Freebee Gas review: Fraudulent rebate service 123

Promised free $25 gas card for each $100 spent at Hess Gas. We purchased Hess, even though we could have purchased gas cheaper elsewhere. We returned the receipts faithfully for months, still no gas cards.

The resorts that engage in obviously fraudulent schemes should be held liable, as they are also part of the scheme.

This was provided as a gift for attending a Timeshare presentation in Columbus Ohio. They promised a $25 rebate card for every $100 spent at a predetermined Gas provider (ours was Kroger). We received confirmation emails for all of our submittals from October 2008 through January 2009 but never received any discount cards. Their contact phone [protected]) is no longer valid.

Sent my 5.00 refundable fee. Sent gas reciepts in to them, have not recieved a thing. Tried their phone no, not working. Was supposed to get 25.00 gas card every month for 4 months, staring in Dec of 2008.

signed up for gas cards in oct. 08 paid 5 doolars for reg. and can not get anyone to respond. The car company that gave voucher DON LEDFORD BUICK PONTIAC GMC in cleveland tn will not respond with an answer. They did not check out company. I have followed rules and sent required items sinse sept. 08

i was promised 300.00 free gas from contest won a car dealership! never recieved it! sent in my 100.00 gas recipts every month on time. i'm ready to hire a lawyer and i bet i get more then the 300.00 dollars promised to me! this is called fraud and there are lawyers that handle cases like this!

I emailed Chris Hansen to ask him to do a story on this! we need answers, if anyone else feels like this would help, email him also ..here is his link!

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/25837141/ns/dateline_nbc-the_hansen_files_with_chris_hansen/

everyone email him..we will at least get our 5 dollars back! lol it will also expose the companies who suckered us in for this anyways..like Perry Ford in National City CA! Jerks!

I sued the owner of the website (check who-is to get her info) in my local small claims. She mailed me a money order that cleared for the $300 certificates that she owed me. It came with a letter claiming she could not do business through the company because of the legal action. Because my judgement was against her personally she said she could settle. Took awhile but I did get satisfaction.

this has been a major ripoff for me too.
Does this mean that I will not get a dime from these people anymore?

Domain name: freebeegas.com

Registrant Contact:

crystal clark ()

Fax:
12110 92nd avenue north
seminole, FL 33772
US

Administrative Contact:

crystal clark ()
+1.[protected]
Fax: +1.[protected]
12110 92nd avenue north
seminole, FL 33772
US

I HAVE BEEN SUBMITTING MY GAS RECEIPTS SINCE OCTOBER 2008. TO DATE I HAVE NOT RECEIVED ANY VOUCHERS OR RESPONSE. IS THIS A SCHEME? I WAS TOLD I WOULD GET A $25.00 GAS CARD EACH MONTH WITH A PURCHASE OF $100. PER MONTH. PLEASE RESPOND ASAP.

T6601641625

I am so glad I came across this web page, by accident-while trying to register for my free gas! We visited a timeshare through RCI at ST Martens and "won" $300 in rebate gas. It was a waste of time and spoiled are day. Stay away from time shares.

The company has been basically shut down by the Florida attorney generals office. I have a report from the Better Business Bureau of Florida stating that an independent investigator has frozen all assets of this company. It has also been determined that the companies liabilites excees it's assets by approx 10 million dollars. Below is the letter from the BBB.

Thank you for using your BBB to handle your issues with this company. We want to take this opportunity to update you about your complaint and what has been happening with this company. This email is intended to provide information not only to consumers who have received previous updates from us, but to those who have recently filed complaints.

On February 12, 2009, the Florida Attorney General filed an action against the company and its president, Crystal M. Clark, alleging that they engaged in unfair and deceptive marketing of gasoline redemption vouchers, as well as failed to provide gas cards as promised to consumers.

On February 20, 2009, a Florida court approved a Stipulated Order for Preliminary Injunction and Appointment of Receiver with regard to this action. This means that a Receiver has been appointed whose job responsibilities include taking possession of all of the company's assets and providing reports to the court detailing the financial condition of the company. The Receiver is an independent agent of the court and not an attorney representing the Florida Attorney General or company. The Receiver will file its initial report to the court within 10 business days of the Order.

On March 6, 2009, the Receiver submitted his initial report, providing the court his preliminary analysis and findings. Based upon preliminary estimates, it appears that the company's liabilities may exceed its assets by more than $10 million dollars.

The Receiver has determined that the business does not have, and has never had, the financial capacity to provide prepaid debit cards, whether for the purchase of gasoline or other products, to all consumers who acquired "certificates" from retailers and presented them to the business for redemption and issuance of the cards. The Receiver further believes that the business model lacked economic viability from the outset.

