As Seen on TV Scams Blog - Historical Scams and Scam Artists from the Infomercial Industry

Business Opportunity Scams

noreply@blogger.com (Blogger hired to review Infomercials) — Wed, 22 Dec 2010 01:06:00 +0000

Have you ever been up late at night flipping through the channels because you just couldn’t sleep? Next thing you know you’re watching some toothy, tanned, slick talking guy telling you how you can earn $10,000 per month sitting at home spending only an hour or two per week. We all know these programs as infomercials and don’t be afraid to admit that you’ve watched them too. I know I have many times. For me it’s more of a learning exercise on what to avoid and how to be better sales person.

After all these companies are making millions if not billions of dollars every year. I won’t lie, I’ve fallen victim to a few “As Seen On TV” infomercials and purchased some products. For the most part the products have proven to work somewhat as advertised by eventually fell short of the claims of the program. But fortunately I’ve yet to lose tons of money.

But apparently many folks aren’t as fortunate and have fallen victim to many work at home or home business infomercial scams. I think the problem with most folks is that they lose common sense practices that they would use in the real world or the internet. See in the real world we’ve all been trained to be skeptical of anything that sounds to be good to true. If we feel uneasy about something, we either pass on it, ask for advice or do some research. But TV seems to suspend this for many folks.

I can understand how this happens. You assume if someone has enough money to be on TV and is exposed to millions of people they wouldn’t dare scam people because its out in public view for the world to see and criticize. Unfortunately some of the most shady infomercial peddlers are banking on this. I decided to do some research on some infomercial work at home opportunity that appeared very legitimate based on what I can see in their programming.

But of course I did my due diligence and hit Google and did a search for the company’s name, website + the keyword scam. Jackpot! I got tons of information and read various complaints. I also learned the ins and outs of how this particular infomercial scam operated that I would have never known unless I coughed up my hard earned money. Needless I was very thankful for the information.

Awesome Auger Reviews

noreply@blogger.com (Blogger hired to review Infomercials) — Thu, 09 Dec 2010 19:02:00 +0000

When a popular review site profiled Awesome Auger, these are the comments it received:

Lee from FL writes about Awesome Auger:

Don't bother using it to drill a hole in the ground, it will just burn out your drill. Unless it is a bag of loose soil that you can turn with your bare hands, it will not work. I am not even going to go through the hassle of returning it, just writing it off to another as seen on tv rip off.

EDWARD BARRY from NY writes about AWESOME AUGER:

I ADVISE ALL TO DISPUTE THE CHARGES WITH YOUR CREDIT CARD COMPANY. JUST CALL THE TEL. NUMBER ON THE BACK OF YOUR CARD. IF WE ALL DO THE SAME IT WILL STOP THIS DISINGENUIOUS OPERATION. CUSTOMER SATISFACTION IS ABOUT 10 OR 20% IF THERE WAS A 0 STAR RATING, I GUESS 2%

Brooks from NC writes about Awesome Auger:

They got me too. You have to enter your credit card info before getting far into the website, then they bombard you with offers on what I thought was the way to check-out - can't back-tab, can't get out of the site. I never confirmed purchase, never had any summary of what I was 'buying'. I had to quit the internet to get off the site. 4 hours later they sent me an e-mail 'confirming' my 'order' and writing "BEFORE CALLING PLEASE ALLOW 2 BUSINESS DAYS FOR CUSTOMER SERVICE RECORDS TO BE UPDATED." I've notified my credit card's fraud bureau, and the state's department of consumer affairs. I reported to the fraud bureau of my credit card company.

Barbara from FL writes about Awsome Auger:

Does anyone understand the "DISPUTE" process from your credit card company???? You have "ZERO" liability if you dispute the item in question, send it back and have proof of receipt of sending it back(tracking through UPS or USPS). Please don't get yourselves in a frenzy about contacting the merchant. File a dispute with your credit card company instead. They will get your money back for you with no hassles as long as you have made an attempt to contact their merchant and have returned the item(s). Save yourself heartache and do the above and be done with it.

colton from tx writes about auger:

RIP OFF SCAM ARTIST Funny how the commercial shows a long extension,not two 8 1nch drill bits i could have made in 5 minutes,and the only sent that,where the hell is the drill they advertised,they say i did not click for extra p& h,that was not on the infomercial either,never again,will i fall for something this stupid.will be turning this over to the bbb in texas

You may want to think twice before purchasing this apparent rip off.

Steam Buddy Rip Off

noreply@blogger.com (Blogger hired to review Infomercials) — Mon, 06 Dec 2010 20:18:00 +0000

I called the 800 number as the product I first saw on TV. They advertised for only $19.99 you would get a steambuddy which is what I've been wanting so I don't have to spend a lot of time ironing my clothes in the morning. They offer 4 free gifts if you hurry & order & all for $19.99 but it's an $80.00 value.

