News

Nev · 10-01-2009, 1:53 PM

There still up to the same tricks I see. My came about via a transaction I did with Expedia. I've rung Shopper Discounts and ordered them to cancel my "subscription" and refund the money on pain of legal action. I can only suggest those of us who have fallen victim to this scam contact the original agent, in my case Expedia expressing our disgust. I will happily tell Expedia that I purchase a not inconsiderable amount of business travel online each year BUT now they will never see me again as a customer. Perhaps this is the only to make them, Easyjet, National Coach, etc, choose their friends more carefully.

Akua · 10-01-2009, 2:16 PM

Just to say that I found that I had signed up when I requested cashback after a purchase at thetrainline.com - however when I phoned up they promised to refund the 2 monthly fees straight away. You need to phone 08082341539 and choose option 2 'membership number' - you can get your membership number from their website.

penny-pincher · 10-01-2009, 3:28 PM

I made a purchase today from MyMemory.com (via quidco), and after paying, was presented with a screen offering a tempting £15 off my next purchase, if I registered with SD&R. Hmmm...

However, being a good little MoneySavingExpert, I read all the small print (and to be fair, it did say you would be charged £10 per month after the 30-day trial), and had a look at this forum first. And, having read of peoples problems with cancelling it, I've decided it's just not worth the hassle (and the thought of actually paying for my discounts goes against the grain - that's what quidco et al. are for!).

No problems with MyMemory though, as I've found them very good value in the past (today I bought a pair of Kingston 8Mb Micro-SDHC memory cards for £20.99, as a twin-pack - a bargain!).

Ecuador2 · 12-01-2009, 10:00 AM

I'm another victim - courtesy of those lovely people at Trainline. I certainly won't be booking with them again.

It would be good to see Shopper Discounts featured on Watchdog, though the cynic in me is wondering about the murky commercial interests that now tie up a lot of the media. I see that one of Shopper Discounts' partner companies is Lonely Planet...which is owned by BBC Worldwide.

Fortunately I spotted the erroneous charges on my CC after only a couple of months and have cancelled my membership and asked for a refund. But there must be thousands of people out there who are blithely paying £120 per year for a service they don't use.

Gemius · 12-01-2009, 9:13 PM

Just been caught by this myself. They're charging me £10 per month for something I didn't know I'd asked for. I bought an oven through a company in Leicester called Marks Electrical and was directed to Shoppers Discount from there. I must have been blind not to see it but there you are. I've cancelled now and will be pursuing them for my money back.
Marks electrical will get an ear bashing as well!

Ecuador2 · 14-01-2009, 4:20 PM

Here are a couple of the faces behind the scam:

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=54u_Wt8IlGg

Webloyalty is the US-based parent company of Shopper Discount & Rewards.

The first talking head lets the cat out of the bag: "We borrow the relationship between our client and their customer."

In other words, as the customer you think you're buying one thing and this company sneakily signs you up to monthly payments as part of that original transaction.

A.Goodliffe · 14-01-2009, 6:11 PM

I was accidentally involved with this company when using Easyjet & Vistaprint sites to book a flight & order some stationery. Egg Money were quite helpful & Barclaycard very helpful & concerned. After writing letters & emails cancelling my "unintentional subscriptions" I received full refunds from Shoppers Discount & Rewards. The Banks could not tell me how I had inadvertantly signed up without my authorisation for these "subscriptions" when paying for the other transactions on these sites.

Ecuador2 · 14-01-2009, 6:22 PM

I complained to trainline and got this email back from them.

Thank you for contacting thetrainline.com.

I understand that you wish to enquire about the Shoppers Discount and Rewards programme.

The promotion offered a 30-day free trial in Shopper Discounts & Rewards with all the money saving benefits they have to offer, as well as a £10.00 cash back voucher to be used on your next purchase at our web site. This is notified to our customers while they register for the programme on our website. I can assure you that without our customers consent we do not charge there [sic] account.

Shopper Discounts & Rewards is a shopping savings programme where you get Cash Back automatically at hundreds of top online retailers so you save every time you shop.

If you have any further questions, please contact our partner, Shopper Discounts & Rewards at 0808 234 1539 and they will be more than happy to assist you.

I hope that your query will be resolved soon.

If you have any further queries, please do not hesitate in contacting us.

Kind regards,

Norman

It reads like a copy-and-paste text provided by Shopper Discount themselves. Some of the wording is strikingly similar to that used at another Shopper Discount partner website, Cartridge Monkey: http://www.cartridgemonkey.com/help-...php/help_id/85

In my email to Trainline, I asked how Shopper Discount acquired my payment details. That question was not answered in their reply.

Ecuador2 · 15-01-2009, 1:33 PM

I've really got my teeth into this one - especially having found out that my 74-year-old father is another victim.

