VIP Readers Service review: Contract scam ( 52 comments)

This seems to be a common trick. It happened to me with America's Publisher Service. I cannot cancel either.
Just cancell your credit card
Josef

I was told vip was associated with publishers clearing house, they said I would have to pay a one time fee of $40.00 and I would recieve a diamond watch whick I did. I now have to pay $40.00 a month for one year for 10 magazines I dont want. Should I just stop paying?

I was told I would only have to pay39.90 for 4 months & I would rec 24months in magazines. Now that I've made those payment they are calling & threatening to turn me over to collections. I say go right ahead I never agreed to making 24 payments. I really
didn't want it to start with, but my father now lives with me & I did it for the grand children. To make matters even more insulting we're not even receiving the magazines that I choose. What a crock. I am going to complain to the Better Biz.
I think we should all get together & sue the hell out of this scam artist. Gina/AL

I was told over the phone I would only have 4 payments of 39.90 for 24months of all these different magazines. I really didn't want them, but I did it for my father who now lives with me, & my grandchildren. & we're not even receiving the magazines! & this crazy woman calls & threatens me with turning me over for collections! I've made the 4 payments, not getting the magazines & now she's trying to say I have to pay for 24 months! Who would be crazy enough to agree to 24mons? 40.00 A MONTH! I never agreed to that, she can pull any threat she wants. She claims that there is a recording but I didn't agree to 24mons. I repeated 4months @ 39.90 then I would rec the magazine for the next 24 months. I say lets all hire a lawyer & sue her for misrepresentation of her products & company policy. She must be off her rocker. I told her to cancel she said I couldn't she had a recording! LOL she must be nuts, I would agree to that! Anyone else interested in sueing this company?
G.S. AL

I was told the same thing. and I have recieved my magazines though. I have tried to cancel but they say I can't. I complained to the woman that keeps calling about them charging my account. Which has overdrawn several times and caused me to owe my bank lots of money on top of the b.s payments of 39.90 for 24 months when I was told over the phone it was only for 4 months! I'm only 18 and was not aware of this scam until I tried to contact them to cancel and saw all the reviews! I am 100% for sueing the hell out of this company! I'm going through college and have a one year old and I've got better things to do with my money!

I had the same problem what other's had wrote, I felt scammed of all the things that this company had told me. When they had called me, they promise me a watch, (witch I didn’t even get); they made things so exciting for me telling me that I was eligible to win great stuff. Not knowing what I had signed for, now I’m stuck dealing with this company. I wasn’t told how the cancelation runs, and now they are going to bill me $39.99 for 24 months. I've asked them that I did not ask for this, and they need to cancel what I had signed up for. They said they wont do it, and that I have to wait for 24 months. All the agents in the office was rude and none helpful at all, even the supervisor who I thought would understand my situation. I don’t know who else I could run to for help, I was treated unfairly. Right after I got off the phone I cried because how I was treated, I'm sure their sitting on their chairs laughing at us of how we fell for their scammed.

My advice to the rest whoever are complaining about this company is get ready for tough skin because they don’t care what you are going to say, all they care about is collecting money. Call a lawyer for help.

I got a random phone call from VIP readers and they said that I had been entered in a contest to win 1 million dollars and a diamond watch. They said that I could also receive magazines at a discounted rate, so I signed up. They recorded the phone call in which I asked if I could cancel anytime. I was told that I could cancel at anytime, no problem. When I called them back to cancel, they told me that I was not within the time frame that was outlined to cancel. I told her to play back the recording, and she did, but they didn't record the part where I had asked if I could cancel at anytime.

I canceled my credit card and stopped receiving bills, but then I got many phone calls from a woman who was very rude. She told me that I would be turned over to collections if I refused to pay. I want to see if they can even turn over something to collections that I didn't sign for.

Has anyone let it go to the point of being put into collections? I want to see if they are all talk or if they actually come through on their word.

Same here.When asked if I could pay for 24 mos without canceling is said no on the recording and then was talked into it by the supervisor with assurances that in a dire situation(like jobloss) I could cancel.Well a few month down the road I did lose my job.I couldn't cancel.Even though I did say no on the recording about cancelation.Which was not there on the playback.But I did get them to lower my payments to 19.90 for 48 mos.I do get magazines but am not sure if I do get them consistently at the same intervals.Sometimes they take longer to get here or I get 2 issuses of the of 1 magazine within days of each other.Some are only 6 times a year others are more issues per year.But I don't remember how many issues a year I'm supposed to get on all of them. B.M.

