Easylife Motor Club

Mercedes55

My mum ordered a copper bracelet through the Easylife Catalogue she had. While she was on the phone she somehow managed to get talked into taking a trial of their 'Easylife Motor Club'. She told the woman on the phone that at 95 she didn't drive so didn't need it, but when her bracelet arrived so did a letter welcoming her to joining the Easylife Motor Club.
I promptly phoned them to cancel it, was promised she would get her £59.99 back but it's gone onto her recent bank statement all the same. I had a look on the website of Easylife and saw this on there on the FAQ page.

Q: I did not agree to the trial going ahead but have received a letter from you saying I have signed up, how is that possible?
A: Our agents are trained to follow a script that they must stick to. If you are in any doubt that you have signed up then please let us know so we can listen to the call and check it for compliance. We want our customers to enjoy the rewards we are offering them so please do get in contact on 0303 031 0777 if you are worried.

I can't believe it's legal for a company to do something so underhand! My mum is at the bank right now trying to make sure she cancels her DD. I would do all this myself but I think my mum is embarrassed that she's got herself into this and is trying to sort it out herself.

Having googled this company I see a lot of people are complaining but can't see anyone having any success in getting their money back!

I have phoned them again and also emailed them threatening to sue them if they don't refund her the money. Just wondered if anyone else has had any experiences with them.

agrinnall

If they took the money by DD, as your post implies, then it's simple to get the money back, your mum just needs to tell her bank to invoke the DD Guarantee. That doesn't cancel a legitimate debt, but I doubt very much whether what sounds like a rather dodgy company will pursue it.

lincroft1710

They tried this with my OH, but only took £2 off her. Result - she no longer buys from them.

unholyangel

Even if she paid by card, she should be able to raise a chargeback with the bank for an unauthorised transaction. The bank may try to take the stance that your mum made an order so authorised it but your mum should take the stance that she only authorised them to take £x for the bracelet and therefore the transaction for £x for the bracelet & motorclub (or the £59.99 for the club if they were billed separately) was not authorised, that your bank have a duty of care to your mum as their customer and should be looking to protect her interests rather than that of the charging company. If the bank decline the claim she can refer it to the financial ombudsman.

If they took the payment by card, make sure the bank cancels the continuous payment authority as well and complain about the company to trading standards (you will normally have to do this via CAB as most TS branches don't accept complaints directly from consumers).

Of course as above, if it was direct debit then she can invoke the DD guarantee to have the money refunded to her account (although she may need to then make arrangements to pay for the bracelet in another manner).

Mercedes55

Thanks very much for your replies. My mum managed to get to her bank and they phoned the company concerned and it took an hour and a half for them to resolve the issue but they did get her money back which is good news.

Have to say I can't believe how a company like this is allowed to trade considering they are basically scamming people

Agricolae

Awful what they did to your mum and I'm glad it's been resolved. It's good to see banks are now taking the time to phone up companies like this and try to sort things out if their customer has an issue. It wasn't like that a few years ago.

Which bank, out of interest?

tiamaria

I'm presently going through this with my Mum who is 90. I have tried to get the direct debit cancelled but Barclays won't allow me to talk to anyone on the phone as I don't have access, this is despite my power of attorney, Mum doesn't have internet banking and all the local branches are closed.

I've told her to call the bank herself to cancel the DD , not sure if they will do it though

DoaM

Banks are duty-bound to follow the instructions of the account holder, provided doing so doesn't break any laws or agreed terms and conditions of the account - if they're asked to cancel a DD then they MUST do so. Of course they'll advise that the account holder should inform the recipient, and there's no problem with that - your Mum simply says "Yes, I've advised them".

As you have PoA then it might be worth getting Internet banking set up. That way you'll be able to more-easily manage her affairs.

pmduk

They were featured in the press over the weekend for this sort of shenanigans.

Dolphinlady

It is now January 2021 and Easy Life Motor Club are still carrying out the same tricks - I cancelled my ‘Motor Club trial’ 10 days before the end date of the trial, yet they still charged me £59.99 a week later.
When I phoned customer services to complain about this, a lady assured me she was refunding the £59.99, but upon checking my account today - I have been charged ANOTHER £59.99.
How are they allowed to continue trading, especially as many customers are elderly?
Who should they be reported to?

JJ_Egan

(Who should they be reported to? )

Trading Standards  to put them on record .