Magazine Subscription Problem

[namtran44]

Hi, I live in Texas, and I recently subscribed to a magazine company that is located in Florida. I subscribed March 7, 2008 (Friday)


Now here is my dilimenia. I want to get rid of the subscription, but they are saying that I must pay the full amount that I agreed to (they recorded me saying that I would pay the full amount). However, the salesmen who talked to me did not clearly state that I had to pay the full amount if I were to cancel. He never said there was a no cancellation, nor a no refund policy. The salesmen did NOT identify himself with the company, nor did he give me any contact information either. He did not state that his intent was to sell magazines to me either, just asking what are my interests, asked for a payment of some sort, and so on. They are saying that the magazines will arrive within 60-90 days due to some publisher issues or something like that, which leads me to believe this is fraud. The spokesperson I spoke to also said that they have not charged my bank account yet, however I do see that a charge for 80 dollars is pending on my bank account. The spokesperson also says that if I do not pay, they will send this to an outside collections agency. I feel that I am a victim of telemarketing fraud. I have already contacted my state attorney, the florida state attorney, and the FTC.


One more thing, they are saying that my debit card was charged to verify it was a real card, however they say no charges were made, but I see a 80 dollar charge pending on my card. They will use this card to pay for it, this would violate the Telemarketing Sales Rules correct?


Now, I was wondering if I sent a letter tommorow, would it qualify under the Cooling Off Period Rule (as I believe Sunday and Saturday do not count as business days correct)? Also, what advice would you give me? Should I go to my bank and report this, so that they cannot withdraw money from my funds? I do not want into any major legal troubles (although I probably already have), so what should I do?


Also, the company seems to be very fishy, it constantly spams people's phones. I should have done my research about the company first, and I jumped the gun. It is my own fault if I have to pay this off. However, I feel that the company did violate some of the Telemarketing Sales Rules. Also, I believe every magazine and mail order is required by the UCC to garuntee that they will refund your money if you are not satisfied with your order correct?


For those who would like more information, the company is International Magazine Co. located in Largo Florida. If anyone would like to help, could someone call the number and say they are interested, and ask about a refund policy if possible? The # is (727) 536-9999

 

[namtran44]

I spoke with a FTC Consumer Counciler today, he said that they violated the Telemarketing Sales Rule by misrepresenting themselves. The first thing they have to do is disclose that they are a salesperson, what they are selling, and such. Also they must tell me the total amount that must be paid, which was not told to me. They also have to disclose that all sales are final before the agreement is made, and that there is a no refund or a no cancellation policy, before any agreement is made.



He also states that because they were saying that I was "eligible" for a lottery, that is misrepresentation, and that because they did not state the name of the company, nor were they explicit with the terms and agreements, I am not obligated to pay.



Now, what actions should I take? I have already filed a complaint with the FTC, contacted my bank about the pending charges (for about 80 dollars), the Texas State Attorney, and the Florida State attorney. The FTC Spokesperson said a good idea would be to contact my local consumer protection agency, and the local better business bereau. Anything else I should do? At this point, should I hire a lawyer just in case collection agencies try to get money out of me? I highly doubt they will try and sue me, they would have to cross state lines to do so, and the total would probably cost more then the Lawyer, Court Fees, and Travel Expenses.

 

[namtran44]

It seems that this company is doing something very similiar to what Omnipresent Inc. is doing. I beleive they have changed their name to International Magazine Inc. in order to take away attention from their company.


The salesmen used the same thing, million dollar sweepstakes, the promise of a free diamond watch, and some magazine scriptions if I signed up. They are trying to keep me locked in, but currently I am disputing this with the bank. Anyone who gets a call from International Magazine Inc., remember, it is actually Omnipresent Inc.