November 23, 2009
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You Could Be A Victim Of Online Retailers, Pt.2
Defend, justify, continue to scam.Continental Airlines is one of the few retailers that have ended its relationship with the three marketers, Affinion, Verture, and Webloyalty. Orbiz defended its practices by saying that they do not pass on any of its customer's credit card information without the permission of the customer. Considered one of the biggest offenders, United Online which owns FTD and Classmates.com justified their actions by saying their disclosure statements are clear and understandable. United Online has collected more than $70 million from commission fees received from the three marketers signing on of credit card customers. They also maintained that they never transfer debit or credit card information onto any third party without the permission of the consumer. According to Priceline.com, the terms are clearly explained.
The retailers and marketing companies involved say it is clear credit card customers have goofed and are looking to blame them for their mistakes. They also believe the customers understood what they were doing and wanted the service but changed their minds along the way. The Senate report indicates that nearly 30 million consumers signed up for the memberships without knowing what they were doing. On the other hand, Affinion, Vertrue, and Webloyalty all maintain that they do their best to clearly inform the credit card customer about what they are signing up for. However, opponents of the marketing firms say that if the marketers truly wanted to be up front and honest about what the customer is signing up for, they would display in large bold print the terms and conditions of the marketing companies.
This investigation is not the first time these marketers have been called on the carpet for their deceptive practices; Webloyalty was the defendant in a class action law suit filed two years ago. In that filing, attorneys for the plaintiffs said they could easily prove that most credit card consumers were not aware that they were signing up for a monthly fee.