Commercial Readers Service
reviews and complaints

This company is the worst! They harass people and I've seen other complaints that say the same thing. It's crazy that they're still in business.

Terrible. They are very tricky. I had to pay a lot of money to try to cancel before at my work location and they had the audacity to call and speak to someone else and convince them that this is the service that we use. I am unable to cancel a subscription after many attempts. They are rude. Do not order from this company.

Terrible. They are very tricky. I had to pay a lot of money to try to cancel before at my work location and they had the audacity to call and speak to someone else and convince them that this is the service that we use. I am unable to cancel a subscription after many attempts. They are rude. Do not order from this company.

When she called my place of business, the sales person was very aggressive. She didn't say good morning, she didn't state her name or what business she was calling from. And she demanded to speak to the owner. And when I told her that she was being aggressive, she said she was sorry that I felt that way. No, it's a feeling, it's that you are being aggressive.

I wanna give 0 stars if I could. Don't even think about this company. Hang up if they call you. I agree with everyone here, been dealing with them too. Blake is so rude and aggressive. If CRS sees this, don't let him work for you. So disappointed, seriously. CRS, don't bother leaving a message about this, I won't call you to fix it. Read all these comments and make changes, that's what you should do.

I got the same complaint as others I've read. They get really scary when you try to cancel your subscription and they say you're stuck in a contract. It's funny 'cause they actually told me they have great reviews with the ComplaintsBoard.com. I feel bad for anyone who has to deal with this company. I can only imagine how many older folks they pressure into paying for a "contract". They should be ashamed.

I've been trying to cancel with this company every year. They always convince me that I have to keep going and that I can cancel next time when the service comes up for renewal. But then they bill me again. I want them to stop sending magazines and billing me, but they just won't stop. They even send me scary letters about sending my account to collections. This company seems really shady. If anyone gets a call from them, I'd say just hang up right away. I own a hair salon and we don't want magazines anymore. My contract with them is over. I really want them to stop bothering me!

I've been dealing with Commercial Readers for about 5 years now. After Hair Salons being closed for 3 months due to covid-19. Now that we are back there new guidelines and one is no magazines and we cannot even have a waiting room. I have no problem paying for the ones that were sent while we were closed but I would like to have a hold put on my account until we can have the magazines but that is not an option. Only options were given were continue to have delivered to business and disperse as I want, or send to another address. What in the world am I going to do with all those magazines? I would like to stiff them for what I owe for the year but my conscious wont let me. You would think they would have a conscious and try to better accommodate their loyal clients. I will never do business with this company again and will not refer them to anyone. Thanks for your service to your loyal clients. If I could leave negative stars I would Sincerely Diane from Silver Shears Hair Studio.

I had the same experience as the other complaints below. This company's sales "person" calls and explains the service in a different way, saying that if the client is unhappy with the service, they can cancel. When I asked for the recording from the initial phone call, they said they don't record their "sales" team, which is interesting because that's where all the details are discussed. Apparently, the only recordings they have are the conversations to set up the account, which are logistical. When you listen to the recording, the way they explain the "terms" contract is vague. This is a perfect example of a business scamming clients into an unnecessarily long contract term using creative tactics, language, and sales techniques for something as ridiculous as magazines. Who needs magazine subscriptions for over 4 years? It doesn't make sense, and it's unfortunate that this company is still in business. I'm sure they will respond to this complaint by lying about providing the recordings. I want them to send me the recordings (ALL of them, including the initial sales call) so I can analyze the conversation with my attorney. It's 2020, and there's no reason why a company can't send a secure file with phone recordings to an email address so both the consumer and an attorney can review the recordings and respond accordingly.

I called to cancel a subscription that an unauthorized employee had signed up for. This employee didn't realize they weren't allowed to commit to a 24-month magazine subscription. I tried explaining this, but the customer service rep went on a long explanation about how their business works, which I think I understand. I think they basically distribute subscriptions and pay the magazine publishers in advance to secure the price for the consumer. Okay, I get it. He also explained how they had explained all of this to the employee and recorded it to create the contract. I understand that too. He said they do it to protect their company. I asked if their contract had any provisions for situations where someone unauthorized made a recorded "contract" over the phone. He said no. I asked to speak to someone higher up, but he said there was no one else. In the end, our company is stuck with a 24-month commitment to them. Their process is solid, and there doesn't seem to be a way out. Ethically, it seems like their goal is to get anyone, authorized or not, to agree to their terms. This employee admitted they were pushy - I've talked to her about it since, as she shouldn't have done that. In the future, if we want a magazine subscription, we'll go directly to the publisher. PS: The customer service rep seems to know exactly how to handle these calls - probably because he's dealt with similar situations before. I told him we were stuck with them for 24 months, but I'd be leaving an online review. PS: The customer service rep was very professional - I'll give them that. But I don't agree with their overall marketing approach. It's sneaky.

I try cancel subscription made by employee at work. We non-profit struggling through covid crisis. When I called in February (signed up in January) they say I can't cancel and they have to send me to collections if I don't pay, but I thought quarterly fee was fee for total subscription! We simply don't have budget for that, and we hit with pandemic in elderly care home! They say I can pay one quarter now until issue cleared up, but then they call constantly, call other office phones, and continue to threaten me and my staff, relate fictions, and are more than rude, they're down-right mean and harassing. I had message other day saying I hung up on them. In message they talk down to me saying something like I shouldn't have done that...but no one recalls hanging up on them, and that tone not good business. I emailed requesting contract and all they have is phone recording. I asked for terms of subscription, and they don't have that to offer me either. I never signed, nor received contract, and "phone conversation" says they "ask you not to cancel" but doesn't say you can't...just they "ask" that you don't. And saying you're "an authorized purchaser" without that authorizer also saying aloud what cost or contract length is (especially if they're not, then that company cannot be held accountable and subscription isn't with individual so neither can they), cannot be legally binding, especially when it's not made clear that doing so is entering contract. Plus! cost I heard is not what I was then billed, regardless of what their recording says on their side. Besides all of this, magazines I was told would be sent weren't, and amount of magazines is less, and they never give you means to change your choices as they say you can, and I did call to request such. But that part from initial phone call isn't on second recording they keep for their purposes. They not fulfilling their "subscription" side. I'm very upset with their service and believe that would void any so-called contract. But harassing me at my place of work is beyond acceptable, and is putting people's lives literally at risk by interrupting healthcare professionals. It's truly deplorable and very upsetting. I will be seeking legal services to ensure this doesn't happen to others.

