Acai Berry Power "FREE" trial

pickledtink

heading wrote: »

Proactionacai / Proactiondiet - most unhelpfull company wont refund my money this is a totla scam as i said earlier. I have reprted them to: Complaints board, IC3.Gov, FTC.gov, econsumer, Watchdog, and the Trading Standards - I have also sent over 600 emails just kept sending them as they send automatic generated emails - sent over 600 since 26th April just for the fun of it. I have sent a letter to them today at this address PO BOX 4802, Sheffield, S10 9FE - Stating my rights to a full refund under the Distance Selling Regulations - I will not give up until i get a full refund as they have never sent any products - just took £117.48 in total from my bank account. If you have had any dealings with this company then please don't give up if they have taken money from you then do all you can to get it back the more you fight the better your chances are of winning - I will let you know when i receive my refund.

I'm really grateful to have found this post of yours. I was messed about and delayed replies until they managed to take about £250.00 which left me no holiday money and I spent my holiday worried sick as to what was going on with all this whilst away.
These people are complete cold blooded criminals. Some of the pleas for help I've found online are dreadful. They have left people in debt with no money for essentials and absolutely terrified. People really do need to share any info they have on how to combat them.

competitionscafe

This appears to be the same company?
http://cancel.prolash8.com/

(Reverse ip search shows that site as the only other one on the same server as proactionacai.com)

UK Office
ProLash8
Unit 10, Watchmoor Trade Centre
Watchmoor Road
Camberley
GU15 3AJ
Telephone
0800 014 8413

Monday to Friday
2pm - 10pm
UK Company No: 03995431
VAT registration No: 745 1776 14
Date of Incorporation: 17/05/2000

Whois info is hidden for prolash8.com and proactionacai.com, but a search on that company number at Companies House brings up:

Name & Registered Office:
PURE SLIM LIMITED
1 WARNER HOUSE
HARROVIAN BUS. VILLAGE
BESSBOROUGH ROAD
MIDDLESEX
HA1 3EX
Company No. 03995431

Status: Active
Date of Incorporation: 17/05/2000
Country of Origin: United Kingdom
Company Type: Private Limited Company
Last Members List: 17/05/2011
Previous Names:
Date of change Previous Name
12/05/2006 ASD INTERNET LIMITED
Directors: Mr J. Leon

This is them:
http://www.asa.org.uk/Asa-Action/Adjudications/2009/5/Pure-Slim-Ltd/TF_ADJ_46283.aspx
http://www.pureslim.com/members/About_us.html
http://whois.domaintools.com/pureslim.com
Pure Slim
Sandy Farm Business Centre
The Sands
Farnham, Surrey GU10 1PX
0845 2255618 or 01252 781800
http://www.google.co.uk/search?sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8&q=01252+781800
http://www.google.co.uk/search?sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8&q=0845+2255618
http://www.sweetenemas.com/
Pure Slim Ltd, complaints: http://www.complaintsboard.com/complaints/pure-slim-ltd-c486325.html

Also see: http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showpost.php?p=40297738&postcount=228
and http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showpost.php?p=40300458&postcount=230

competitionscafe

pickledtink wrote: »

There are forums there who have got people together to present a case but I can't find anything similar in the UK. Does anyone know where I can lodge an official complaint or of any group which is fighting to get this scum shut down in UK? I have all the emails from them full of contradictions and outright lies which I would like to present to trading Standards at least and also some of the Major Newspapers etc they have claimed have written positive reports and tests of their 'product'.

You can file complaints here:

http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/+/http://www.insolvency.gov.uk/cib/contact.htm
http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/+/http://www.insolvency.gov.uk/complaintformcib.htm

They have previously taken action against other companies involved in acai pill weight loss scams:
http://www.insolvencynews.com/article/show/Investigators-order-health-firms-liquidation

pickledtink

Update:

As this is such a widespread and long running scam involving so many changing company names /numbers and addresses it took me down lots of dead ends but today I finally got through to someone calling himself Dan claiming he is simply a third party distribution warehouse. He was however very firm and slick in maintaining the legality of every aspect of this operation and blamed the bank whilst denying any wrong doing on behalf of the company!

The number is 01276 682013. I hope this will help anyone else to claw something back from this outfit.

At first he stuck by the claim that I had ordered these 2 deliveries and was liable. He also said as I had refused delivery of the second one and the post office would not return for at least a month he was unable to authorise refund ( he is 'just' the third party warehouse delivery bloke remember). After I explained my facts and figures ( cancelled on the 4th precisely 30 days after first 'order' as they state but they had sent out 2nd batch on the 3rd) he was magically able to access my emails and expressed 'sympathy' that I had been through so much difficulty and felt he was able to refund 75% of the money which has been taken from my account. An email appeared stating as such virtually immediately. From warehouse 'Dan' who knew nothing he has transformed swiftly to someone able to find all my account details and authorise a refund.....
I've checked with my bank that they can keep the account open to receive it without any other payments being allowed out.
I think I will get this partial amount back simply to shut me up. I'll log my experience and complaint in any way I can with the company name I was caught out under but the complexity and ever changing huge list of company names and dodgy products seems to be endless.
I'll update when/if I get the partial refund and heartfelt thanks to all who have taken so much time and effort to track down this scam in all it's guises.

ljhhuk

The number to call is 0808 168 3674 if you fell for the "Lean Slim Ultra" or "Lean Slim Cleanse" scam. It connects you to a guy with an American accent. From a BT phone, the call is free.

