raspberry-ketoneblast.com free trial suspect

[seanamarts]

I have fallen foul to this company,

even people like myself who thoroughly look into things before they buy can get caught out by these shrewd websites.

 

Even when you read the T&C's thinking that you know what you are doing,

they sneak in and get

your money and its too late to stop it from happening.

 

These people dont believe in following their own terms and conditions.

 

You can cancel this "programme" within 14 days (which I did),

However on the 12th day they had already taken £180 plus from my bank account.

 

It certainly wasnt a free trial.

 

I ordered my two free product's which was a months supply, you had 14 days to cancel, as i said I did on the 13th day.

 

However I hadnt received my free products at his stage so

 

on the 7th day I emailed them as suggested in their T&C's but no response.

 

i called them 2 days later.

 

The number has technical problems. called a few more times over the next few days, still the same problem.

 

on the 13th day I wrote and cancelled.

 

Unbeknown to me that they had already taken the next months money out of my bank.

 

T&C's clearly state they take the money out of your account on the 30th day for the next months supply.

I hadnt even had the 1st months yet.

 

Phoned my bank, nothing they can do until it shows up on my statement,

shows up on there end though, but I have to wait to see who has taken this money out of my account.

 

From what I can figure out going by their T&C's, is that I have 1 months supply of A product, plus P&P of £4.95

and another months supply of B product plus P&P of £4.95.

It comes to £180/190 plus a few change.

 

Kicking myself is a complete understatement.

 

I feel pretty stupid, especially as I always advise people to stay away from places like these.

I really have no excuse.

 

Safter I have wallowed in self pity for a while,

i shall be off to my bank first thing in the morning to try and recover my money.

 

I have to say that I was lucky the money was in my bank, or unlucky,

but I had been saving hard for something I had wanted for a while,

that I was getting on Wednesday,

but looks like that wont happen now until I can get the money put back in my bank.

 

I was told this morning from the bank (phone banking) that its unlikely I will get the money back.

However I wont be leaving my bank until they do something in getting my money returned to me.

 

I have a few bits and pieces of info that I can take in the bank with me. so wish me luck for Monday.

 

In the mean time I shall be making a few complaints. I am also wondering if they have acted unlawfully?

[sillygirl1]

It is illegal, and when/if you do get the product you will find it is mailed from weird and wonderful places - almost anything which is on a certain social network site and says 'P&P only' is a dodgy deal.

 

You can get much cheaper in a certain Healthfood chain here in the UK which wouldn't even cost £190 for a whole years supply, let alone one months.

 

I fell for this a long time ago and got the money back, then the bank reversed it and said I was defrauding them - and so on until I lodged a formal complaint with the bank and got £250 compensation, and a new bank account (which I then refused to use as it was 'automatically linked' with the old one. This was long before COBS and BCOBS.

 

PS it also is NOT a subscription service which cannot be cancelled, no matter what the bank tells you.

 

Give both products to Trading Standards when/if they do arrive and ask for them to be tested - you will be surprised at the results.

[citizenB]

I think the fact they took the money 2 days before they were supposed to, should help in your claim for a refund.

[BRIGADIER2JCS]

:madgrin:Good morning seanamarts,

 

These companies and their 14 days cancellation deadlines are cropping up very regularly, the problem with the time scale is that you need to cancel well within the time scale 7 days in the cancellation works (it takes this long again to get into their systems)

cancelling on day 13 means that the payment is already processed and is awaiting overnight clearance and it taken before anyone has acted upon the cancellation.

 

However remind your bank that this was an unauthorised transaction and that the FSA has said such payments must be reversed if the customer instructs their bank to do so.

 

For others reading this:

 

ALWAYS CANCEL IN WRITTING - ALWAYS CANCEL EARLY!!!

[silverfox1961]

Done a few checks and a company called Phytoscience Ltd which has the same P O Box address which is at the address mentioned in their web page and the same postcode.

 

there is also a phone number: 01506 848649

 

Although the phone numbers on their home page are different

 

http://www.phytoscience.co.uk/contact.html

 

there is also this address (from Companies House) but the postcode is different

 

PHYTOSCIENCE LTD.

MAILING HOUSE MILL ROAD INDUSTRIAL ESTATE

LINLITHGOW BRIDGE

LINLITHGOW

WEST LOTHIAN

SCOTLAND

EH49 7SF

[silverfox1961]

also

 

https://www.duedil.com/company/SC177675/phytoscience-ltd/people

[sillygirl1]

Another site claims that there is a genuine company with this name which has been hijacked and the fake company is based in Ireland.

