dating service breach of contract?

[sgtpeeper]

Last summer, I joined a dating service in North Carolina for which I paid a very large sum of money. I want to obtain a refund for as much as I can get back. There is one thing that might be in my favor. One of the terms of the contract is that a video about me is supposed to be placed in their library and made available to other members. I did the video, but found out nearly three months later that my video was not there, and apparently never had been. There are other members who can back me up on this. The dating service had no idea where it was, and said I could make another one.

Can this be construed as breach of contract, and at least entitle me to most of my money back? It definitely could have played a role in my lack of success with the service.

There was also a lot of deception and lies told when I signed up, and the person who signed me up was terminated a couple of weeks afterward, apparently for this reason. Any chance I have a case for fraud?

Thank you

 

[I AM ALWAYS LIABLE]

My response:

Well, you've never mentioned what you believe to constitute "fraud", so I have no comment about that part of your post.

However, you certainly have stated your grounds for Breach of Contract. And, with what you've stated, a video is undoubtedly the biggest part of your success or failure in being matched to someone else. Therefore, it is my opinion that due to the missing video, you have a case for "Breach of Contract" and "Rescission" based upon that Breach, entitling you to a complete refund.

I would write them a Certified Return Receipt letter demanding a full refund and, when they balk at that demand, sue them in Small Claims Court.

Good luck.

IAAL

 

[sgtpeeper]

Thank you very much for the response, IAAL. You've given me hope.

location: North Carolina
As for the bit about fraud, I was concentrating too hard on brevity of my post. One of the things I was told about this service is that the average age of the members is 33. I'm 31, so this would be perfect for me. This is not true, however, at least of the women. The average age of the women members at any given time appears to be in the late 40's. I was also told there would be hundreds of members from which to choose. Again, not true of the women. It is true including the male members in the count, but I am looking for females, and the service doesn't even allow same sex contact. So this is deceptive. Also, they don't allow you too look at member profiles until your profile is in their library. This is stated in the contract. (Apparently they thought my video was in their library, since I finally got to look at other profiles.) So I couldn't verify their claims (which should have sent me running). They do show you a few member pictures to entice you. Also, they tell you you have a 3-day cooling off period in which to cancel the contract. But from my research at the NC State's Atty Gen website, it seems this doesn't even apply to this type of contract.

I am sending a letter to them demanding rescission of the contract and a full refund based on breach of contract. I will take them to small claims if necessary. However, should I still contact a local attorney? Any advice on choosing one? I've never had to use a lawyer, aside from real estate.

There are websites dedicated to the horrors of this particular dating service, which is located across the nation. I wonder if there might be a possibility for a class-action suit against the corporation, based on deceptive business practices.

Thank you