Be weary of urgent notice postcards offering savings to major retailers

Better Business Bureau (BBB) is advising consumers to be cautious about responding to “urgent notice” postcards offering $100 in savings at Walmart, Target and other major retailers. Most of the postcards include no information about the company making the solicitation, and the toll-free numbers are not traceable to any specific business. The mailings, many of which are virtually identical, appear to be marketing efforts to get consumers to enroll in a variety of discount savings clubs.

Some of those who enrolled in the clubs told BBB the companies continued to take money from their credit card accounts after they tried to cancel their memberships.

In most cases, sales representatives offered a free trial membership in a savings club for a one-time shipping and processing fee of between $2 and $6. It appears that unless the membership is canceled by a specific deadline, the consumer is enrolled in the regular savings club at monthly fees often ranging from $15 to $30.

A BBB investigation of the postcards indicates they may have been mailed by a variety of businesses in attempts to generate leads from consumers. Those lead businesses, in turn, take phone calls from consumers and then turn enrollment information over to other businesses that operating shopping clubs and other discount merchandise groups.

Despite the specific mention of Walmart and Target in the mailings, several news reports note that neither of those companies have any involvement in the solicitations.

BBB offers the following advice for consumers who receive unsolicited mailing offers:

Beware of offers that do not include the names or addresses of the businesses behind them.

Be cautious of any mailings that appear to be offering free or reduced-price merchandise. Check out the offers thoroughly before pursuing them.

Be wary of giving any credit card information or any personal information to businesses or people you do not know.

Understand that many “free trial” offers require that you cancel your enrollment within a specific time period or face the prospect of being charged monthly for continuing in the program.

If you want information on a company, need to report a scam or file a complaint, please contact the Mid-Missouri BBB at manager@midmobbb.org or 573-886-8965.