If you don't get satisfaction, phone them and leave your phone off the hook for a few minutes, it will cost them, not you! :mad:

davidanddeirdre

I have just read the ad for this Nutrascience Acai on Facebook. It certainly reads like a load of complete airy fairy marketing b******* like L'Oreal Paris for example.
What I find strange about this product is that a) it is still being advertised on Facebook and b) a quick Google search does not identify this as a scam, which is usually quite easy to do.

LaBoofa

Never EVER sign up for something which claims to be a free trial, but then asks for your card details. Why do they need them if it's something free?! Unless it's something you know is trustworthy, like LoveFilm, for example, just click the little x in the corner of the page and steer well clear!

competitionscafe

There will probably be a flood of these acai scam offers now as the diet 'season' (New Year's Resolutions etc) approaches.

One fake news free trial acai pill scam currently doing the rounds is being advertised on Google Adwords and the ads goes to a fake news site at fundamentalbody.com/health/britain/article/index2.php

The names of the products this time are Beri Slim Ultra and BioSomatic Cleanse.

The site includes fake quotes such as "The revolutionary increase of natural fat burning found in Beri Slim Ultra has been clinically proven by a team of independent researchers at The University Of Nottingham, Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences in the course of an extensive 45-day study using 120 volunteers using this dietary supplement.
- BBC News"

The links on the fake news website lead to sites owned by Total Body Wellness (Florida: 611 S Fort Harrison Ave., Suite 231, Clearwater, FL 33756 - 0121-345-9889 /Texas/Belize) and / BioSomatic LLC, Montego Ta'l-Ibrag Road Ta'l-Ibrag, Malta/ Purebiotix /Aqua Media EU Ltd

promotions.totalbodywell.com/uk/uk/beri/KAP58p/index.php
trybiosomatic.com

Oopsadaisy

Shock, horror!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Free thing on t'interent turns out to be scam!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

imaginary_80s

I fell for this scam but it has ended happily, so I just wanted to explain what happened and how I went about fixing it and getting a refund, in the hope that I can help someone else.

On 12th January I fell for some very convincing advertising for the products, and I placed my order for the 'free' samples of ProCleanse and MAXtrim/Targetslim pills from Nutrascience. I assumed they only required my debit card details since I was paying for the postage (£2.49 I believe it was). Half an hour after placing the order, I had done my Googling all too late and realised what I was getting myself into. An unwanted, long-term subscription to their products which were very costly - a term that had been well hidden in their terms and conditions. It was the evening at the time, so I couldn't call the company. Instead I sent a cancellation email to them (support at nutrasciencediet dot com) demanding a refund of the postage cost I had paid, citing the fact that they could not possibly argue that they had shipped the items already by the time my email was received as the order was only placed half an hour ago, and I demanded that they cancel any subscriptions and remove my details from their system.

I received a reply a day later (13th January) stating that the order had already been shipped first thing that morning and my email hadn't been read/actioned until now (i.e. it was too late). The email also stated that if I wanted to cancel my subscription I would need to return at least half of the 'sample' products back to them, with the return numbers they provided in the email written on the outside of the package, which they needed to receive within 21 days of the original order being placed. Just to make sure, and to cover all my bases, I called them that day and eventually got through to an adviser called Adele Hardcastle, who assured me that she would cancel my subscription for me and I would NOT be charged further so long as I returned the products within the 21 days specified. Easy enough, I thought.

A day later, on 14th January, I received the pills in the post. I did the following the same day:

- Opened the package just to put a piece of paper in there with my full name and address details, along with my original order numbers, so that they'd know who had returned them.

- I wrote the return numbers they had given me clearly on the outside of the package as per their request.

- I posted the package back to the following address by 1st class post (though not recorded): Nutrascience, PO Box 4802, Sheffield, S10 9FE (please send yours back recorded and not by ordinary post like I did, to avoid any problems - that's one of my biggest regrets).

I was confident at that point that I had done everything right and I waited to receive an email confirming receipt of the returned pills.

After hearing absolutely nothing, I emailed them on 27th January to ask if they could confirm in writing that they had received the returned pills and confirm that I would not be charged further or sent any of their products in the future. I got a reply asking for the tracking number of the parcel I sent back to them so that they could verify delivery.

Concerned that I did not have a tracking number as I didn't send it by recorded delivery, I left it a couple of days and then sent the same message asking if they could confirm receipt of the pills. I got the same reply again, asking for the tracking number OR a copy of the postage receipt.

