The Readers Digest Scam
Restored from the Empower Network archive (2011–2017), lightly edited to meet our current advertising standards. Views are the original author’s.
The Readers Digest Scam
I don’t know how familiar you are with Readers Digest but they are a company that have spanned a long time in business.
They are obviously doing something right but they are also doing something wrong!
The Readers Digest Scam
Okay, it maybe a little harsh to call this a scam but when you have experienced what I have recently, you can understand why I feel scammed.
I received a random letter from Readers Digest in a big yellow envelope telling me I had been selected to be entered into a Prize Draw to win £100,000.
Okay, usually I would never go for these type of things but seeing I didn’t have to give my bank account details or do anything questionable I decided to send back the form and register my entry.
This was followed by a series of letters that had additional competitions and various stages to this £100,000 prize draw. The whole thing became so confusing because there were many different amounts of money and other prizes to be won. So I kept sending back the forms to stay in the competition.
One of the forms I sent back agreed to me receiving one of their books to review. If I did not like it, I could happily send it back with no obligation.
So I received the book not realising the hassle it would cause me.
After receiving more forms and competition stage letters, I began to get weary of the whole thing.
The prize money seemed to keep changing and I couldn’t keep track of where on earth I was in the competition.
Meanwhile this useless book was sitting in my in-tray.
I finally received a letter from Readers Digest saying I owed them £13.98 for the book.
To which I called up and told them I did not want the book.
They told me they would arrange a courier to come and collect the book free of charge.
I waited…
No courier!
A few weeks later I receieved a warning letter for Readers Digest saying my payment was late. At which point I called again explaining that the courier had not come for the book. The collection was rearranged and that was that.
I waited….
No courier.
Can you see a pattern emerging here?
After two more calls of the same thing happening I received an arrears letter which warned me that if I didn’t pay for the book, my details would be forwarded to the debt collectors!
WHAT ON EARTH???
I called again, this time with a very angry tone! I had had enough!
The sales assistant reassured me that he would back date my arrears and organise another courier. Bearing in mind they could never guarantee when this mysterious courier would show up!
Finally, after no courier, a few months passed by and I received a letter from the debt collectors saying I now owed them the money with a £5 increase!
This time I was fuming. I called Readers Digest again. The sales assistant calmly told me I had waited too long to order a collection for the book and so the courier would not collect the book. I then asked her why this had not been told to me before in any of my other phone calls. She had no answer.
She then asked me if I wanted to pay for the book there and then.
The cheek of it!
I bluntly refused and demanded something be done. I am now awaiting a call from her mananger.
My question is, how many people has this happened to? Are Readers Digest doing this on a regular basis? Sending people useless books that they don’t want then charging them for it?
To me it is a scam and I am not happy. I don’t want to pay and I don’t want the book!
That is the last time I will fall for a Readers Digest Prize Draw!
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