vitamail p.o box 1075 bedford mk41 9xp

lynx10

My mother has had the same experience: an incessant stream of 'You have won £10,000' letters/forms and phone calls since February 2006, duly complied with in response (and also often accompanied by separate orders), but surprise, surprise, no cheque.

This has been referred to the local Trading Standards office, who suggested contacting the Advertising Standards Authority. So a complaint has been submitted to the ASA (www.asa.org.uk) this weekend.

Perhaps anyone else who feels similarly aggrieved should also write to the ASA, to illustrate that my mother's case is not isolated ?

Regards,

Dave.

BFG_2

TSO and ASA are effectrively powerless to stop these people.This is because they are based in France and just use the Bedford addy for mail handling.
Royal Mail know they are handling millions of fake lotteries and other scam latters every day. In fact they senders use bulk deliveries into the UK so it would be relatively easy for RM to pull the bags and trash them. They say they are powerless to do antthing - something about their charter, etc.

So here's how to deal with it (and all other scam letters)....
Tear up the letters etc and pop the bits into the pre-addressed envelope that Vita etc send you.
DO NOT put a stamp on it.
Pop it into post.

Then two things can happen...
Royal Mail will collect, sort, etc and then tell Vita they have an 'Unpaid Item' for delivery, and Vita will have to pay £1.25 to have it delivered. (Vita may not pay this, but they may very well because they think there is a cheque in the envelope).
It doesn't really matter if Vita pay or not, because RM will have wasted money handling this.

If they lose enough money, they might actually do something about screening which scammers they allow to use the network system.Have fun.

lynx10

BFG wrote:

TSO and ASA are effectrively powerless to stop these people.This is because they are based in France and just use the Bedford addy for mail handling...

Many thanks. The ASA have cited problems with foreign-based operations, however they have said that they are prepared to investigate from a 'European' angle.

Do you (or anyone) know if there is a formal association between 'Vital Beauty' and Promondo ? (see details below).

Regards,

Dave.

1) 'Anyone had any dealings with VITAL BEAUTY'
MoneySavingExpert.com Forums > Bargain Buys, Sassy Shopping and Fantastic Freebies > Competitions Time > I won! I won! I won!
http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=86941

Commencing with 07311022 31-08-2005: "I have received something in the post to tell me I have won around £6000 in some kind of prize draw. I've read and reread the letter to check all the small print, but doesn't seem to have a catch...."

And later, from another poster 26-04-2006: "I have now received about 10 packages from them and also from their other company Swiss Home Shopping . Every time I have filled out the reply, sometimes including an order and cheque I get yet another package telling me that if I send the form back again I have definitely won. This goes on and on till it drives you bonkers. I have now been told that on top of the £10,000 I have now definitely won £17,500! All I have to do is send the form back yet again preferably with an order as it will speed up the cheque winnings! Swiss Home shopping does the same thing. I have received some merchandise from Vital Beauty but they are certainly not bargains..."

2) An interesting thread on the French forum, Au Feminin:

"Qui connait vital beauty ?"
Envoyé par val3211 le 31 décembre à 10:12 [2005 ?]
http://forum.aufeminin.com/forum/loisirs1/__f22994_loisirs1-Qui-connait-vital-beauty.html

"je recherche des informations au sujet de cette societe de vente par correspondance m'annonçant cette semaine que je suis la grande gagnante d'un gros cheque!! je suis un peu septique quant a l'envoi de ce document!..."

Roughly translating as: "I am seeking information about this mail order company [Vital Beauty'] announcing this week to me that I am a big winner of a large cheque!! I am a little s[c]eptic[al] as for the sending of this document!..."

Another poster says:

"Arnaque vital beauty"
Envoyé par soleil1786 le 5 mai à 10:54 [2006 ?]
http://forum.aufeminin.com/forum/loisirs1/__f22994_p3_loisirs1-Qui-connait-vital-beauty.html

"moi aussi comme vous j'ai gané un chèque de 18450euros et bien sur j'ai fait une commande en meme temps,et toujours rien..."

Or:

'Swindle vital beauty'
"... Me as you, I won a cheque of 18450 euros and ... I placed an order at the same time, and always nothing ..."

Other posters refer to Promondo in the same thread.