When I called it wasn't a live person, just a computerized voice. Each FREE gift that was offered they said click one to add the linen brush for an additional $17.95 plus addtl 6.00 for S&H. They did this with all free products advertised. Basically if I would have pressed 1 for each item they said was free if I ordered at that time it would have been over $100.00! I pressed zero & only agreed to purchase the steamer at the $19.99 plus the shipping which was only $4.95. I was looking at my bank statement today because I transferred enough money in there to cover the charge. It showed a 35.00 overdraft fee my bank charged me because the steambuddy company charged my account $69.95! I have disputed the charge with my bank but am furious I have to wait 2 weeks to get my money back.

They are dishonest & lie. It's a total scam & I'm sure they figure people won't check their statements & can get away with it. I just read they have sold over a million dollars worth of these things so I'm sure you can imagine how. There is noway in the world anyone would be stupid enough to pay this I hope. They say it's an $80.00 value but each item priced seperatly totals well over $80.00. Beware of this company & if you did purchase it, please look back at your bank or credit card records! I just love that they stole money from a young single mother with 3 children... NOT! I wish I could get double the money back for all the hassles I've had to deal with!

Zoe
Blaine, Washington
U.S.A.

The Shipping and Handling Scam

noreply@blogger.com (Blogger hired to review Infomercials) — Thu, 18 Nov 2010 22:34:00 +0000

The shipping & handling scam is one of the prevalent scams within the infomercial industry. If you consider how much it actually costs to ship a product, these companies make a bundle by marking up the S&H costs. And, in a lot of cases, the shipping times are ridiculously slow considering how much is actually being paid to ship it. Most of the companies that have such horrible S&H fees and services do so in order to lessen the financial loss when a refund is initiated.

Most products that you see on TV infomercials have a “30-day Money Back Guarantee.” It’s crucial to note that the “money-back guarantee” essentially means that you can get a full-refund of the product cost (less shipping) if you return the product within 30 days (usually of receiving it, but sometimes the “trial” begins when shipped). That means that whatever you paid for S&H will not be refunded, and furthermore, you’re liable for the expense of shipping your product back. So in some cases, you’ll be out twice the cost of shipping!

And not only is the average cost of S&H extraordinary in this industry, but also the average shipping time painfully long. Take, for example, Scalp Med, a product “regrows your own hair”. If you order a 2-month supply, the package weighs a pound (2 2-oz bottles of Vitadil, 1 4-oz bottle of Nutrisol, and 1 8-oz bottle of Cortex Enlarger), and costs $18.81 to ship, with an expected delivery time of 3-4 weeks. They also offer priority shipping for another $9.95, which cuts the wait to just 10 days or less.

To put that price tag in perspective, if you went to Amazon and paid $18.81 for S&H on something that weighs about a pound, you would get either overnight delivery, or 2-day delivery. Scalp Med’s S&H policy is ludicrous, and it indicates to me that they probably get a lot of refund requests, and are trying to minimize how much they have to give back by inflating the cost of S&H.

Scams Persist

noreply@blogger.com (Blogger hired to review Infomercials) — Tue, 25 May 2010 22:20:00 +0000

Though the portion of infomercials making questionable claims has decreased in recent years, scammers are still out there. About 15% of weight-loss infomercials in 2006 included egregious claims, down from about 50% of such ads in 2003, Marinello said.

The decline in deceptive ads is due in part to the Self-Regulation Program's efforts, including requests to advertisers to cease their programming. But some advertisers -- about one-fourth of the remaining deceptive weight-loss ad purveyors, or an estimated 4% of all infomercial makers -- refused to make changes. Marinello said the figures related to weight-loss ads reflect the infomercial industry overall.

Yet with $200 billion in revenues in 2007, the infomercial industry's ship is far from sinking.

Gergana Koleva, MarketWatch

noreply@blogger.com (Blogger hired to review Infomercials) — Mon, 24 May 2010 20:44:00 +0000

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- It's the ultimate impulse-shopping experience: You see a product advertised on TV as a "free trial offer," so you dial the phone number flashing at you imperatively on the screen.

The next thing you know, your credit card bill arrives with a hefty charge on it. The problem? That free trial ended long before the product was shipped to you.

Unlike typical commercials that aim to impress consumers with an alluring brand image, infomercials push for an immediate purchase. They may seem like a convenient way to shop from home, but think twice before dialing that number. While legitimate companies use infomercials to sell worthwhile products, scammers also tap this form of advertising to make deceptive pitches.

Previously relegated to late-night television, infomercials are now spilling over into regular evening programming and respected daytime fare. One type of infomercial is increasingly common: Shorter direct-retail ads that run an average of 120 seconds.

In years past, "they were considered fringe programming," said Peter Marinello, director of the Electronic Retailing Association's Self-Regulation Program. Launched in 2004, the program is an independent arm of the ERA, a trade group representing companies that sell products via radio, television, and the Internet.

But these days, such ads now appear regularly on daytime and late-night television, as well as on popular evening shows such as Fox's "The O'Reilly Factor," CBS's "60 Minutes" and CNBC's "Mad Money."

"Many viewers get caught off guard when they see these infomercials on a regular TV show as opposed to on specialized shopping channels" like QVC and the Home Shopping Network, Marinello said, and thus may be less likely to question the veracity of the advertisement's claims.