Commercial Readers called on 1/4/2022 to ask for a subscription. They talked to our Activities Director, who was told they were calling to check if her subscription was confirmed. She's new and didn't understand what was happening. I called them to let them know we won't be renewing. They claim they recorded her agreeing to renew, and now they're saying we're obligated to buy these magazines. We dealt with this 5 years ago, and it was a total scam. It was impossible to keep track of the magazines and the changes, and we absolutely won't use their services again. How can we fight this?

I recently called Commercial Readers after finding out that an unauthorized assistant made a VERBAL purchase on the company's behalf. When I tried to cancel the service, they told me I had to pay the full amount due for a FIVE year subscription (913.97). Please keep in mind that we are a faith-based, non-profit healthcare community. Our budget cannot accommodate this expense, and we cannot send magazines to residents due to infection control issues with COVID. They then said, "well maybe you shouldn't have people making these decisions. Doesn't look very good on your company." It's not right to be threatened with collections. The ComplaintsBoard.com should really investigate this company's practices.

This company called our company to sell us stuff - they talked to someone in our Activities department who wasn't supposed to make decisions, and they confused them with their words. Then, according to Commercial Readers, they got us into a FOUR YEAR TALKING agreement. This person doesn't have the power to buy things or make any kind of agreement, whether it's talking or writing. When we found out what happened, I (the person who handles payments in the Business Office) contacted Commercial Readers to cancel whatever "deal" they made with us. They said we couldn't cancel the "agreement." We want this problem fixed and we want to cancel our "deal" with this company that's trying to scam us. Nobody important in our company ever agreed to anything with Commercial Readers.

This company raised our monthly fee without telling us. They say they called and talked to us, claiming we gave permission for the increase, but we didn't. We wanted things to stay the same and told them that every time they called. We tried calling them every month when we got the higher bill, asking them to fix it. Every time, they argued with us and wouldn't agree. We want to cut all ties with this company because they're being deceptive. We won't pay the $1135 they're asking for. They didn't give us any explanation for this cost, just a handwritten note saying they couldn't accept our payment. They rejected the monthly payment we sent and said we have to pay $1135 to close the account.

We recently found out about Commercial Readers Service when we got a bill for more than $900.00 for magazines. We're a non-profit organization that takes care of elderly individuals. We tried to cancel the service, but they told us that the 'contract' couldn't be canceled. We don't have a written contract, and the person they claim to have spoken to doesn't work here anymore. Everyone who works here knows that nobody at our facility has the authority to make any contracts. We tried calling them twice, but it didn't get us anywhere, so we decided to put our request in writing. After sending the first letter, I got a voicemail saying that I could call them if I wanted to, but they didn't have anything new to add. They mentioned that this is a verbal contract that can't be canceled. This is really frustrating, especially because we explained that our residents won't benefit from this at all.

I used to have an employee who pretended to be me. She's not here anymore, but she apparently agreed to this magazine subscription from Commercial Readers. When Commercial Readers called and said I owed them money, I told them I didn't want it. However, the person on the phone insisted that I had to keep it because I was under contract. So, I made a few payments. Now, he's calling and harassing me again about this magazine, claiming that I still owe money. If I'm actually under a contract, then I should receive what I'm paying for. But I haven't. The guy said I signed up in June, and I've only received 4 magazines. So, if there really is a contract (which, by the way, I never signed or agreed to), I should be getting what I paid for. But I'm not. At this point, I feel like I'm being taken advantage of, screwed over, and lied to!

We had an original account set up by our Activities Department Director who is the only authorized purchaser for this department. This company called and spoke with a teenage seasonal employee and added on another service. They had prior knowledge that our Director was the only one authorized to purchase. Their stance is "she said she was allowed". I have spoken with multiple people and they stand by their deceptive and low standard business practice of tricking unknowing workers into agreeing to services, refusing to cancel the service that goes for years, then threatening with collections. Horrible customer service. After seeing the other reviews, I know this is their practice to call and find one person, authorized or not, to say go ahead. We are a nursing care facility, and take care of the sick and elderly, and they took advantage of an unknowing young employee.

In May , we contacted Commercial Readers to cancel our service due to the inability to provide magazines to our clients as a result of Covid-19 safety measures. They informed us that we were unable to terminate our services because we had supposedly signed a four-year contract for magazine services at our salon back in January . Despite the numerous things happening at that time, we continued to make monthly payments as required.

After further investigation, we reached out to them again in April to request cancellation. The owner, who was the only authorized person to sign contracts, was aware that she had not entered into any agreements with them. When we inquired about this discrepancy, the company claimed that one of our front desk staff had authorized the contract over the phone, which supposedly bound us to a four-year commitment at a monthly rate of $14.95. They insisted that in order to be released from this so-called "contract," we would have to pay the full amount.

I informed them that this practice is not legal since verbal agreements cannot be considered binding, especially if the person authorizing it is not authorized themselves. I also emphasized that they cannot hold us accountable for a four-year period under these circumstances. In response, they threatened to involve collections.