VIP Reader Services is a ripoff and are just plain grifters! I am about to be sent to collections...we will see what happens, I guess.

i too got caught up in this magazine deal, i thought it was for only a length of time but after i started adding it up i could not believe it. i called numerous times and everyone of them that i talked to were very obnoxious. i tried to reason with them but they will not listen, i told them i would pay at the time the 77.00 but thry said absolutedly not. i have to keep paying them i have refused the magazines from the postal service. i have to have surgery and i can not afford to pay this i need this money for things that i need but they do not care. one of their representatives told me i should have just hung up on them i told her believe me i wish i would have. it is one thing if you get in contact with them to get magazines but they call you and keep bothering you. i hope that there will be more people complaining about this business. i sent a form to the better business bureau and we will see what happens

I believe I have figured out their game folks. My story is very similar to all of yours. Initial pitch sounds like a good deal but it is a gradual upsell as the conversation goes on. Wish I could remember the details but I dont' Then they periodically call you. I have been telling them on those calls that I am not interested in continuing the service for what seems like two years now - that after the initial period which I DO recall was "if you pay 89.99 for 4 months you will be all paid off", or something like that. This is a case for taking notes and keeping better personal records on the part of us customers. I believe this is how they do it - today I got another call and I immediately said I am not interested in continuing. I asked the gal on the phone "when did my 2-year commitment start?" She said "May of 2010". I blew up. During their perodic calls to you, they ask you a few questions, including "verifying your billing address", or information. One time in particular the guy wanted to verify my credit card number." When you get those calls do not verify anything - - nothing at all. Do not use the word "yes" in the conversation. I'm calling the BBB and cancelling my credit card immediately. Steve J.

i think you should all file a complaint with bbb in cleveland, ohio so that they are aware of this problem, go to info@cleveland.bbb.org the more complaints the better our chances of geting this business out of business

The sad part was that i completely agree with everyone. I have been scammed by them again. I like getting magazine but we should have the right to CANCEL at anytime. Ok, i moved and it takes up to 12 weeks before you start getting them again. I should get refunded for the months i havent seen them. Does anyone else agree? This crap to me!I think we should file a complaint with the BBB. Even if you cancel your card or your credit card company declines the charge from VIP Readers, they email you saying your account is past due! So then they wait until it gets up to 129.90 that you owe, then they decide to charge your card after its paid off. This is a bunch of crap! I wanna cancel it but they wont let me. you can only cancel within the first 30 days.

i got out by writing to the better business bureau in cincinati, ohio the supervisor called me and i canceled it out then

I filed a complaint with the BBB yesterday and they sent a copy to the company and they said if the company tries to work with me then we should try and settle our differences. If it doesnt happen then they are still investigating them as we speak. Everyone should file with the BBB of OHIO. The company is located in Ohio, so please file. We can get them banned. They are scammers. They never tell you the full story. Vip Readers told me how much i owe and i was like man for magazines i havent seen in 5 months. This is ridulous and i told them that. I want to ensure no one else gets suckered like we all did! Please file a complaint with them! Thank you for your time.

well, i filed and also put his website on there so they know how many complaints there was! This is ridulous, they rip people off and its frustrating because i am paying 40.00 a month and when it doesnt come out on my credit card they wait till its 129.90 to then charge my card. That is ridulous. They dont even try to call me, so screw them! They accomulate late charges..its just horrible what they do. i will see what the BBB does for me!

I filed my complaint today.
These people are so ruthless and are very sneaky in their tactics.

I am stuck in a contract with them now. They call me 3 times a day and threaten me. Once, I had accumulated 3 months past due and late fees due to breaking my foot and the astronomical medical bills associated with that. The agreed to drop my payment and extend it for 48 months...So I realized at that moment that I will be paying these DING DONGS until 2017. NO WAY! My scam was I was entered in a contest to win a million or a vacation plus a discounted rate on magazines. She kept saying the magazine was $3.99. At the time of the call, i had a newborn I was trying to tend to so instead of hanging up on her (as i should have) I agreed because $3.99 a month isn't a big deal. Till I got the first bill of $32.99. I haven't got that kind of money to spend every month. I don't have a credit card on file with them so they call me every month and drive me nuts. I am filing today! Thank you all for this information!

I'm sorry but you guys are all idiots. In this contract is is clearly explained that you are paying 3.95 a week for a weekly publication which is 19.95 a month (including shipping, handeling and taxes). This is a 48 month service so you pay 39.90 for 24 months but receive the magazin.es for 48 months. You have to agree to the terms of the contract on a recording so if you don't understand by the end of the conversation that you are paying 39.90 for 24 months but receiving the magazines for 48 and that you cannot cancel then you are the problem, not them. You have to agree not to cancel to complete the order, so how could you not understand? It's sad that people agree to things they don't understand and choose to blame their stupidity on hard working people. I receive the magz and love them. I'm getting everything I agreed to.