Others agreed. "There's a belief that if an infomercial comes on a network or a popular show like 'The O'Reilly Factor,' it must be legitimate," said Justin Leonard, founder of a consumer forum Web site. "But some of those companies are very savvy and know how to exploit loopholes."

New Web Ad Privacy Bill Riles All Sides

noreply@blogger.com (Blogger hired to review Infomercials) — Wed, 05 May 2010 21:37:00 +0000

The first draft of new legislation for online ads pleases neither ad men nor privacy groups.

As concern over Internet advertising and data collection grows, privacy advocates and the Internet advertising industry have been sharpening their legal knives for more than a year. Now two Congressmen have finally given them a piece of legislation they're all too happy to slice apart.

Rick Boucher, D-Va., and Cliff Stearns, R-Fla., released a draft Tuesday of a privacy bill aimed at defining broad new regulations for the data collection practices of online advertising. The bill would require sites to offer easier methods of letting users prevent their behavior from being tracked online, warn users about data collection with a symbol on Web pages and require sites to render anonymous any data they collect after 18 months.

But while those new safeguards are enough to raise hackles in the advertising industry, irate privacy groups say they fall short of their demands, and even represent a deterioration of current privacy protections. "This is very flawed legislation," Jeffrey Chester, president of the Center for Digital Democracy, told reporters on a conference call. "The bill is going to have to be radically revised, or it will face significant opposition from consumer and privacy groups and their supporters."

One of the key battles in online privacy has been over the question of "opt-out" vs. "opt-in": Should users have to agree to have their online behavior data collected, or should sites legally be allowed to track their behavior by default, with an option to stop that collection upon request?

Boucher's and Stearns' bill offers just enough of each approach to please neither advertisers nor privacy advocates. For sensitive data such as telephone numbers, postal and e-mail addresses, social security numbers or financial data, a site would have to explicitly request a user's permission to track and store the information. For tracking of users' paths around the Web for what the bill calls "transactional" or "operational" purposes, sites would be allowed to collect data on users' behaviors without their permission, though they would be required to overtly state on their site with a "seal or symbol" that the page engages in behavioral tracking, and would have to allow the user to prevent that tracking upon request.

The bill also puts strict regulations on tracking users' behavior on mobile devices, an increasing concern as Web-friendly devices like Android phones and iPhones make handsets a new destination for ads. Location-based tracking on cellphones or other portable gadgets would fall under the more sensitive category of data that requires users to opt in before it can be collected.

To Mike Zanneis, vice president of public policy at the Internet Advertising Bureau, the new safeguards sound ill-defined and potentially dangerous to the $23 billion online ad industry. "Opt-in is really the most burdensome privacy restriction that we implement in the U.S.," Zanneis says.

He argues that the data requiring opt-in measures defined by the bill in its current form could include not just names and addresses but also IP addresses and "cookie" files that sites download to a user's browser to note his or her path on the Web. "We know that greater than 70% of all online advertising depends on targeting techniques," he says. "If we have an opt-in standard for cookies, that would impact the vast majority of online advertising, and that's what we want to avoid."

Meanwhile, privacy advocates argue that the bill's exemption for "operational" collection of data--allowing those practices to take place under an "opt-out" rule--gives advertisers far too much leeway. "This bill really adopts an archaic and bankrupt 'notice and consent' regime that we all know doesn't' work," says John Simpson, head of the Google Privacy and Accountability project at Consumer Watchdog.

An Ounce of Prevention: Credit Card Debt

noreply@blogger.com (Blogger hired to review Infomercials) — Tue, 04 May 2010 22:51:00 +0000

It might be easier said than done for many, but there is one surefire way that anyone can avoid credit card debt if they’re brave enough to try it out. The best way to avoid credit card debt is to quit using credit cards. There are people who live their whole lives without credit, because they don’t want the financial obligation hanging over their heads. If you can be one of those people, that’s the best way to stay out of debt. If you can’t fathom living without your plastic and being able to spend what you want regardless of what your bank account says, then you might not have as much success at this option. For these people, you should know that using credit can be done right, and without causing you to get in over your head. You will need to exercise self-control. This includes knowing when you can afford to use the cards, and when you can’t. Also, you’ll need to learn how to spend what you want, and then pay the balance off every month. And in reality, you should never pay off the whole balance, because it’s much better to have a small balance on your credit cards to show that they’re being used than to have no balance. When you go to get a loan or another type of financing, they’ll see that you have these cards that don’t look like they’re being used, which makes you less creditworthy because of a lack of use. It seems kind of complicated, but it’s not really. Those who have credit and use it look more creditworthy than those who have credit and don’t use it. Avoiding credit card debt is sometimes nearly impossible, especially when you get into a tough financial situation. However, it can be done, as long as you’re willing to take the time to learn how to manage money and better use your credit to its full advantage. That means don’t spend $5,000 a month if you can’t afford to pay it off when the bill comes. And if you can’t afford something in the first place, you shouldn’t buy it at all. Being informed and prepared is often the best way to avoid credit card debt and other financial disasters.

