Experian - Be Warned

WD40

[FONT=&quot]Before you do business with Experian, make sure to read the following links. Experian has a long track record of being unscrupulous, being fined on more than one occasion.

[/FONT] http://www.consumeraffairs.com/news0...ss_action.html

http://www.consumeraffairs.com/privacy/experian.html

http://www.complaintsboard.com/complaints/11277/page/1

http://www.ftc.gov/opa/2000/01/busysignal.shtm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Experian#Controversies

http://www.asa.org.uk/asa/adjudicati..._ADJ_45538.htm

http://www.asa.org.uk/asa/adjudicati..._ADJ_45826.htm

[FONT=&quot]edit: Note that as of August 2009, the ASA have taken the view that I was correct in my assertion, i.e. that Experian have tried to obfuscate the fact that I was signing up to be recurrently billed, i.e. not a free trial. Experian were first fined in 2005 for this practice - it's nice to know they're carrying on the company's tradition.

Whilst, as you will see, the forum's bullies didn't agree with my point of view (Experian employees are known to visit this site), the ASA took my side and adjudicated as such :-)

____________________________________________________

Hi,

Having clicked on an advert offering a ‘free credit report’ from Experian, I decided to take advantage - to check nothing untoward was going on in my name. When inputting my details, I was given the following message (copied from their site): [/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]Why do we need your card details?[/FONT]


[FONT=&quot]We need your card to verify your identity. If you choose to stay as a member after your free 30 day trial your card will be charged the monthly membership fee of £6.99. [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]
[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Don’t worry, your card will NOT be charged for membership during your free 30 day trial and there is no obligation to continue with the service after the trial period. [/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]

As can be seen, the registration wording is engineered to make the user believe Experian need their card details for the credit check, not so that they can be billed on a recurring basis. Having checked my credit card statement, I was horrified to see that Experian had charged me on several occasions for a subscription I never knew I had. The above message in no way makes it clear that, after 30 days, the user’s credit card is automatically debited, and recurrently every 30 days thereafter.
[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]How ironic is it, that people use Experian to check that they’re not having debts incurred in their name without their permission, when all the time, Experian is doing exactly that![/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]
[/FONT][FONT=&quot]Whereas my complaint is merely pointing out that Experian are using cleverly-worded statements to earn money by stealth, others have experienced far, far more worrying problems with Experian: consumeraffairs.com/privacy/experian.html[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]Experian are old hands at using customers’ credit cards for stealth profit:[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]Taken from Wikipedia

In August 2005 Experian accepted that it had violated the Federal Trade Commission rules relating to the provision of free credit reports by mandating members to provide credit card information before a request is fulfilled. The Federal Trade Commission's fraud unit received several complaints regarding this tactic and agreed to a settlement with the company

[/FONT]

complaintsboard.com/complaints/11277/page1

[FONT=&quot]Experian’s history of using stealth to make a sneaky buck goes back a long way, getting fined on this occasion: [/FONT]

Ftc.gov/opa/2000/01/busysignal.shtm

Put 'www' before the links to get them to work

You have been warned!

lisyloo

I've signed up for this before and it was crystal clear you'd get billed if you didn't cancel.
I don't think you've read it carefully enough.
But thanks for warning people anyway.

WD40

[FONT=&quot]http://www.consumeraffairs.com/privacy/experian.html

[/FONT] http://www.complaintsboard.com/complaints/11277/page/1


[FONT=&quot]http://www.ftc.gov/opa/2000/01/busysignal.shtm

What's worrying about Experian's complaints records isn't, as with many large companies, that they make errors - far from it. The persistent theme is that their sole motive is to extract as much as they can from users via stealth - without a thought for the consumer.

Make sure to read the links - not a nice company.


[/FONT]

clairbear_3

I also took the opportunity to view my creditfile for the free 30 days and it was clear at the time you had to cancel before the term ended or be billed.Was quite suprised not to get hassled when cancelling infact operater was very polite

WD40

lisyloo wrote: »

I've signed up for this before and it was crystal clear you'd get billed if you didn't cancel.
I don't think you've read it carefully enough.
But thanks for warning people anyway.

Read the quote. Why does it say 'we need your card details to verify your identity'? [FONT=&quot][/FONT].

Why didn't they just say 'we need your details because we intend to bill you on a recurring basis'.

The whole thing is sneaky and uses stealth. They know naive people such as myself are out there, and have a prepared speech to give you if you complain. I only used the site once, on a free trial, yet they still charged me and refuse a refund. This setup is the snide face of capitalism.

My complaint is the least of any Experian user's worries - read the links!

WD40

I can well imagine Experian have employees that are members of this site. I've actually been instructed by companies I used to work for that I should sign up to forums and extol their virtues.

Read the other links - a nice company, not.

gomer

Hate to be the one to say it but none of this is new news with Experian.

watersedge

I also carried out a check, updated my voters roll details and then cancelled before the 30 days was up. I will check to see that I have not been charged. Again the operator I spoke to was very helpful.

Money saving this money is doing a bit of DIY - painting bedrooms/hall etc with the paint runner which is doing the job in half the time. Money saved so far I'm sure is in the region of £200 and more.:j

Joe_Bloggs

MSE Martin has information on the how to get free trials offered by Experian and Equifax and also how to get out of them here.
J_B.

gomer

The wording from the page that asks for your card details seems pretty clear to me -

Why do we need your card details?
We need your card to verify your identity. If you choose to stay as a member after your free 30 day trial your card will be charged the monthly membership fee of £6.99.
Don’t worry, your card will NOT be charged for membership during your free 30 day trial and there is no obligation to continue with the service after the trial period.

WD40

gomer wrote: »

Hate to be the one to say it but none of this is new news with Experian.

My suspicion exactly. One of the links I quoted illustrates how they were fined, several years ago, for pursuing a tactic of not making their terms visible prior to taking card details.

I admit that I probably didn't give as much attention as I could to the small print. The statement 'we need your card details to verify your identity' lulled me into a sense of false security.

Experian has a proven record as a snide company. I feel mugged. I should've searched Google first - thousands of horror stories are out there - mainly due to their 'stealth' profit strategies.