Big Red Mamma you obviously had a different experience than the rest of us. There is no reason to accuse the people on the forum of being idiots because they had a different experience than you. I personally had a much similar experience as the consensus of this forum. I was told I was paying for 12 months and was receiving 24 months of subscriptions. In my recording it states that the term is 24 months. At the time, I interpreted that as the receiving term not the payment term. They are telling me now that I signed up for 48 months of receiving and 24 months of payments. The recording they have is only the second conversation, not the first. In the first conversation they told me I was paying only 12 months and receiving 24 months, at no time was 48 months ever mentioned. I would have never signed up for 48 months of magazine service. I made the incorrect assumption that the agreement conversation (second one) was going to simply be a regurgitation of the first, my mistake. However, I have learned my lesson never to agree to anything via phone and record every conversation possible.

same thing for me. if you google vip readers the only thing you get is a list (and a long one at that) of complaints. would anyone be interested in getting together for a class action lawsuit? if we can get enough people together to file the lawsuit mixed with all the complaints this case would be a slam dunk.

I have the same problem . Its ###! In every thing that you sign up for you should always have the right to cancel it anytime. But when i called them last time and told them that i want to cancel it, they wouldnt let me do it. I have lots of bills to pay and its more important than a stupid magazines. I closed my other bank account coz they usually take the payment out from my account. They keep calling me and telling me that it will go to collections. And ive got a mail from the collections saying it will affect my credit. And of course im scared coz i still building my credit and now this people are goig to ruin it

This company is just another example of how low someone will go to grab your hard earned cash through trickery. It is not a binding signed contract and their threatening letters to ruin your credit are what they're banking on to make sure you pay the ridiculous amount you have been conned into. I was myself fed the same line of bull and would never have agreed to pay that kind of money for magazines but they word it in a way that clearly does not paint the picture of what you are getting into. My story is just like the rest, so i will not give the exact details because the bottom line is that we have all been scammed and what the hell are we going to do about it! I agree that a class action lawsuit is what we should do about it. and i am 100% in. Contact the credit agencies in advance and make them aware of the situation before VIP tries to destroy it. This company is a flat out joke and should be put out of business ASAP! This company flat out would not exist if they did things by the book and i kind of feel sorry for the customer service people over there who are being paid to do the devils work in this economy by scamming innocent people all day long on the phone.

Yes Class Action is the way to go with this. I am also in. I was told lies over the phone, and I do not the believe the sweepstakes are even real. The "diamond" watch that they raved about is an ugly cheap black thing, with what appears to be one tiny diamond in it, but I wouldnt be surprised if this is also fake. I am unemployed and spending this money on magazines I don't need instead of food.

Here's the latest scam by this company: salesperson came to my alcoholic sister's door and gave a sad story about needing sales to support his education. She was drunk and agreed to a couple magazines but paid in cash! Now she is so longer in that state, basically homeless and penniless but they got my mom's address and are sending numerous magazines to her address with my sister's name and continuous billing. The magazines are strange things that my sister would not have ordered no matter the intoxication level. Of course they are saying she hasn't paid and owes for oodles of magazines! Thank goodness she didn't give a checking or credit card like so many unfortunate people posting their comments above.

Same story here - my wife was contacted on the phone and said she was interested in Reader's Digest. Sales rep talked her into DONATING 9 or 10 more magazines to the local hospital, so we could write it off as a charitable donation (never asked her any questions to see if our tax situation would allow us to write it off). They told her 3 payments of $39.90 (one each month) for 5 year's subscriptions. When the deductions started coming out, I called and was told I was on the hook for 24 payments of $39.90. We did start getting RD, but can't verify the hospital subscriptions (they get so man "donated" mags the end up trashing a lot of them). Two deductions went through before I could cancel the bank account. I let the representatives who called know that was all they were going to get (3 calls?) and have ignored calls and letters since. They are still coming, increasing in threat level, but I'm sticking to my guns. Next will be to file with the 3 credit bureaus stating they misrepresented the terms and gave illegal tax advice - probably copy the Ohio Attorney General's office, too.

Basically there is nothing i can post that is not already been said just tired of the 3 to 4 times a day i get an unknown number call that lets it ring once and then hangs up! Cancel your credit cards change your number and never fall for phone scam again!