Because your complaint is unresolved, BBB will be forwarding your information to the Receiver for review. All assets of the company currently are frozen. As such, any potential refunds for consumers may not occur for weeks or even months.

More details contained in the Receiver’s report to the court can be viewed at http://westflorida.bbb.org/WWWRoot/Report.aspx?site=47&bbb=0653&firm=90026293.

If we can be of further assistance, please contact us at [protected].

I started this program in February 2008 and to date I have rec'd nine (9) of the $25 gas gift cards. It was very difficult to get these. It took repeated calls to the company. BUT the one thing that got me these 9 cards was calling the owner, Crystal Clark, [protected]. Each time I would call her she took care of it right away, I was shocked by that. They would get really behind and send me like 2 or 3 cards at a time. I have not rec'd cards from Nov 08 and on and the most recent mail I sent was returned to me by the post office. So I guess they have closed up shop, but at least I got a total of $225 out of them - not bad compared to the posts on here. I was supposed to get $500 so I got half. Everyone should call Crystal Clark, blow her number up! She deserves at least that.

if you got this from Ashley furniture contact peggy during the day at ashley furniture. [protected] is her number. she will get you set up with a new company that will actually process the gas cards, and you get a free 2 night stay at a hotel or something...

what should we do about it

I too am a VICTIM of this NONSENSE and I must say I'm just as frustrated as the rest of you. I too was a faithful person that sent in my gas receipts by the 25th of the month and I've been so called participating since September 2008! What ticks me the most is there were times I passed up cheaper gas in order to patronize the gas station that I had chosen in order to participate with Freebeegas!

We need to do something about this!

Valerie - val74@hotmail.com

Started this stupid thing in September 2008. It is now April 2009, and nothing! There must be something we can do.

I bought furniture from Ashley in Rockford, ill. and was supposed to collect $500 in cards as well. I submitted 4 months and nothing. You can get through on the phone or email them. On the fourth submission my letter was returned to me as return to sender unable to forward. I have contacted Ashley and they said that they are having complaints too. They wanted my address etc and said that they are working on it. I think one month and I will take AShley to small claims court.

Don

i too am a victim of freebee gas. i have been sending gas receipts since july 2008, and emailed them occasionally with ridiculous answers. the last email from them was back in december 2008 and they stated that they have had a complete data base crash and it would be up and running by the end of december with no future problems. well here it is march 17, 2009 and i still have received any gas cards. i call for a class action! anyone want to joining? i also agree with Nagi about the fraud by the companies that dole out the free gas vouchers.

I am wondering what was a deal between Car Dealership and this fraud company.
Doesn't the dealership have to take responsibility for?
The dealership used a fraud vaucher to lure me to lease a car.
Did the dealership got the fraud vaucher from the fraud company free? I don't think so.
Now, they have to take the half responsibility at least to deceive us.
Anyone agreed?

i too am a victim of this so called company. i participated last july about buying condos. i have been faithfully sending my gas receipts every month. i didnt hear from them for 2, then i emailed them and they stated that they encountered a computer crash and it would be no longer than the end of december to get it going. here is the email that they sent back to me:0

ASent: Monday, December 15, 2008 3:46:17 PM=0ASubject: Re: =
Gas Receipts Received=0A=0A=0A"We have incurred a complete sequel server da=
tabase crash, we are aggressively working just as fast as possible to get t=
he newest system functioning properly to better service your account.=0AOur=
database issues have made it impossible for us to see the account today; w=
e do apologize for the inconvenience.=0AMr. and Mrs. Hite these issues were=
unavoidable and unintentional. We have completed the new database software=
and are in the process of switching the new and the old. During this time =
you may experience telecommunication issues with our firm, as well as inter=
net. We are expecting to have no further troubles on or after the 30th of D=
ecember. I understand this is a frustrating situation. You have all rights =
to be upset. However, keep sending in your receipts - our top priority is y=
our satisfaction and assurance that you will receive everything owed to you=
." =0A=0AThank You so much, =0AJudy=0A=0A=0A_________________________ since then i have not received any emails from them. i sent an email yesterday 3/16/09 and it came back as undeliverable. so what can we do next? i am out $5.00 plus copy costs, stamps and envelopes not to mention my agony of trying to get $100 of receipts before the 25th of every month. if anyone wants to email me: hite_mercedes@att.net

If you bought from Ashley Furniture, then read on! Ashley Furniture has hooked up with another company to honor the gas cards. I received several calls from this new company, and I just received the info in the mail today. I will follow the instructions, and we will see what happens. However, I did file a complaint with the BBB against Ashley Furniture and against the Free Bee Gas in FL. Kathy

You may or may not know this by now, but the culprit in this situation is a company called Tidewater Marketing. They are in the process of being investigated by the FL attorney general's office. Apparently, when the gas prices shot to $4-5 per gallon, it overwhelmed the company and they over-compensated with equipment and staff. All this info is found on the website www.freebiegas.com. If your gas code begins with a BE or BI, you can choose alternate reimbursements...unfortunately, mine did not.