3) And this, 'Project Omega', with examples of promotional material:

'Attention : Arnaque' [Attention: 'Swindle']
http://pomega.free.fr/projet/php/editoriaux.php?f=0%7C0%7C0%7C0%7C1&order=desc&s=0&art=arnaques_1

"Les sociétés émettrices de ces arnaques sont:" (literally, "The transmitting companies of these swindles are:"), which includes:

Vital Beauty et Swiss Home Shopping 06604 Antibes. (groupe AMA siege d'exploitation : Drève Gustave Fache 1-7700 Mouscron-Belgique)

lynx10

The latest news from ASA is that the business is currently the subject of an 'ongoing cross-border investigation' in conjunction with the European Advertising Standards Alliance (http://www.easa-alliance.org/).

Regards,

Dave.

BFG_2

lynx10 wrote:

The latest news from ASA is that the business is currently the subject of an 'ongoing cross-border investigation' in conjunction with the European Advertising Standards Alliance (http://www.easa-alliance.org/).

Regards,

Dave.

Oh good, another toothless euro-agency. The ASA are ineffective enough, never mind the introduction of an EU element.

lynx10

Company information from French online service (similar to that available from Companies House in the UK):

PROMONDO
RCS Grasse B 418 042 826
Nom commercial : VITAMAIL

Renseignements juridiques
Siège social Avenue Zi 1ere Avenue
06510 CARROS
SIRET 41804282600036

Forme juridique société par actions simplifiée
Capital social 38.500,00 EURO
Code activité 526B - Vente par correspondance spécialisée
Immatriculation 29-05-1998
Nationalité France

Dirigeant(s)
Président M. FURRER Lukas

Company Information - Promondo/Vitamail (in French)
http://www.societe.com/cgi-bin/recherche?rncs=418042826&vu=1

Original Source: Delices & Gourmandises: Post von der Cote d’Azur
http://www.jur-abc.de/cms/index.php?id=955

kw_bsl

I did actually get my order from Vitamail this morning - I was just about to go out and cancel the cheque I'd sent them because I had not heard anything for weeks. So I was somewhat appeased. But instead of the promised cheque in the parcel, there was only yet another "Final Reminder" I sent this off this morning, without an order and with a stiff letter asking them what they thought they were playing at. Then, and only then, I did a Yahoo search and found this forum. Haven't yet opened the clensing wipes they sent me, not sure whether to use them now.

Silly of me - should have checked here as soon as I got the first letter. Next "too good to be true" offer and I take your advice, BFG. Thanks!

KW

PS. BFG, I love your signiture and agree wholeheartedly. That'll larn those who have a lend of our language and go on to mangle it. :rotfl: How do I set a signiture for my messages?

beachhutman

Swiss Home Shopping and Vital Beauty are among the worst of the current crop of highly dubious operators from Europe using a superficially legal mail order business. My mother is a serial victim, unless stopped she will send them 200-300 pounds a month, including recently £9.99 for some tubs of "superglue" that typiclly cost £1 in a market. I have referred every recent mailing I have found - and they send out up to four a week - to the ASA, with a copy of the letter to SHS and VB. I also report them each time to the Belgian Direct Mail association, and EASA, the European Direct Mail Regulator. After seven of these they have stopped .......... for the time being. Anyone else fighting these people can google "beachhutman vital beauty" and follow the saga I have had.

marleyboy

Well done Pinkfish, and what company is it your wprk for again....hmmmm

Chictee2004

I have been receiving the Vitamail Junk Mailings for quite some time and usually receive a mailing from them every fortnight. I have no intention of ever buying anything from Promondo of France under any of its Mail Order disguises. I have returned the Prize Coupon numerous times. However, over the last couple of months I have now started to mark the Coupon/Order Form as Unwanted Junk Mail and resealing the envelope to show the Bedford address. I have also E. Mailed the Post Office Enquiry Unit on at least 2 or 3 occasions over the last months asking them to supply the address that I can contact to have my name and address removed from the mailing lists. All I have received from the Post Office is their automatic E.Mail acknowledgement telling me that I shall receive a reply within 24 hours but if its a more complicated enquiry I may have to wait 10 days. I am now waiting since July 20th and that is now 1 month.

Has anyone successfully had their name and address removed from the Mailing List of this Rip Off Company.