Don’t buy the Perfect Button

noreply@blogger.com (Blogger hired to review Infomercials) — Mon, 29 Mar 2010 21:56:00 +0000

Don’t buy the Perfect Button unless you want to pay for it twice. They double bill you for shipping, even when you tell them you only want one set of buttons. I bought the

Perfect Button, I was charged shipping twice, and was sent Shoes Under which I didn’t want but got free to just throw in the trash. Shoes Under is a piece of paper fabric junk.

When you return the items you are still not reimbursed for the shipping which was about $ 20.00. Which also is more than any of the items are worth….STAY CLEAR OF THIS COMPANY!!! The shipping should have been $3.00 max. not $20.00.

Could Free Trial Offers Be ‘Fee’ Trial Offers in Disguise?

noreply@blogger.com (AsSeenonTV) — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 21:14:00 +0000

Free trial offers can be an efficient way to sample a new product or service without paying for a membership, subscription or extended service contract. Sometimes, though, if you accept a free trial offer and don’t cancel on time or according to the stated policy, you may be unintentionally agreeing to a contract to buy additional products and services.

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the nation’s consumer protection agency, says “try before you buy” offers can be effective ways to market. If you like what you try, you may want to go ahead and make the purchase. But if you don’t want to buy the product or service, you may need to cancel or take some other action on a particular timetable to avoid being charged.

When a company takes your failure to cancel before the end of the trial period as permission to continue billing you, you’ve made a “negative option” purchase. Sometimes, unscrupulous merchants make it tough for consumers to take the action that would prevent negative option billing: these merchants may hide the terms and conditions of their offers in teensy type, use pre-checked boxes as the default setting, and put conditions on returns and cancellations that are so strict it could be next to impossible to stop the deliveries and the billing.

Whiter Teeth? Flatter Stomach? Shiny Hair?

If you see a free trial offer online for a product you’re interested in, stop – and read the details.

Find the terms and conditions of the offer. If you can’t find them or can’t understand exactly what you’re agreeing to, look for another merchant. You don’t want to commit to recurring charges for products or services by mistake – or before you’ve tried them and made your decision.
Pay attention to pre-checked boxes. That check may bind you to terms and conditions you’re not comfortable with – or ready to accept.
Look for information how you can cancel future shipments of merchandise or services if you don’t want them. Do you have to pay? Do you have a limited time to respond? If you’re not satisfied with the information in the offer, look for another one that meets your needs.
Read your credit and debit card statements very shortly after you’ve responded to a free trial offer – and often afterward – looking for charges you don’t recognize or didn’t authorize. Contact the merchant first to try to resolve the issue; notify the card issuer promptly if you see any unusual or unauthorized charges.

Free Gifts and Continuity Hell

noreply@blogger.com (AsSeenonTV) — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 18:01:00 +0000

Video Professor's So-Called Free Gifts

The Video Professor has been offering in-home computer training lessons longer than most other companies offering anything similar. The company was founded in 1987 by John W. Scherer. You've doubtless seen him numerous times on late-night infomercials, asking you to "try my products."

Scherer has been selling lessons / tutorials on numerous computer subjects under the Video Professor brand. The company markets programs for learning such diverse subjects as Windows, Photoshop and even eBay.

On the positive side, the Video Professor company has done much to help charities throughout the globe. They give out a ton of money for college scholarships and donate thousands of computer lessons to nonprofit groups. They've also been instrumental in launching computer literacy programs, and sometimes donated complete computer labs.

The darker side of Scherer and Video Professor, though, comes from his TV and Internet offers of a free tutorial for just a $6.95 shipping cost. Most people neglect to read the fine print of how the offer works. This free tutorial is actually more of a trial offer so that the buyer can check out how helpful the products will be. When he fills out the application, the customer is sent three CDs. He then has 10 days after they're shipped to decide whether to keep the lessons or return the extra ones (one free was offered, the other two are, then, on "loan"). If the customer keeps all of them, he is charged $89.95.

The Video Professor's return procedure was another area that caused many consumers some angst. It's not enough to simply return the company CD's. Rather, the unhappy customer is required to call their customer service line and get a return authorization number from them. A lot of people became bewildered when they sent the CDs back and yet still got charged for them.

And finally, the Video Professor's business model is to make use of a strategy termed a "continuity program." This is a method used by many companies and is legal. Under a continuity program, once a person becomes a member or a paying customer, he is sent more of that product each month at full price. He is billed for these and expected to pay for them unless he notifies customer service of his desire to discontinue the service. This is the model used by book-of-the-month clubs and CD / music clubs.

So is Video Professor really a scam? Not in the harshest sense of the word. They operate within the conditions and terms outlined in their own documentation, and well within the requirements of the law. True, they are probably deliberately vague on many points in order to bring in as much money as possible. Therefore, it's important that the customer understands their policies and how they can avoid being charged for the lessons that they don't want. If a person knows how the Video Professor's system works, he can proceed to safely and confidently deal with the company.