You may already know this by now, but if you go to freebiegas.com, there is an explanation from a marketing company as to why the gas vouchers are not being sent out. The company responsible, Tidewater Marketing (or something similar), is under investigation by the FL attorney general after the company completely bogged out when vouchers were coming in at a crazy rate due to the high gas prices. There are alternate offers available if your gas code began with a BE or BI...mine, unfortunately, did not.

Hi I test drove a new Hyundai from Red McCombs Hyundai West in San Antonio. I have been mailing in receipts, using my time, and stamps and never received a dime. I did receive an email back four months ago informing me that they had received my copy of my gas receipts and then I never received my $25.00 gas card. I called their toll free number and it doesnot work. The government should do something about this, but they won't - they are too busy taking care of everyone else and not us tax payers.

Beware...anyone who used Paypal to pay, or thought they were using Paypal: the scammers are now phishing, but of course, they have our full names and email addresses! DO NOT reply to what they say is an alert on your account. Access Paypal through proper means and cut/paste the fake one...it will say follow the link but it is just highlighted words which do not create a link when cut/pasted. Be very careful! BTW I have repeatedly contacted Universal Nissan in Orlando, FL and they have yet to have a single person call me back regarding this!

Wow.

I've been duped. I too recieved confirmation emails until Feb 09. I expected one and it didn't come. I just filed a complaint with the BBB like another respondent suggested. This is unexceptable! I was really counting on that money...being a student and all! I'll come back here and post an update if I get any news!

I had one of the bad certificates that I had gottten from my local tire dealer last summer, I never received anything. When I read the scams I went back to the dealer and he told me that they were duped by a scam company in Florida. He then gave me a replacement coupon from a comapny in Arizona and he said that these guys were the legitimate deal. I sent it in last December and I have already gotten 2 $25.00 Visa debit cards. One in January and one in February. My dealer corrected the problem and I'm satisfied with the resolution.

UPDATE! - I received a refund check today from the car dealership, in the amount of $105.00 for the 4
$25.00 gas cards I didn't receive, plus the $5.00 fee.
They actually came through and made it right! I'll let the BBB know the good news, and thank them for leaning on the business that gave me the certificate until they came through.

My previous msg:

I followed all the instructions too and no gas cards, so here's what I did, and it worked!
Go to the website of the Better Business Bureau: http://www.bbb.org/
and file a complaint online against whatever business gave you the certificate.
Tell the BBB that the business was the one that gave you the certificate and should be the ones to make it right! Mention that you plan to write your state's Office of Consumer affairs, and Homeland Security, due to potential identity theft because Freebie Gas charged a $5.00 fee, and it's possible that they could have access to everyone's forms of payment.
I did that two weeks ago, and the BBB contacted the car dealership that gave me the gas certificate. A representative from the dealership contacted me today and said a compensation check would be cut today and mailed to me. I'll update this page again if/when I receive the check.

imagine $5 from all these people what a scam I was scammed too
i followed all the directions and sent my money
they answered me once saying it was just a computer glitch that was 4 months ago
i had to spend 90 minutes at a resort tour bumer

For all who signed up for FreeBeeGas, I was told they have been shut down by the Attorney General for strange business practices. You can fill in your information at www.gasresults.com for them to put you on the list for a true rebate in the near future. Hope this helps.

Usually some will use the word "free" to attract attention. See some other situations on Scam Search.

We went for the Freebeegas and also paid PayPal and are not out the money and have no gas cards to show for it either. I intend to inform the dealership that issued the cards that I intend to turn them over to the BBB for not knowing who these people were before they gave these cards out as part of their advertising scheme. We have sent vouchers in for the last 6 months and have NOTHING to show for it except a couple of E Mails saying that they received the vouchers.This has to be some kind of scam and the Florida Attorney General's office should be able to shut these people down!

We bought a Truck a couple months ago and I am just now getting around to get our so called "Free Gas". When I went to find the website it only went to Bee pollen and how to take care of bees. I WANT MY GAS NOT BEES! I didn't want to send a check even if it was only $5 unless I talked to someone in person. Smells a little fishy... so luckely googled it and found this thread. I guess I will first of all complain to the dealership who gave us a "Deal" because we got a $500 gas card. This sucks for the people who get jipped out of $500 and the dealership who just lost our business! I think they should be a little responsible of who they do business with!

