.. and they get away with it ???
kathi_mdgd
17 years ago
We got one of those checks from the snuggie,i put it right through the shredder.Can't trust anything these days!! JMO
Kathi
FlamingO in AR
17 years ago
Yeow, what a racket! And what does one "GET" for their exorbitant membership fee, anyway? Great Fun should change their name to Great Ripoff.
rthummer
17 years ago
Well, ain't that just a bunch of carp!! Rotten company!
coloredthumb
17 years ago
I didn't get a Snuggie but I did get the PediPAWS tool. I get an average of 2 rebate "checks" from the company every month with the same kind of offer. I use them as fire starter.
Unethical business practices and a pretty useless piece of crap tool for doing pet nails. I wish I had gotten the snuggie at least I would have a comfy, warm wrap and the extra mailers would go nice in the fireplace as well. LOL

CT
cynic
17 years ago
You think this is something new? Don't you remember all the checks from telephone companies to get you to switch services? No different. People are stupid and will fall for these things. It gets to the point I figure why bother warning people anymore. You need to use some common sense, but that ain't so common anymore.

Reminds me of when my dad got the notice that he "won" a sweepstakes. He was out spending it. He about cut me out of his life when I told him he hadn't won anything - that IF his name and number are drawn he COULD win. Didn't talk to me for weeks. But it finally sank in that he didn't get and would never get his $880,000 check. And he didn't.
breenthumb
17 years ago
I cringe thinking of all the carp my MIL bought from Publisher's Clearing House. Not only things but collections of things. Books, coins, boxes of recipes, teapots and figurines galore. She was convinced each purchase upped her chances of winning, even though they said it didn't.

One year she sat in a nice pantsuit and hair done anticipating Ed McMann ringing her doorbell with a big check following the Superbowl.

Got to where she didn't even open things. Just stacked them in a closet. But we couldn't make her stop. When she died, SIL had to deal with all the junk. Was able to return some but matching everything up with their paperwork was a nightmare for her.
sue_va
17 years ago
Actually though, the fault lies with those folks who are looking for "something for nothing."

Greed.

Sue
mariend
17 years ago
Habband did the same thing to me--meaning sending checks and I wrote to them to take me off all future mailing lists--they did for awhile. Same as above[[small check and some sort of award program==into the shreader. Won't order again

Did anyone fall for this? Snuggie Warning

Comments (12)

sjerin

trishaw

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