Taking legal action against Amway or IBS

keanoman · 18 January 2006 at 6:48PM

Hi there

There is also a free (in keeping with the money saving) PDF book you can download called 'Merchants of Deception' - It is a good read and they don't spam you. http://www.merchantsofdeception.com/DOWNLOADBOOK.html

Good luck with any legal action, you may stand a better chance in Scotland than in with the English legal system.

Keano

TPAOY · 22 January 2006 at 5:33PM

I saw that in some of my searches looking to see if anyone had taken any form of action, but your post has reminded me to download it. Thanks for the link.

Got a feeling that as we were in the IBS "Training System" from 1995 to 2001 it may be getting too late if the six year rule applies to have any effective redress against them. Most of the expenditure took place up to 1999 after which I'd exhausted just about every possible source of money to feed the monster with.

From the searches I've been able to do, it looks like IBS is only a fraction of the size it was in the mid 90's when they were getting about 10,000 people to turn up to events at the NEC and NIA in Birmingham. The number of local events now seems to be a bare handful and they don't go any further north than Sheffield which is a long way short of Inverness in the past.

Have still to pluck up enough courage to approach them as the one email I sent was totally ignored. Funny how they are so keen to "help" you if you are giving them plenty of money and proclaim themselves to be your true friends, but if you escape their clutches you are dropped without any further contact at all. Meantime, apart from the huge financial cost, you are left trying to make amends with friends you have been told to ignore and thinking about the years of your life they have taken.

SueRob_2 · 22 January 2006 at 6:26PM

Hi
Sorry to hear about your problems, I have a friend who's husband got very involved with this. They lost their house because they over extended themselves. The hubby finally commited suicide. But I don't think you will have much luck sueing them. I think it's a case of Caveat Empor (sp)

TPAOY · 22 January 2006 at 7:58PM

I reckon that all the costs I incurred in trying to build this "business" amounted to well over £20,000 and the knock on effect of trying to stay afloat since then has pushed things up a lot more than that. Doesn't compare with your friends experience but I can see how IBS would happily take everything from someone without caring what the end result was.

I'd be interested to hear if anyone has even managed to get money back from IBS for the "tools" and "seminars".

TPAOY · 21 February 2006 at 1:05AM

I see that for the "major function" IBS are holding on the 25th of February, they are asking for between £64 and £99 per person. Everyone who goes will also clock up considerable car mileage and accommodation expenses. They are paying to see people continue to perpetuate the myths that "anyone can make it" and to continue to pour money in to the "IBS Training System" that exists to make the "leaders" money without any Amway products being retailed at all.

The training systems are the biggest part of the con as Amway and the distributors make nothing from this. All the money goes to the people who run IBS.

Looks like IBS are feeling the pinch though as the monthly seminars are now down to just seven.

Does anyone know of any sites in the UK to assist victims of these scams? I can only find American sites and the main UK one no longer seems to exist. Alternatively, if anyone can advise how to set up such a site, I'd be interested in finding out what is involved and if it is something I could run.

EmehEm2005 · 22 February 2006 at 5:24PM

Re AMWAY et al, have you seen the article here?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multi-level_marketing

also

http://www.dti.gov.uk/ccp/topics1/facts/pyramid.htm

Mike

TPAOY · 23 February 2006 at 2:26AM

Not too sure I like the reference to 90 days from receiving the last items. Would suggest then that I haven't got any chance at all of recovering anything from IBS who have happily run off with my money and that of tens of thousands of other people.

Obviously pays them well as one of the IBS founders is on his second Aston Martin (along with the Jaguar, Mercedes, mansion with indoor pool) etc.

The other founders have diversified in to renting cottages down in the South West of England. Smart move I suppose as at some point hopefully the law will put an end to their schemes.

Amway are aware of what is going on, but don't seem to be willing at all to step in and put an end to the "training schemes". I suppose that as long as these help to recruit new victims who will purchase and retail some Amway products, then it still does Amway some good.

Thanks for the links and any other links anyone can provide to give others a chance to find out more would be great.

christabell · 1 March 2006 at 10:35PM

Have read your story etc., I am wondering would you be able to sell any of your training tapes/books etc on ebay?

TPAOY · 4 March 2006 at 7:31PM

Have seen tapes coming up now and again on Ebay. Not so sure about books, but I'll have another look. Although it would get something back, the sum would be so low it almost seems pointless.

Have to admit that some of the books are actually of use in real life and are worth hanging on to. Pity that they don't translate in to the promise of riches within five years that they suggested!

Wonder how many people were at the Telford International Arena last weekend? Used to be a huge attendance at the NIA or NEC, but numbers have dwindled as people realised that they weren't getting anywhere other than deeper in to debt.

Thanks for the idea anyway and I'll dig out the boxes of tapes to see how many I need to throw out as the people are officially discredited now! Funny how the training system was being created by tax dodgers, fraudulent company directors etc..

TPAOY · 19 March 2006 at 1:54PM

No real value in tapes on Ebay unfortunately.

Just noticed this thread no longer appears in Google at all. Going to post on Techie thread to see if anyone knows if Amway or IBS can somehow block searches on Google.

Taking legal action against Amway or IBS

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