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Talk about RUDE!!

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W

WoWsA !!

Guest
Hi,

I received a letter via my mailbox with no return address and my address and name were type written. The postmark was from a Southern California city. I am in Northern CA.

Upon opening this suspicious envelope, enclosed within was a full page advertisement for a weight loss product. The page was made to look as though it had been placed in a newspaper and cut out. At the top of the page written by hand, and in pen was my name and a short note that read:

[My name]
TRY IT, IT WORKS!!


Talk about strange! I thought WHO would be so rude and chicken s**t to send this to me from a city unknown to me. I tried to think about what friends I have that would be so downright rude and thank goodness came up empty handed. :)

I am slightly over-weight but not enough that anyone I know would be concerned or should really care. BUT, it DID bother me enough to e-mail the company to ask what paper it had advertised their product in on the date that was available on the page. However, the newspaper name was not present with the exception of " aily News"....on either side. On the opposite side of the page was another unrelated advertisement....

As you may of guessed, I received NO reply to my query. I also had a postal friend put a trace on the bar code on the envelope. In the mean time I mentioned this to friend who told me she had read in Ann Landers that these weight loss clinics somehow obtain your mailing address and then make it appear that a friend has cut out an ad and mailed it to you as a "subtle" message that you need to lose weight, in hopes you will take the message to heart and try the product!!!

Sure enough, the ad was never in a newspaper and the barcode traced it to the company within the ad!! I can't believe it! What an unfair demeaning way to try and boost sales!! This could really cause some[i/] people a lot of heartache in their relationships/friendships. And play an ugly role in lowered self-esteem. What if they started throwing out accusations amoungst friends for possibly being the ones who sent it to them! Or could even mentally and emotionally trouble them thinking poorly about themselves!

I was able to find the answer, but what about for the people who receive this who are trully over-weight and are already troubled about being over-weight?? Never knowing that it was just an unscrupulous company that sent these out blindly with an intent to scam them into using their lousy product??

I hope, if there is anyone else out there that has received a simular anonymous letter like this...reads this post and will put their mind at rest.

But, my question to the law board issss....just how legal is this type of "advertising"? What can be done to stop the cruelty in it all??

Thanks for any input!!
 


JETX

Senior Member
Sending you a tacky or even cruel ad is not illegal.

Your best bet would be to just file a complaint with their local BBB (it can even be done online at http://www.bbb.org).

------------------
Steve Halket
Judgment Recovery of Houston
[email protected]
-----------------------
This is my PERSONAL OPINION and is not legal advice! Consult your local attorney for your specific situation and laws!
 
D

Debs

Guest
I received this advertisement as well. I was shocked, but I just threw it out.
 
C

cdcard

Guest
Dear WoWsA:
I've been getting these same mailings for a few years now. Good for you for tracing it back to the mailer! If there is a legal cause of action here for you, it's probably not worth paying the fees/costs to litigate. However, reporting this to every state consumer agency you can find might put a stop to it. And for every letter you write, why not cc a copy to the company mailing these ads? Might make them think twice before mailing more. You should be able to get contact information for the appropriate state agencies from local organizations like Consumer Attorneys; Consumer Fraud Division of your local D.A.'s or A.G.'s office; and probably from your local county bar association. Also, why not bring these mailings to the attention of a local TV station? They love to bust the "bad guys" and then tell their viewers all about it. Good luck!
cdcard
 

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