The Dual Action Cleanser Scam

noreply@blogger.com (AsSeenonTV) — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 15:26:00 +0000

The Dual Action Cleanser Scam

The makers of the Dual Action Cleanser call their product the top colon cleansing product on the market today. They say that this product will eliminate build up in the colon that interferes with your digestive system. The go on to claim that once the product is used to cleanse the colon you will feel a new burst of revitalizing energy. They also say that the product will reduce the expelling of gas and make your hair and skin more vibrant and that users will feel slimmer. Actual users of this product have not seen these results and have voiced their complaints about the product.

One user writes that the company that produces the Dual Action Cleanser has poor customer service and slow delivery times. The user writes that while trying to cancel the order, because the product was found in stores, for a cheaper price, the company refused and would not take the user's number off a do not call list after trying to sell more of the product after repeatedly requesting to be taken off the list. After using the product there was no change and the user believes that an increased intake in fiber can bring the same result.

Another user comments that using the product for a week caused the user to not have regular bowel movements and went as far as to block up their bowels. The blockage caused painful stomach pains, bloating, and causing the user to be so ill they had to miss work and see a doctor. The user says that if there is a lawsuit, they will join it immediately to take down the company.

Another user states that the product causes dangerous harm to the body producing bloody bowel movements. The product also, according to the same user, caused stomach cramps so severe the user describes them as worse than child birth. This user also has woken up at night short of breath and with an irregular heartbeat. Extreme fatigue and increased body aches are also cited as side effects as well as the user being unable to move bowels for over a week if they had more than one a day while using this product.

Another dissatisfied customer calls this product a huge scam. All the product did for this user is give a terrible case of gas and made time in between uses of the bathroom longer. This customer threatened a lawsuit after mishandling the order and harassing them after deciding not to order following a price tag of almost $200 plus a near month long shipping time. The customer only decided to order after being talked into a reduced price and faster shipping. This customer also threatened a lawsuit and urges future potential buyers to make sure they get a conformation number and hold on to it.

Yet another dissatisfied customer complains about the product being a scam. This customer called to cancel their order and in addition to the customer service representative being rude the product was shipped anyway. A second, unwanted order was also shipped at a promised discount, which was not lived up to.

Another user who was unsatisfied with the effects of the product. Like another customer this one experienced severe pains in their abdomen and stomach more severe than having an appendix burst and, agreeing with another user who filed a complaint, calling the pains much worse than natural child birth. This user mentions that they even passed out more than once from the pain and discomfort and experienced heightened and profuse sweating. This user wants to warn other users against this product and the extreme pains that comes as a result of using the product. The user wants this product removed from shelves and from being sold period.

My Credit Card Statement Says I Paid - Where's My Order?

noreply@blogger.com (AsSeenonTV) — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 14:25:00 +0000

Lazer Storm Vacuum Scam

The allure of the Lazer Storm Vacuum, at least if you trust the words of the oft-repeated infomercial, is hard to resist, especially for housewives or dads. The makers of this bagless vacuum claim that it leaves other vacuums "holding the bag." They boast of something called Cyclonic Technology which separates the dirt and forces air to pass through the vacuum with incredible pickup power. The Lazer Storm, it's said, does not fill up a bag, but instead deposits the dirt in a clear case which can be emptied in seconds.

But does the Lazer Storm really work as advertised? It's hard to say, since it appears that the company makes a habit of taking money and then delivering the product. Many hundreds of consumer complaints would seem to indicate that this is the case and that the Lazer Storm is just another in a long list of infomercial scams. Let's take a look at the complaints that pop up most often by disgruntled buyers. The names we'll use are fictitious, but the complaint is a real one expressed by a real person.

Tom says he lost $453 on the Lazer Storm and never received the product. He says he is looking into the possibility of a class action lawsuit against the company.

Leah said she ordered hers and was told it would take three to six weeks for delivery. After six weeks, she called and inquired and was told that they were on back order. She waited some more and called again. Still on back order. She waited and called and got the same response. So Leah finally canceled her order. After a year, she never got the vacuum and never got her money back.

Lois was in even worse straits than Leah and Tom. She ordered and paid for three of the vacuums, one for herself and one for both of her daughters-in-law. She too made many calls to the company and then finally complained to the Federal Trade Commission online. To add salt to the wound, not only was Lois out the money for the three vacuums, but the company double billed her for her own unit. She did finally get the vacuum after many months. Lois also noted that even though the vacuums were advertised as coming from The Singer Co., leading you to think this was the venerable maker of Singer Sewing Machines, it was actually made by some company called Millinex. Last, Lois said that if she had returned her vacuum for a refund, not only would it doubtless have taken many more months to get the refund (if you ever got it), but because their shipping and handling fees are so outrageous, the company would still have made a lot money off of it.

Verdict on the Lazer Storm Vacuum Cleaner: It appears that this is an inferior product, marketed as coming from a reputable company but actually coming from a lesser-known group....and that many of those who paid for the vacuum never received it at all. Lazer Storm appeared to be a scam of the first order.