At that point I made the assumption that they were going to try and say they hadn't received the products back, since I hadn't sent them by recorded delivery and therefore I couldn't prove that delivery took place. I decided not to enter into that issue and I would simply wait and see if they made any further charges to my account, and if they did I would deal with it then. My hope was that they HAD received the returned products and that my account would be marked on their systems as such, so that I wouldn't be charged further.

On 6th February, two separate charges of £37.50 and £75.00 were taken from my bank account from "Pro Health" and "Nutrascience".

At that point I started to panic and the more I Googled the matter and read the posts in this thread, the more I convinced myself I might not be able to stop this happening every month no matter what I did.

After some research I decided I was going to take advice from my bank (Santander), Consumer Direct (08454 04 05 06), and then speak to Nutrascience themselves once I was armed with information that I could use in my favour (e.g. Distance Selling Regulations).

I called Santander on 11th February and spoke to an adviser who I explained everything to. He said that I had done everything I was meant to do and the company should not have charged me given the steps I had taken, and what I needed to do was send them another email demanding a refund. He advised that if they hadn't refunded me within 30 days of the payments being taken from my account, the bank would then be able to step in and treat the matter as fraudulent - however they were not able to get involved until 30 days had passed.

After speaking to Santander I decided there was no longer a need to speak to Consumer Direct, and I composed the following email to Nutrascience, with a scan of my postage receipt attached:

"Dear Sirs

Further to your email of 3rd February 2012, please find attached my proof of postage as requested. This shows that the products were returned to you on Saturday 14th January 2012 as I have previously advised. I did not send the products back by recorded delivery; however I did include my name/address inside the package as requested along with my order numbers, and the two return numbers were written very clearly on the outside of the package also in accordance with your request.

Despite having returned the products to you well within the specified timeframe, I am outraged to find that you have charged my bank account two separate payments on 6th February 2012 for the sums of £75.00 and £37.50 - this is despite your Adele Hardcastle advising me on Friday 13th January that my orders had been cancelled and I would NOT be charged anything so long as I returned the products to yourselves within 21 days of the original order being placed. The products were returned well within this time. Furthermore, my cancellation was also made via email and has been confirmed in your email to me dated 20th January 2012. The payments you have taken from my account were therefore NOT authorised.

I have notified my bank today and have been advised that if you have not refunded the payments to me within 30 days of their being taken from my account, they will treat the matter as fraudulent. I am therefore writing to request a FULL refund of ALL amounts taken from my bank account within the next 7 days, in addition to confirmation that NO further payments will be taken from me in the future AND that my details have been completely removed from your system.

Should you fail to refund me within the specified time and/or take any further unauthorised payments from me, this will be treated as fraudulent.

Finally, I would like to take this opportunity to cite my rights under the Distance Selling Regulations. Regulations 10 and 11 state that a buyer has the right to rescind the contract; there is a 7 day cooling off period which allows you to cancel the order and get your money back. Additionally, under Regulation 25, the company's own terms and conditions are void and of no effect where that company seeks to deny one's rights under the Distance Selling Regulations. You are obliged to refund me, in accordance with my prompt cancellation, within 30 days of the cancellation. I cancelled with yourselves originally on 12th January 2012 - the 30 days therefore expires today (11th February 2012).

I look forward to receiving your prompt reply and the following:

A full refund to my bank account within 7 days;
Confirmation that NO further payments will be taken from my account in the future;
Confirmation that my details have been completely removed from your system.

Kind regards"

I was confident that my email would force them into taking action, and it did. On 16th February, I got a reply from them stating the following:

"Hi,

Thanks for your email. Refunds of £75.00 and £37.50 were made to your account on the 16/02/2012. It usually takes the banks around 3 to 5 working days to put the money back into your account.

If you require further assistance, please respond to this email, ensuring the ticket number is left in the subject line.

Many Thanks,

NutraScience Customer Service Team"

It is the 18th February today, and the refunds of £75.00 and £37.50 have just cleared in my account.

I am confident that this is an end to the matter and I just wanted to make this post to help out anyone else in this situation, because it's just a horrible feeling. I didn't tell anyone what happened because I was ashamed of my own stupidity and I was starting to resolve myself to the fact that it was just going to end up being a very expensive mistake. Luckily it ended well, and if anyone reading this could use some further advice or help, please feel free to email me on smallandhumble at hotmail dot com.

IF any further payments are taken from my account, I promise I will update this post. However if no updates are made, it can be assumed they didn't take any further payments from me and all is well.

I really hope this helps someone.

Also, one final tip. Nutrascience have an 'Online Support Centre' which is pretty useless in most respects (the address is csupport dot kayako dot com and I was sent a username/password by email when my order was originally placed), BUT, if you do login to it you can keep an eye on any emails you have sent to them. When I sent the email demanding a refund on 11th February, I logged in a couple of days later and could see that they had marked my email as "Critical" which is the highest level of priority they have (you'll see what I mean when you log in). I think it is worth checking that out whenever you email them, as it will give you an indication as to how seriously they are taking the matter I suppose.