Complaint Review: Change My Address

Changemyaddress.com uses paid Google ad space to be the first result for search terms such as 'USPS change of address' or 'change my address Postal Service.'  I ended up on their site because I had an item ship from Amazon today to a previous address and I wanted to make sure it was forwarded to me.

Since is was my first search result and I was in a rush, I filled out all of the information requested and glanced at the fine print before submitting and being redirected to the next page.  The 2nd page asks for a few things, most notably your Credit/Debit card number and verification code.  I know this should have been a red flag, but there was no price listed for payment on the page and I remembered paying a $1 fee last year throught the USPS after moving residences at that time.

It was until until I hit 'continue' that I realized I was not really on a page affiliated with the USPS and was very curious who I gave my debit card information to and whether ot not this scam was subscription-based.  So, I navigate to their Contact page and low and behold, there is only a phone number.  I called and was polite, because I realized I'd been mislead and the woman informed me that there is only a one-time fee of $20, I didn't argue, but she made sure to tell me that it is noted on their website that they do not have an affliation with the USPS.

While I am upset that I was so easily directed to their page, my main frustration was that at no point during my submission was I informed of the amount that would be charged to me until after-the-fact.  Be mindful of your results when using a search engine, because there are plenty of companies just like Changemyaddress.com that are looking to lead you to their site merely by paying to be the top-result for the words you search.

I got duped, I can admit, but this company definitely knows what they are doing and how to get information from you very easily without disclosing the bill until it has been charged.