7 Day Miracle Cleanse is Cleansed From Infomercial Airwaves

noreply@blogger.com (AsSeenonTV) — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 13:46:00 +0000

7 Day Miracle Cleanse is Cleansed From Infomercial Airwaves

The 7 Day Miracle Cleanse Program claims to cleans and clean your Colon using herbal remedies. The marketers of the product have reached a settlement with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) on the grounds that they misrepresented that their product can cure cancer and other diseases. As per the terms of the settlement the marketers are no longer able to produce infomercials for any product or service. The only exception being the permission to produce infomercials about publications. They are no longer to produce infomercials for any medical or healing products again.

As stated in the complain by the FTC one defendant, named as Paris DeAuero, is featured in the infomercials, which aired across the country, playing “the Health Man”. In the infomercials he states that by following 7 Day Miracle Cleanse Program he was cured of his cancer within weeks.

According to the infomercials, three primary ingredients are responsible for the effectivness of the 7 Day Miracle Cleanser. The first is Parasine 2, which cleans out worms as well as other parasites in a person's digestive tract. Otherwise, they point out correctly, these parasites will keep you from absorbing healthy nutrients properly. The infomercials say that the 7 Day Miracle Cleanse does just this.

The second ingredient is the Herbal Mucous Eliminator, which the makers say strips out many years worth of waste in the person's colon.

And the third ingredient is said to be Super Boost Greens, a so-called "maintenance supplement" which helps keep a proper pH balance in the person's digestive tract.

The infomercials also claimed that the program can cure diseases such as AIDS, Alzheimer’s disease, diabetes, high blood pressure, and arthritis, and that if substantial weight loss is necessary the product can help you lose the weight quickly and safely. The defendants also alleged claimed that their product was “clinically proven” to relieve and cure worms and parasites. The FTC issued a claim that their product was not backed by a credible scientific evidence and as a result the marketers are in violation of FTC Act prohibiting the misrepresentation the product they are selling.

As a result of the settlement due to the violations 7 Day Marketing Inc, DeAguero, Dieter Ammann, and Laura DeAguero, have been barred from the production and involvement in future infomercial products in any and all media. The are also not allowed to represent any product which claims to be a healing agent or improve one's health. The exception to the order involves any claims allegedly made in publications. The defendants are also banned from further misrepresentation of studies or tests for future products. The defendants are also not able to keep any records of anyone who has used their products and pending the result of the lawsuits the records must be destroyed.

A judge ordered the defendants to pay damages totaling $14,455, 123. The payment is currently one hold due to inability to pay. Another with Dieter Ammann has called for another $14,455,123 which will also be put on hold following the payment of $70,000. The holds will be lifted if it is found out that the defendant has mislead the court regarding their financial situation.

Weight Loss Scam Costs Kevin Trudeau $37 Million

noreply@blogger.com (AsSeenonTV) — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 13:46:00 +0000

Weight Loss Scam Costs Kevin Trudeau $37 Million

A judge has decided that his misleading claims in a weight-loss book will cause Kevin Trudeau to lose, not pounds, but money. Lots of it. That's for misrepresenting the content in his weight loss book, “The Weight Loss Cure 'They' Don't Want You To Know About”.

The misrepresentation falls as a violation of a stipulated order from 2004.
Judge Robert W. Gettleman of the U.S District Court in the Northern Illinois District ruled that Trudeau had to pay over $5 million and served him with a three year ban from involvement with infomercials for products in which he was involved. Judge Gettleman's ruling, which came in 2008, was the result of a confirmed a previous finding of contempt against Trudeau- his second in four years.

After the ruling the FTC (Federal Trade Commission) as well as Trudeau petitioned Judge Gettleman to re-examine his ruling. On November 4, 2008 Judge Gettleman did just that and changed his ruling from $5 million in damages to $37,616, 161. The $37 plus judgment is the full amount Trudeau earned from consumers who purchased his book. The three year ban placed on Trudeau was also amended to include banning Trudeau from“disseminating or assisting others in disseminating” any and all production that he has an interest in. On December 11, 2008 Trudeau asked the court to set aside the amended ruling. That request was refused.

2004 was not the first time Trudeau was brought before a judge for claims of misleading his potential customers. In 1998 the FTC brought a lawsuit against him for misleading consumers with his infomercials. The infomercials pitched products that Trudeau claimed could cure people of their addictions to drugs, alcohol, and cigarettes as well as aid people in developing a photographic memory. The ruling from that case forced Trudeau to pay half a million dollars in consumer damages and bared him from misleading his consumers in the future. He was also required to set up a $500,000 performance bond to ensure that he would comply with the rulings.

Trudeau violated the 1998 ruling in 2003 where an infomercial for a product called Coral Calcium Supreme claimed could cure cancer. The court quickly ordered an injunction stopping Trudeau from continuing to make such claims. Following the injunction Trudeau continued to make claims that Coral Calcium Supreme cures cancer the court found him in contempt. In 2004 the matter with Coral Calcium Supreme was put to rest when Trudeau was ordered to pay $2 million in damages and no longer allowed to be involved with infomercials, except to sell publications. He could not, of course, mislead the public about the content of the books. To this day the 2004 ruling is still in effect.

