Consolidated Media Services The publisher Nadine Media CCR ripoff harassment attempted theft Atlanta Smyrna Georgia
I signed up with CMS for a four year subscription and they wanted me to renew after 4 months and started double billing my credit card. I changed to billing and contacted my credit card telling them not to accept any charges from them.
I'm only getting 3 of the 6 magazines I signed up for. They said it was because the others were unavailable and started sending magazines I didn't want. Then I started getting harrasing phone calls from The publishers, Nadine Media and CCR. They keep trying to get me to confirm my credit card number on a credit card I never used with them.
When I informed CCR that I would bring them up on theft charges if they tried to charge my card the man started swearing at me and hung up. I immediatly called my credit card co. and had them cancel the card and issue me a new one. The next time they called I tried to get the full name for CCR and a phone number.
They gave me someones fax number and when I told them I would pass the info on to the FTC the woman laughed and said she gave me a fake number. They keep trying to get me to settle the account which is two thirds paid when I'm not getting the services they promised and I signed up for. They said the other companies calling would stop but are supposedly not affiliated with them.
If CMS,Nadine Media,CCR, or the Publishers call hang up. I did file a complaint with the FTC and the Better Business Bureau. I suggest everyone who has had problems do the same. If they can harrass us then we should return the favor.
John
Wiscasset, Maine
1 Updates & Rebuttals
Reina
Austin,Texas,
U.S.A.
CMS report
#2Consumer Comment
Thu, January 02, 2003
I, also, very recently spoke w/ a representative from Consolidated Media Services in regards to my account w/ them. I had already been charged a $40.00 fee to my credit card for their services. (Several magazine subsriptions @ lower price) Which in the beginning sounded great to me. Now, so far, they are not sending me my magazines, but are still trying to bill me for them. Today they called to tell me I was behind on my payment, and wanted to know my credit card number.
Fortunately, I had other problems with stolen credit cards and had already had the one that they had the numbers for cancelled. I called them several months ago and requested invoice billing only. I reminded the representative that I spoke with, Madeline, that I had requested that, and that I have not recieved any magazines or invoices yet.
Her response, they will arrive in 6-12 weeks. I told her it has been well over 12 weeks since I originally spoke to CMS, and due to my unsatisfation, I would like to cancel my subscription, and since they already had $40.00 of my hard earned dollars, they could keep the magazines and the $40.00, and they would be winning in the situation....Madeline appeared to not want to hear that and hung up on me mid-sentence. This really irritated me, b/c I am a PAYING customer, and if they expected me to continue to pay, then isn't there a little customer service etiquitte to follow???
So I immediately called the company back, when someone answered the did not answer "Hello, COnsolidated Media Services, can I halp you?" (or any proper way to answer a ligitimate business phone) I was greeted w/ "hello." I asked to speak w/ the supervisor on duty, and was placed on hold to wait for "Mr. Huff" after waiting for several minutes the man came back and said "he's busy" So I began to tell the other representative about my problems w/ his company, and that I wanted to cancel my subsription that I was NOT receiving invoices or magazines. He explained to me that I could not cancel, that it was explained to me during the first conversation I had w/ CMS that I would only have 10 days after the initial to cancel.
Also, they told me that the reason for that, is that they pay the magazine company for our subscriptions, and they mail it to us, then we "pay them(CMS) back"....I then asked for this so-called "magazine" company name and phone number so that I could talk to them and solve the problem at the claimed "source". They conveniently do not have that number. I then left a meesage to have the manager "Mr. Huff" to call me back.
I also mentioned to the rep. my level of irritation, unsatisfaction, etc. that I would not be afraid to call the Better Business Bereau, or even my attorny, and the Attorny General to halp me solve this little problem, since I couldn't seem to get proper service from the actual business. He asked me "Are you posing a threat to me?" My final words: "WHATEVER IT TAKES......have Mr. Huff call me, thank you."
The only advice I have for any one interested in getting "several magazines @ a very cheap price" from Consolidated Media Service is: DON'T DO IT!!I find it VERY more convenient to run down to the corner store and just purchase the mag. myself. It also appears to be much cheaper in the sense that you actually get your magazine that you pay for. Cut out the dishonnest "middle man" and just do it your self.