Not So "Free" Trials
A prevalent practice in the marketplace today is the use of the "FREE Trial" method to sell products. Although this practice may have a legitimate purpose – to allow a potential customer to preview a product at no charge with the hope they will like it enough to buy it – all too often there are undisclosed strings attached to the so-called “free” offer.
For example, numerous consumer complaints have been made against GNS (now Nutra Pills Inc.), a company that sells a variety of nutritional and weight loss products online. GNS offers consumers a "free trial" of a product and tells them they need only pay a shipping charge. What GNS does not allegedly tell consumers is that the "free trial" only lasts for a few weeks and that they are automatically billed for the product. In addition to billing after the trial period is over, GNS also enrolls consumers in an “Auto Ship” program where they are shipped and billed for a new supply of the product every month. GNS has been subject to more than 1,000 complaints to the Denver/Boulder Better Business Bureau which has earned GNS an “F” rating from the bureau.
One consumer recently complained about GNS’s practices when she signed up for a so-called “free trial” of Acai Berry Edge, a weight loss product. She was advised that all she needed to do was, “invest $3.97 s&h today then $39.95 per bottle at day 21 only if you are satisfied.” The consumer was to receive her order in 7 to 10 business days but 17 days later it had still not arrived. When she tried to cancel her order, GNS refused. Instead, the consumer was told that she would need to return the product before a cancellation could be made. Even after explaining that she had never received the product, GNS advised her that they would need to reship the product to her. Once the consumer received the product she was trying to cancel, she would have to pay to ship it back. Only then could the order be cancelled.
If you believe that you have been a victim of a "free" trial scam, please contact us to discuss your legal options.