The Federal Trade Commission is the governing body which oversees the honesty and integrity of advertisements and unfair business practices. To file a complaint about such a matter call their hot line at 1-877- FTC-HELP.

Infomercial Shipping and Handling Scam

noreply@blogger.com (AsSeenonTV) — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 12:44:00 +0000

Shipping and Handling Scam

One of the most common and biggest scams in the infomercial business involves shipping and handling charges of products. The cost of actually shipping the product compared to the amount customers are actually charged ends up being a nice profit for the company. If a company charges as much for shipping as they do, they could ship the product faster. Sometimes products can be in the mail for weeks after paying an inflated shipping charge. The reason behind the inflated shipping charge is so that they do not lose as much money on the refund if the product is sent back. So if they know they do not have a strong product they can save money on the returns.

Most of the time when you buy something off of a 30 minute TV infomercial it comes standard with a 30 Day Money Back Guarantee. The money back does NOT include what you paid for shipping if you are unsatisfied and return it within 30 days. The 30 days sometimes starts when you order the product, not when it actually gets to you. That is something that Billy Mays and Anthony Sullivan leave out of their commercials. Not only are you not getting refunded for the inflated shipping and handling charge you paid in the first place, but you have to pay to ship your unwanted product back to the company. You could end up paying twice the shipping for a product you do not want, but at least you get your money back for the product.

The average cost of shipping and handling is high, and the average time of shipping is long. Paying a high cost for a long shipping time is never a good combination. Let's take a look at the shipping time and cost for Scalp Med a hair regrowth product. A two month supply, weighing in at a grand total of one pound (1 4-oz bottle of Nutrisol, 2 2-oz bottles of Vitadil, and a 1 8-oz bottle of Cortex Enlarger) costs around $20 for shipping and takes nearly a month to arrive. To get it there faster and start putting hair on your head sooner you can pay an extra $10, almost $30 in shipping alone!

Put that into perspective. For that same initial shipping charge, without rushing the order, on Amazon.com the product would arrive to you in just a few days, instead of almost a month. Most people would not even pay that much for the rushed shipping on Amazon and the product ordered would still get to you faster than Scalp Med's do. The shipping policy Scalp Med has would indicate that they get a lot of returns, meaning they do not have a good product and do not want to lose too much money on returns.

The Legend of Kevin Trudeau: Infomercials Scam Living Legend

noreply@blogger.com (AsSeenonTV) — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 13:45:00 +0000

Kevin Trudeau: Infomercial Scam Living Legend

Kevin Trudeau was born on February 6th, 1963. He is a published author, founder of the International Pool (billiards) Tour, a salesman, and has had many run ins with the Federal Trade Commission, none of which he has successfully fought. He has produced a number of infomercials including for his book Natural Cures “They” Don't Want You To Know About.

He has been repeatedly sued by the FTC for bringing falsely representing the products he sells resulting in convictions for fraud and larceny in the early 1990s. He is currently under a court order prohibiting him from selling products through infomercials. His First Amendment right to free speech allows him to sell publications as long as what he is selling in the publications are truthful. On November 19th, 2007 he was found to be doing just that with his book about natural cures. As a result he was sued in August 2008and ordered to pay $5 million in damages initially as well as no longer being able to produce infomercials. That ruling was revisited and revised. The revised ruling ordered him to pay over $37 million in damages.

After his prison term in the early 1990s Trudeau went into businesses with his former cell mate. They became successful with the Nutrition for Life, which is a multi level marketing firm. While working for Nutrition for Life the Illinois Attorney General sued the pair for operating a pyramid scheme. Trudeau and the company reached a $185,000 settlement with Illinois and seven other states.

Following the settlement Trudeau entered the infomercial business. He produced and appeared in various late night airing infomercials. The infomercials were primarily aired in North America. The products sold in the late night ads ranged form dietary supplements, health aids, hair growth rejuvenation, memory aid, real estate opportunities, addiction help, reading aid, as well as various other products. Statements made in the infomercials regarding the quality and effectiveness of the products drew attention from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). The FTC had alleged that Trudeau was misrepresenting the products, claiming in one infomercial that the product can cure cancer. Claims such as this resulted in fines in 1998 and an out of court settlement in 2004.

Following his 2004 settlement Trudeau started to write books. His weight loss book Natural Cures “They” Don't Want You To Know About was published in 2005 and he began to use infomercials to promote it. After the infomercials aired people called in saying that the book did not have the natural cures that were promised in the infomercial. If this were to be true then Trudeau would be in violation of the FTC orders. In turn he released an updated version as well as a new book which was titled More Natural Cures Revealed: Previously Censored Brand Name Products That Cure Disease. Trudeau issued a statement saying that this book names specific products that will cure ailments. He followed this book up with two more books one about weight loss, The Weight-Loss Cures “They” Don't Want You To Know About and another about how to get out of debt, Debt Cures “They” Don't Want You To Know About. His Natural Causes book spent 25 weeks on the New York Times best seller's list.