A bit more info about the parent company, Webloyalty. They are currently subject to several class-action lawsuits in the US related to this scam. One of the legal submissions can be read here: http://www.classcounsel.com/news/webloyalty.html

Just look at the list of partner companies! Delta Airlines, Time-Life, United Airlines, etc etc. It beggars belief that they've managed to get so many big and trusted companies involved in their grubby scam.

And it certainly is a scam. I've been through all of the documentation and have also read through some of the promotional blurb on partner websites. There's plenty about the benefits, but where do they say 'this will cost you £10 per month until you cancel'? The only reference to payment is tucked away in the Terms and Conditions.

I've already taken it further, and urge everyone here to do the same. Don't stop at membership cancellation and a refund. Contact the partner company and make clear your objection, contact Watchdog (watchdog@bbc.co.uk), and, if you're really in the mood for a fight, seek legal advice.

This is more than a one-off scam - this undermines the basic principles of any transaction: that the customer knows what they are getting, that they are aware that a transaction is taking place, and that they enter into the arrangement willingly.

If Webloyalty are allowed to get away with this, online shopping - even with trusted companies - will become a complete minefield.

ajqmarketing · 21-01-2009, 8:29 AM

The b**gers! They've taken five payments of me, and I've no idea how.

Went to http://www.shopperdiscountsandreward.../Default.rails and cancelled "subscription". Also sent stern email demanding repayment. Will follow up as suggested above.

ajqmarketing · 21-01-2009, 8:37 AM

Further investigation reveals Monarch Airlines as the partner. I applied for a £10 cashback deal and entered the hornets' nest....

tezreid · 21-01-2009, 9:45 PM

I've been caught out by this too. I'm so annoyed with myself for not knowing what I was signing up to, I'm usually so careful!!

I apparently signed up through the Trainline & only noticed after the second monthly payment was taken from my account. I have now canceled my membership with Shopper Discounts but didn't think to ask for refund as I thought I was to blame for not reading the T&Cs properly. Then I found this forum!

The thing is, when the 2nd payment was taken from my account, it made me overdrawn so now I'm being charged £60 by my bank as well.

Am I within my rights to ask Shopper Discounts to refund the payments and the bank charges as well??

taliahad · 26-01-2009, 8:02 PM

I'm the latest victim of this scam, thanks to allposters, who won't be receiving any more business from me. I have called the thieves involved and am expecting a refund of 3 months payments.

What annoys me the most is just after I used allposters, I changed bank accounts and transferred my wages into my new account and the old one was cleared to zero and left and now for the first time in my life, I am overdrawn.

We should be shouting from the rooftops about this con, I will be taking this further

BlueScouse · 27-01-2009, 10:54 PM

Got caught on this after opting for a £15 discount at the end of a trainline.com booking.
To be honest, I'm more upset with myself for getting caught, as all the information was there; it was just that I was greedy!
Cancelled and requested refund on line and received e-mail confirmation that I would receive a full refund within 10 days. I'm happy with that, but I'll update this forum if and when the refund arrives.

Trickmeister · 28-01-2009, 8:21 PM

Got myself caught via a 'mail' order catalog easylife.co.uk, checking box asking if I was interested in getting future discounts, so beware of this crew as well.
Thanks to the info on this thread, I was able to confidently phone shoppers discount direct and have been released with a refund, v efficiently indeed!
Thanks to all contributors.

brocky63 · 30-01-2009, 4:22 PM

Just realised i have been paying into shopperdiscounts scam fund for 5 months. Only just noticed the £8 charge and backtracked to find it had been going on for some time.I have called the free phone nuber given in this forum and have cancelled any further payments and after having a bit of a rant at someone from there customer service dept, I have been promissed a refund of charges. they have told me that they have a ceiling for these repayments which is 3 months. We`ll see if I get some of my charges back. I have also emailed Flymonarch to let them know of my anger at being hyjacked while making an online payment to their company.

elaine anderson · 31-01-2009, 11:32 AM

Arrghhhh!

I'm so angry with myself, that I was suckered.

I'd noticed it before on bank statements, but as I'd often buy things on the net I just assumed it was something I'd bought. I became suspicious when I'd paid off my credit card completely last month and purchased nothing. I've just contacted them and the £8 has been coming off my account since March, thanks to EXPEDIA!

They say I will get 3 months worth refunded and I've to fill out a form for the rest. But this was only given/said after I called a second operator, so don't be fooled with a 'sorry' the first time you call.

I am going to a wedding in New Zealand soon, and EXPEDIA will definitely not be getting my custom this time.

marleyboy · 31-01-2009, 3:21 PM

I am flabbergasted that this is allowed to go on like this

jakmcnally · 31-01-2009, 4:19 PM

We have also been hit with this scam via booking a flight in Expedia. Going to try and get £36 back.

dealer wins · 31-01-2009, 6:43 PM

The best way to "get your own back" on these thieving companies is to try not to use them again.

I now (and my family) dont use Interflora which has cost them over £450 of orders this year. I also dont use expedia even though I find their site really good.

I refuse to payroll any company that thinks its ok to fraudulently sign customers up to this con.