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SALT LAKE CITY -- A Payson man is hoping to keep other people from becoming victims after his experience with an online ad. He took advantage of a free trial for a weight loss ad, only to find out it wasn't really a free trial after all.
Scott Dargie saw the ad for the Acai Berry weight loss plan and clicked on it in part because of the free trial, and in part because it was endorsed by Oprah Winfrey and Rachael Ray.
The only problem was it's not true, according to Utah Better Business Bureau President Jane Driggs.
"They have talked about the berry on their show, but they've never said, ‘This will help you lose weight,'" she said.
Driggs says she's gotten hundreds of complaints about the ads, and another Better Business Bureau she's working with has also gotten hundreds of complaints.
Driggs says the ads have two problems: the false promise and the shady billing practices.
That's something Dargie has firsthand knowledge about. "They tell you everything, but they don't tell you everything straight up," he said.
He explained that he had to hunt and search to discover that his free trial period began when he first signed up for the product and not when he received it, as the ad led him to believe.
The bottom line is that he was charged for a full order of the Acai Berry Plan, then signed up for a monthly shipment that he didn't realize he'd agreed to. He's working to get the more than $80 charge reversed now and stop future charges from showing up on his bank statement.
Driggs says the complaints she's fielding are coming from different companies, including the one from whom Dargie ordered his free trial, FWM Laboratories of North Miami Beach, Fla.
Each company offers a free trial, but charges early and makes it difficult to cancel the monthly shipments and subsequent credit card charges.
KSL tried to contact FWM Laboratories. The office number from the company's Web site directed us to a voice mail box that was full and would not accept any more messages.
When we tried to call customer service instead, the representative who answered the phone refused to direct us to management or give us the correct phone number.
Driggs say it's not that the Acai berries themselves don't have benefits.
"There are things that people know that the berry will do," she said. "The antioxidants; it has wonderful antioxidants. But there's nothing - they've never said, ‘It's going to make you lose weight.' Once again, if it's too good to be true, it probably is."
"There is no magic weight loss pill. It just does not exist," Driggs said.
The Utah Division of Consumer Protection is aware of the complaints about the Acai Berry ads, but says there's not much that can be done at the state level.
A spokesperson says the reason is that although it's difficult to opt out and a little unclear about the charges, customers are required to check a box saying they agree to terms and conditions, which include the monthly charge, beginning in 15 days after the order is submitted, not when the product is received. In other words, the fine print is there, even if it's difficult to find.
E-mail: bbruce@ksl.com