'Free Software' Scam Settled after FTC Charges - Think All Publishing

noreply@blogger.com (AsSeenonTV) — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 13:38:00 +0000

'Free Software' Scam Settled after FTC Charges

Defendants from various law suits regarding companies that allegedly offered customers software they advertised as free only to bill the customers later have agreed to settle out of court with the Federal Trade Commission's charges of breaking federal laws. The agreed settlement requires the defendants to pay $2 million in damages and bans the defendants from making further illegal claims about the price of their software.

The charges were brought against the defendants by the FTC in January of 2007 regarding an offer on their website. The website offered a CD containing computer software for just a small shipping fee. Consumers were required to give their names, addresses, and credit or debit card numbers for a shipping address as well as to process the $1.99-$2.99 shipping fee. Those who gave their information to receive the free CD were then given an offer for three more CDs without any shipping and handling fees. Customers had to agree to the terms of use for the processing and website.

The terms of use detailed the intended use of he software as well as the rules and restrictions for it. Customers clicked the box to agree to the terms of use without reading through the whole thing and without clicking the link at the end. Hidden in the small font of the multi-paragraph document was language which contradicted the advertised cost of free. The terms of use stated that two of the four CDs shipped had to be returned within 10 days or the customers would be issued a charge ranging from $39 to $49. Upon receiving the initial CDs those who ordered would find themselves enrolled in a program that automatically ship them more CDs. These CDs would also need to be returned within 10 days or the unsuspecting customers would be charged an additional $39-$49 per CD.

The complaint filed by the FTC alleges that the customers who received these CDs were not aware of any charges, except the initial shipping charge, until the bill came in the mail. The complaint also states that the defendants did not clearly explain the charges so customers who did not want to pay for continuous CDs or the initial product had no way of avoiding the charges.

The defendants have been charged with unfair and deceptive practices in violation of the FTC Act. The defendants have also been charged with violating the Unordered Merchandise Statute. The statute states that customers can not be billed for products they did not knowingly order. In the lawsuit the FTC asked Federal District Court to order the defendants to give up their illegally obtained profits as well as to put and end to their deceptive representation of the cost of their products.

The announcement of the settlement puts an end to the lawsuit.

The details of the settlement ban the defendants from making any and all misleading representations, including advertising something as free when it is not. The defendants are also required to open all the terms and conditions of any negative option. The defendants have also been bared from charging customers for products without getting proper consent first as well as having to clearly inform any refund and/or return policies.

The settlement also bans any and all future violations of the Unordered Merchandise Statute. The defendants are also prohibited from giving out and sharing their customer lists and maintain their bookkeeping so that their compliance can be closely monitored. Lastly the defendants were ordered to pay $2,167,500 in damages to the consumers.

Think All Publishing, L.L.C., successor to Manay Software, L.L.C., and Yuri Mintskovsky are the defendants named by the FTC in the lawsuit.

The Legend of Rollie Froehlig

noreply@blogger.com (AsSeenonTV) — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 18:10:00 +0000

Rollie Froehlig, The President, CEO, and Chairman of National Fulfillment, a company which has been well established in direct response marketing, Rollie Froelig, 65, was found dead on September 19th. His body was discovered in the afternoon with a gunshot wound. Police have no suspicion of foul play.

When word of his death spread throughout the direct response industry. people where shocked. The chairman of the Electronic Retailing Agency (ERA), Rick Petry issued a statement stating that ERA mourns Froelig's passing, recognizing him for being a leader within the direct-response trade industry and for serving on the ERA Board of Directors for three years.

Froelig had been under a tremendous amount of stress for the past half year. He has beeen intensely scrutinized by Robert Cooper, Tennessee's Attorney General. This came after Cooper launched a lawsuit against Froelig accusing him and others of violating Tennessee's Identity Theft Deterrence Act and the Consumer Protection Act.

The lawsuit filed by the attorney general alledgees that the defendants illegaly billed close to 30,000 unsuspecting customers and may have gone as far as to plan to bill a total of 300,000. The plan was halted by employees who took note of the inconsistencies in billing of their customers. Customers were being charged $19.90 for products that did not exist from a bogus account, EmTech.

As a result of the lawsuit Chancellor Robert E. Lee Davies granted a request filed by the state for an injunction ordering $300,000 in assets belonging to the defendants to be frozen. The temporary injunction was filed and put into effect on March 2nd.

Froehlig issued the following response at the time the suit was filed, "We strongly disagree with [the attorney general's] position in the action against us. The action against our company by the Attorney General's Office involves an exercise product sold and shipped by one of our clients 85 If any consumer contested the charge, we refunded the charge, no questions asked. We continue to be committed to making sure that any consumer who has any problem with the transaction will be made whole, and we will make sure that all concerns about this transaction are alleviated”.

Since being filed in March the case had progressed very slowly but still ongoing. Following the sudden and tragic death of Mr. Froehlig on September 19th, the office of the Tennessee State Attorney General, in an interview with the Lebanon Democrat said that they would determine the status of the suit in an a appropriate time frame. They also stated that assets of the company were still frozen.

National Fulfillment continues to remain in businesses following the death of Mr. Froehlig, the lawsuit, and the company's assets being frozen- which puts a strain on the operations of the company. Investors in the company will decide upon a new leader.