AcaiPure- Central Coast Nutraceuticals, Inc. BEFORE YOU ORDER THIS SUPPOSED "FREE TRIAL" THINK! IT IS A RIPOFF. THEY WILL PROMISE A FREE SAMPLE, BUT CHARGE YOU FULL PRICE ANYWAY!!!!! Phoenix Arizona
I, like so many others it seems, have fallen prey to this company and its deceptive practices. I saw this ad on the Natural News web site on 11/04/08, and decided to look at it. They offered a convincing story by a female who had lost a lot of weight with the combination of two products, so I decided to give it a try. I filled in all the information and was promised that they would only charge me for the shipping, $4.95. I used my debit card and placed the order.
This morning, 11/05/08, I looked at my bank account and they had charged me $44.85, not the $4.95 I was promised. I immediately got the contact number and called, only to be told by an automated voice that my wait time would be approximately 26 minutes. I was persistent and waited for over half an hour just to speak with someone.
When I finally got a customer service rep, I immediately told him that I was not happy and wanted to cancel this order. My confirmation email stated that the product would not ship for 2-3 business days, so I could cancel this order and get my money back. The customer service rep told me that my order had already shipped this morning.
I told him that I was charged $44.85, and he stated that on the order form I was offered other products and in order not to be charged for them automatically, then I should have deselected them and he said that I had not done that and was thus charged for the other items. I was furious. I told him that I had read many complaints about his company and that this was a deceptive practice and that I had not ordered the other products. He insisted that he could do nothing until they received the product back from me.
I told him that I wanted to speak to his supervisor, and he stated that they did not come in until about 10 a.m., so I was welcome to call back at that time. I told him that I had to wait 30 minutes just to speak to anyone and he stated that he was "sorry" for my wait, but that there was nothing he could do about that. I told him that I thought his company was deceptive in their business practices and that I would be calling my bank immediately to make sure they did not rip me off again in a month.
I was again persistent and demanded my money back. The customer service rep told me that he was about to end our call. I told him that his company is a ripoff and then hung up the phone.
I can only hope that anyone out there who is even contemplating ordering this bogus "free" sample of Acai-Pure will listen and not proceed with the order as they will get your money and there is nothing you can do about it.
Mrsmac
Orlando, Florida
U.S.A.
4 Updates & Rebuttals
Comp
Phoenix,Arizona,
U.S.A.
CCN is here to help!
#5UPDATE Employee
Thu, June 25, 2009
If there are any questions regarding Trial offers, membership enrollment, or returns with Central Coast Nutraceuticals, we recommend contacting the Customer Care Department either by phone (888-692-8352) or through our Customer Assistance Website (Getorderhelp.com). If you call, there is rarely a hold time, and if you e-mail don't forget to check your spam e-mail box for the response. The Customer Care Department is available to help you 24 hours Mon-Fri and from 8-5 MTS Saturdays and Sundays. We recommend referencing the terms of the offer at the website you placed your order from. Here is an example of the terms, taken from the order page of one of the products PomegranateClear.
Terms & Conditions: You are ordering the PomegranateClear 14-day risk-free trial offer for only $4.95 shipping and handling. Your 14-day trial begins when you receive the product. If you are not satisfied with PomegranateClear for any reason just return the unused portion anytime before the end of the 14-day trial period and you will have no further obligation. For your courtesy, we will provide you with an additional 7 days after the 14-day trial period to allow for return shipping to avoid further obligation. If you are happy with the product do nothing and your credit card will be charged an additional $39.95 approximately 21 days after your receipt of the initial trial shipment. In addition, approximately 30 days after you order your risk-free trial and about every 30 days thereafter, we will automatically send you an additional 1 month supply. The credit card you provide today will be billed the low price of $39.95 plus $4.95 shipping & handling for a total of $44.90 when each new product ships. That's 20% off the regular price for a 1-month supply. You may cancel your membership during the trial period or any time thereafter by simply calling our Customer Care department at 1-888-692-8352 or by using our contact form at www.getorderhelp.com. Remember, most customers see noticeable results by using PomegranateClear consistently for 3 months. If you are not fully satisfied with future shipments you may return any unopened containers of within 30 days of receipt for a full refund less the shipping and a 15% restocking fee. Please read the full Terms and Conditions for complete details of this offer.
Consumer
Los Angeles,California,
U.S.A.
CREDIT CARD FRAUD IS A CRIME
#5Consumer Comment
Wed, November 12, 2008
To Central Coast Nutraceuticals Employee - to H*** with your rebuttal. If your company is guilty of stealing funds from people via unauthorized credit card charges, that is a crime.
If you are an employee who knowingly abets this kind of criminal activity, you had better get yourself a d**n good defense attorney to stay out of jail!
In the mean time, why don't you get yourself a real job instead of working for a scum-of-the-earth scam operation that appears to rely on fraud to make money ripping off unsuspecting consumers.
SHAME ON YOU!!!
Customer Support
Orem,Utah,
U.S.A.
Support
#5UPDATE Employee
Thu, November 06, 2008
We appreciate forums such as Ripoff Report that allow for customers of all products to vent or state their beliefs concerning a given product. We look at it as a great opportunity for us to share our vision and see it only as a positive. We understand your issue and acknowledge there have been others who have shared your same frustration. We recognize we are not perfect, but we are always seeking perfection.
We would like to take a moment and outline our whole marketing concept and emphasize it is very clearly outlined in our Terms and Conditions and made readily available and we actually require persons to verify it has been read BEFORE one chooses to take our sample. We offer a tremendously healthy product, in a trial size, at a greatly reduced price, in order to allow more people an opportunity to try our healthy product that would otherwise never had had the chance. In doing so, our intent is that when an individual tries our sample, they can make a decision as to whether or not they would like to continue to receive the product on a monthly basis. If they like the product, they do nothing and the product continues to come each month. If they choose they no longer want the product, no problem, all they have to do is go to the web address on the bottle (www.gohelpnow.com) and simply cancel the product. This usually takes less than 5 minutes.
We strive to do everything possible to make the product cancellation experience as easy and fast as possible for our customers. In the spirit of good customer relations, we have created a specific avenue for all who wish to give their feedback directly to us by visiting our Customer Support website and clicking on the "We Want to Hear From You" button. We hope this helps to clarify any misconceptions and invite any and all to visit our Customer Support website (www.gohelpnow.com), available 24/7/365 a week, for more information.
Mrsmac
Orlando,Florida,
U.S.A.
Action taken so far......
#5Author of original report
Wed, November 05, 2008
Since I wrote my ripoff report on AcaiPure, I immediately called my bank and was told to come in and file a formal dispute. I printed out the Ripoff Report complaints against them and took it with me to show my bank. I filed a formal dispute of these charges. I was also advised by my bank that to make sure that AcaiPure cannot charge my account again next month, I should cancel my debit card and be issued a new one. I did this also. I know it is a hassle to have to get a new card, but better safe than sorry next month. They can NEVER charge me again. My lesson in all this is, from this moment forward I will be checking up on ANY AND ALL companies I might be ordering from just to be certain they aren't ripping me off.