Go to the website of the Better Business Bureau: http://www.bbb.org/
and file a complaint online against whatever business gave you the certificate.
Tell the BBB that the business was the one that gave you the certificate and should be the ones to make it right! Mention that you plan to write your state's Office of Consumer affairs, and Homeland Security, due to potential identity theft because Freebie Gas charged a fee, and it's possible that they could have access to everyone's forms of payment.
I did that two weeks ago, and the BBB contacted the car dealership that gave me the gas certificate. A representative from the dealership contacted me today and said a compensation check would be cut today and mailed to me. I'll update this page again if/when I receive the check.

I too got scammed. I have sent in receipts since last September and have not received anything from free bee gas. I have filed a complaint with the Florida Attorney General AS EVERYONE HERE SHOULD DO. If I don't get that money from free bee gas I WILL be going after the local auto dealer who partnered with this company for profit under false pretense, i.e. fraud.

Legal action is the only way any of us will get a fair deal. If you are interested, it sounds like there are plenty of people to make a class action lawsuit worth our time. I would be willing to start collecting names and contact info and get the ball rolling. With enough of us working together we can buy the justice we deserve.

Sam Meidinger
smeidinger@comcast.net

After reading all the comments and adding my own I called the auto dealer where we got the cards and info to send in the $5.00 - I was told the end of the year they closed up shop and I should let the AG's office in Fl know and get our name on the list. The dealership had been contacted by some auto dealer service and told them DO NOT GIVE OUT ANYMORE CARDS. It's not the $5.00 - we can afford that - it's the scam part that sucks. ALSO, another little FYI if you get contacted to do mystery shopping, sign up, and get a check for $3, 800. UPS DO NOT DEPOSIT THIS. This is another scam. It was on Dr. Phil. I called the return address place and they are a TV supply place and have nothing to do with mystery shopping (It was to rate WalMart and use a money forwarding outfit) I have documented everyting, made copies and it will be turned over to the local police in our town.

I received the gas vouchers and instructions on how to submit receipts for redeeming them but when I sent them in I was informed that the receipts were incorrect but the emails I was sent instructed me otherwise and I have yet to receive any gas card yet.If anyone knows a way to get in contact with this place please let me know.I am going to research into informing the BBB.

Same here - bought new / used vehicle from Wayne Akers Ford in Lake Worth FL and salesman pushed the freebee $300 "free gas" deal.
Seemed legit - sent in the $5.00 registration fee, got 1 $25.00 gift card in Aug 2008. Sent in recpts Sep, Oct, Nov, Dec 2008, Jan and Feb 2009 but recd nothing from them. Wishful thinking, kept sending in the recpt hoping I'd get the "gift Cards". Repeated emails, phone calls, letters from me went unanswered. Did get an email form them that they had a major computer problem and to keep sending in the recpt and that I would eventually get all the back gift cards, Still nothing yet. As others have said, it's not so much the $5.00 ripoff, its the whole scam which now seems to have been VERY large and that someone need to be caught and punished for this scam.
YES, I would certainly support criminal charges and a class action suit. Hoe do we intiate one?

I received this from the BBB when I filed a complaint. ANd the FreeBeeGas website is no longer there.

Thank you for using your BBB to handle your issues with this company. We want to take this opportunity to update you about your complaint (ID# [protected]) and what has been happening with this company.

On February 12, 2009, the Florida Attorney General filed an action against the company and its president, Crystal M. Clark, alleging that they engaged in unfair and deceptive marketing of gasoline redemption vouchers, as well as failed to provide gas cards as promised to consumers.

On February 20, 2009, a Florida court approved a Stipulated Order for Preliminary Injunction and Appointment of Receiver with regard to this action. This means that a Receiver has been appointed whose job responsibilities include taking possession of all of the company's assets and providing reports to the court detailing the financial condition of the company. The Receiver is an independent agent of the court and not an attorney representing the Florida Attorney General or company. The Receiver will file its initial report to the court within 10 business days of the Order.

Because your complaint is unresolved, BBB will be forwarding your information to the Receiver for review. All assets of the company currently are frozen. As such, any potential refunds for consumers may not occur for weeks or even months.

We will update the company’s BBB Reliability Report as new developments happen. This can be viewed at http://westflorida.bbb.org/WWWRoot/Report.aspx?site=47&bbb=0653&firm=90026293 .

If we can be of further assistance, please contact us at [protected].