Free tube of cream! Appealing offer or scam?
Want to try out a free tube of anti-ageing cream? You only pay €2.95 for postage! It looks like an appealing offer, but don't fall for it! It is often a scam.
An irresistible offer
You are sent an offer via text message, email, WhatsApp, or social media. 'Try a free tube of anti ageing cream now. You only pay the postage costs of €2.95.' The sample is sent to your home. And a while later, you receive a bill for € 58. After delivery, what initially appeared to be an irresistible offer proves to be not quite what you had expected.
Confirmation of order
When you contact the provider for clarification, the vendor claims you received order confirmation that clearly stated you had to pay € 58 unless you returned the sample within 14 days. In actual fact, you do not receive this confirmation, or you receive it too late. The deadline for returning it has then lapsed and the vendor claims you owe this money.
Threatening emails with collection fees
If you refuse to pay the €58, the vendor threatens to add collection fees to the sum. They also threaten to involve a debt collection agency.
Power Digital Marketing Ltd.
The ECC is currently receiving such complaints about perfectionbody.nl. Consumers say they accepted an offer for a trial sample of anti-ageing cream and were later presented with a bill for €58, with a request to pay the sum into the account of Power Digital Marketing Ltd., which encompasses other webshops such as surpriseboxshop.nl. Omroep Max recently covered this story in a broadcast of Max Meldpunt. View the episode here (Dutch).
Vendor's disclosure obligation
Before you accept an offer, the vendor must clearly inform you of the conditions and obligations tied to this offer. If you agree to this offer and the associated terms and conditions, the vendor must send you written confirmation outlining the key points of the agreement as soon as possible after placing the order.
Unsolicited delivery
Did you request a sample, and were you then confronted with costs about which you were not informed by the vendor, or are you tied to an unsolicited subscription and deliveries? Then let the vendor know you only agreed to receive a free sample without further obligations and that you are not going to pay the sum. Use the ECC's 'Unsolicited delivery' template for this. You may keep the trial sample!
Report it to the ACM ConsuWijzer
Have you made a purchase based on misleading information? Then report it to the ACM ConsuWijzer (Website in Dutch)! Even if you are uncertain whether you have been scammed or misled. If several consumers report this, the Authority for Consumers & Markets may decide to conduct an investigation into the vendor, impose a fine, or force the vendor to provide an appropriate solution. Have you been scammed? Report it to the police (website in Dutch) too.
Questions? Please ask!
If you have a dispute with a business in another EU Member State, Norway, Iceland, or the United Kingdom and cannot reach a resolution together, use the online form to contact our legal experts for free legal advice. Is your complaint about a Dutch vendor? Then you can contact the Juridisch Loket (legal services counter) for free advice.