Experian - Be Warned

Simon_Preston

I thought that. But when you do phone up they are very pleasant (in my experience) and there is no fuss at all. I actually got off the phone with a smile on my face afterwards. Wish more call centres were like that.

CannyJock

WD40 wrote: »

Bang head here? As I said before, Experian have a track record for using stealth to feed off those who use their services. My thoughts are with the hundreds, if not thousands of people whose horror stories you will read in Google.

If the government had any decency, and weren't terrified of big business (which is why we, the tax-payer, had to bail out the banks), we'd have credit checking agencies that used scrupulous techniques to generate income. After all, we all need to check that we're not victims of fraud. Maybe, by letting the likes of Experian rip us off, it gives the Govt. more justification in wasting tax-payers' money on ID cards? Paranoia over credit problems eased by ID cards...???


But hey, when you consider the atrocities this govt. has sponsored, it becomes apparent that you are banging your head against a brick wall. Not a conscience between them...

Ah geez man, not often you see the OP take their own post off topic.

You don't happen to work for the Daily Mail do you?

You got caught out by not understanding that a company is there to make money from out. But you're right, the government should take action to prevent any company making a profit and consult you on all future decisions.

And now I've lost another two minutes of my life that I'll never get back again.

gomer

How do you think i feel? I lost nearly half an hour. LOL

NickX

Everyone appears to be missing the point. The OP fell into the trap that Experian set up for them and failed to cancel their subscription and had to pay a fee. This is how they make their money and to be honest is how the world works.

The fantastic thing in the age of the internet is that these traps can be avoided and anyone reading this thread will be pre-warned of this trap, so it is NOT a waste of time at all.

gomer

.....Even though anyone who signs up for Experian can see clearly written in front of them that they will only be charged if they don't cancel within 30 days.


The OP has already admitted they just didn't bother to read what they were agreeing to.

iscrimger

I think someone needs to goto Specsavers. The Experian site couldn't make it any clearer.

Surely when you registered and the big section marked 'Card Details' started to ring bells? To me that's says "now hold on a second why do they need my card details". Then you get this....

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.

Couldn't be clearer!!!

It's also very simple to cancel. When I used the service I searched in the help section, fired off an email and the next day they replied saying no problem. Deal done.

I think the OP is getting a little too dramatic over something so small. The amount of times I read 'government-sanctioned' blah blah made me want to throw my laptop out the window. Everyone should know if it's got the whiff of government on it it'll be like a leaky tap.

exel1966

NickX wrote: »

Everyone appears to be missing the point. The OP fell into the trap that Experian set up for them and failed to cancel their subscription and had to pay a fee. This is how they make their money and to be honest is how the world works.

The fantastic thing in the age of the internet is that these traps can be avoided and anyone reading this thread will be pre-warned of this trap, so it is NOT a waste of time at all.

So, moving away from the Trolls thread, would you consider making a purchase with a cashback deal attached also a trap ?
After all, the companies promoting these deals know that a large percentage will never claim their cashback for a multitude of reasons, and that is what they rely upon !

NickX

exel1966 wrote: »

would you consider making a purchase with a cashback deal attached also a trap ?
After all, the companies promoting these deals know that a large percentage will never claim their cashback for a multitude of reasons, and that is what they rely upon !

Interesting Question actually. I cannot say that a cashback deal is a trap or a con because they are not actually taking any funds from the customer that they could have used elsewhere, but I agree with you that they know that statistically many customers will not claim their cashback and they will recoup the funds from those that do elsewhere. This makes the cashback deal a very clever marketing ploy and will draw in customers that perhaps would have otherwise gone elsewhere.

So, no its not a trap as such, but it is still somewhat sneaky and clever. These organisations pay large salaries to well educated and intelligent individuals to design these schemes and the aim is purely to generate revenue. As long as we remain aware of this and are able to use the schemes to our advantage then great. My problem with it really is that I know there are large sections of society who are not so savvy and are being manipulated by such organisations to create them a profit. This is really why my stances tend to be behind the consumer rather then the firm.

lemma1968

One thing experian does do (not directly related to this i accept) is pass your details on to DCAs. They act as a tracing company as well as credit referencing agency. If you give them your details, they can and do share them with other agencies including DCA's.

That is how some people get letters from DCA's when they have no debt with them but have a similar name to someone else for example.

fudgecat

If Experian are behaving in an underhand manner by clearly stating the terms and conditions in plain English, then I`m afraid Which - that rampant pornographic website for those who seek value for money - are also guilty of similar underhand practices. Sign up for their free period and - wait for it - they will charge you after the free period unless you cancel. Shocking.