I just received a first call a few minutes ago. The representative said that my name had been submitted through one of my credit card companies and that I was a finalist for a large sum of money (I think she said a million dollars), a vacation. She said as a chosen finalist I would receive a women's watch with a small diamond and a black band. She verified my address and, in case I am one of the big winners, asked for an approximate annual income to insure that I could pay the taxes on the prize. She said as a finalist I could choose six magazines at three dollars something a week ($19.95 a month). She did not give a time frame. I did not agree and she directed me to their website, http://www.vip readers.net to look over the 400 magazines that are offered. When I typed the name of the site into my browser a big warning came up indicating that it was not a certified website and not to continue. The representative is going to give me a call back tomorrow. After reading all of the comments I know what my answer will be. Thanks to each one who commented. I think you saved me from making a big mistake!

I wish I had came to this board before I committed to buying, so now I am in the same boat as everyone that failed for this scam. I have called the company and received the same bull that everyone else has, so I have complained to the BBB and if there is going to be a class action count me in.

I also have had the same experience most of you have already stated. I just submitted a complaint with the BBB of Cleveland. I have done some research and have found several different names this company is using. I want to share these names with all of you: VIP Readers Services, aka Magazine Service Bureau, aka National Publishers. The only difference with my story is that I did call and canceled within 24 hrs as I had an uneasy feeling about this company. I was told the cancellation was entered, but later have now found that they never did and will not cancel. I am also notifying the Federal Trade Commission (www.ftc.gov) and the FBI (www.fbi.gov/scams-safety/fraud). I am so frustrated that this has happened to so many of us. I do consider myself a smart, logical, educated woman who let her guard down for one moment.

I agree with everyone! I called and a Lady named Tracy Lewis was so rude! I also lost my job and am unable to continue payments. I called and asked to cancel and she told me no. Then she told me they do not have a supervisor to transfer me to. When I told her I can't pay she said "well why would you sign up" now I know your not suppose to speak to people line that. Then she told me I was yelling and hung up in my face I've already started my BBB complaint.

On September 30, 2013 I received a card in the mail from Holsted Jewelers letting me know that I won two rings and I called and ordered them. I would also receive a $20 gift card to Walmart. At this time I was asked if I wanted to sign up for a few magazines. I had 5 magazines of which I canceled on November 26, 2013. Then I started receiving bills for $39.99 a month for 24 months which totals $892.80. I called them to cancel it and they said it cannot be canceled. I am a breast cancer survivor and I still need more surgery, I would never have agreed to that amount of monies.

my son is being scammed now, and he has canceled, and canceled 4 times. i'm afraid they will hurt his credit rating and you know big red momma works there.

Hello, I just talked to my lawyer, his advice was, to file a formal complaint with the ATTORNEY GENERAL CONSUMER PROTECTION, Division for deceptive sales practice and they can deal with the AG´s office. I had exactly the same experience. They keep calling everyday and the caller ID shows private caller.

If you here from these people, HANG-UP. They are scam artists period. We were told we could cancel subscription but then went through A HUGE, RECORDED, conversation and can't. I have complained and they want to play the recording over and over. My lesson is that when a magazine company wants to record me saying anything, just hang-up.

Okay, we all got ripped off by this company. The question is... Can they really report us to the collection agency to totally ruin our credit?

Tell them not to call you again...then tell them to report you to the collections...if this is your only fault on your credit report, you have nothing to worry about...if you feel like it, you can tell them to go to a nasty place and to kiss your ...

Big Red Mama is obviously an employee of vip services

I never contacted the BBB because I did not think they would do anything other than cancel the vip service membership if they even have one. I did, however, write a letter to the Attorney General in Ohio, but have not yet heard anything. Also, I do not answer my phone if I don't know the number anymore. I also wrote VIP services about stealing money from my bank account through my credit card which I had given them for the first payment. I never authorized them to use it for payments and had been sending in my payments, but found that they helped themselves to the payment one month and messed up my account. I went to my bank and they sent in a dispute to the company about it which was eventually credited back, but had to cancel my credit card. For whatever reason, it took over a month to get a new card. I told VIP that because they had violated our contract, it was over as far as I was concerned and they could cancel. Of course the next letter I got from them did not even address their stealing (not as much as an apology) They just want their money. Not one more thin dime from me!

I agrees with all of you who are saying that we must do something about the scam. My story is similar as everybody's else, I was paying them money, I thought the deal is $20.00 a month, I should pay only for 1 magazine, everything else will come for free. I tried to cancel it. I paid to cancel Wiz to help me to cancel it. Nothing worked. The want to extort money from you, and they don't care about your story. Clearly it is a scam. I entered complain with Consumer Complain Agency, paid $25.00. It did not help. No results. They assured me that they pressured the company, but everything remained the same, the are calling me, upsetting me over the phone. Trying to collect money. There is no way out. I would like to file lawsuit against them. Count me in. I filed to BBB today also S from New York