 

There is more to this one than initial investigations show, how come they have so many products with a similar free trial, similar advertising across the web, complete with fake reviews from a fake tv news reporter and fake customer results.

[dx100uk]

you bank should be refunding this immediately

under CPA rules.

 

theres no excuse since the FCA ruled.

 

go get them.

 

We have been telling people to put a letter into their bank instructing them not to make any payments under any circumstances to these companie

http://whatconsumer.co.uk/visa-debit-chargeback/- it works!

 

banks MUST follow written intructions from their customers !

This fsa [now the FCA] 11:24 31/05/2013 guide has now been updated:

 

http://www.fsa.gov.uk/pubs/consumer_...ghts_guide.pdf

 

Here's the text:

 

Cancelling a regular

card payment:

 

When you give your credit or debit card details to a company and authorise them to take regular payments from your account,

such as for a gym membership or magazine subscription,

it is known as a ‘recurring transaction’ or ‘continuous payment authority’.

These are often confused with direct debits, but do not offer the same guarantee if the amount or date of the payment changes.

In most cases, regular payments can be cancelled by telling the company taking the payments.

.

However,

you have the right to cancel them directly with your bank or card issuer by telling it that you have stopped permission for the payments.

Your bank or card issuer must then stop them – it has no right to insist that you agree this first with the company taking the payments.

Be aware, though, that you will still be responsible for paying any money that you owe.

.

see: http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?336569-How-to-remove-a-lender-s-continuous-payment-authority(2-Viewing)-nbsp

.

http://www.fsa.gov.uk/pages/consumerinformation/product_news/banking/know_your_rights/solving/index.shtml

and

Attach the following to your claim and in the interim period write to your bank and attach the following (Keep a copy)

Regulation 55 of The Payment Services Regulations 2009:

55.—(1) A payment transaction is to be regarded as having been authorised by the payer for the purposes of this Part only if the payer has given its consent to—

(a)the execution of the payment transaction; or .

(b)the execution of a series of payment transactions of which that payment transaction forms part. .

(2) Such consent—

(a)may be given before or, if agreed between the payer and its payment service provider, after the execution of the payment transaction; and .

(b)must be given in the form, and in accordance with the procedure, agreed between the payer and its payment service provider. .

(3) The payer may withdraw its consent to a payment transaction at any time before the point at which the payment order can no longer be revoked under regulation 67.

(4) Subject to regulation 67(3) to (5), the payer may withdraw its consent to the execution of a series of payment transactions at any time with the effect that any future payment transactions are not regarded as authorised for the purposes of this Part.

This means that you can simply ask your bank to refuse the payments, it is also good practice to let the lender know too.

So, if you would like your creditor to stop trying to take a payment all you need to do, in theory, is to inform them that you remove their authority. It's probably better to do this in writing and via recorded delivery - if possible.

You can learn more about your rights via the following fsa guide :

Ending recurring payments from credit cards

57 Recurring payments, is the term used to describe transactions for which a client has granted written permission for her/his credit or debit card to be debited for recurring goods or services, for example, club membership subscriptions, insurance cover or payday loansicon. The card may be debited annually, monthly or at other regular intervals.

.

58 In most cases, recurring payments can be cancelled by telling the trader taking the payments. However, a client has the right to withdraw consent by simply telling whoever issued the card (the bank, building society or credit card company) that s/he does not want a payment to be made. S/he can tell the card issuer by phone, email or letter.

.

59 The card issuer has no right to insist that the client ask the trader to stop taking the payment first. The card issuer has to stop the payments if the client has asked them to. The client could point out to the card issuer that they should follow the FSA guidance available in the FSA know your rightsicon booklet which is available on the FSA website at www.fsa.gov.uk.

.

59a If money is still taken from the client's account, it will be deemed to be an unauthorised transaction, and the card issuer must give her/him an immediate refund. The card issuer will have to cancel any interest and charges added to the her/his account because the payment was taken. It is not up to the client to prove that s/he told the card issuer to stop taking payments. Instead, the card issuer would have to prove that s/he did not tell them to stop making payments.

.

60 The client should make a complaint to the Financial Ombudsman Service when all the internal complaints systems within the company issuing the card have been exhausted.

I hope this information is of assistance

 

New june 2013

 

Regulator orders Banks and mutuals to review complaints about not cancelling recurring payments from November 2009.

Consumers who have set up a regular payment from their account will now be able to successfully cancel that arrangement by contacting their card provider, the Financial Conduct Authority said.

The FCA has been examining how easy it is for customers to cancel Continuous Payment Authorities (CPAs) due either to payday lendersicon or for other regular payments such as subscriptions or gymicon memberships.

CPAs, which are also commonly called recurring transactions or recurring payments, are relatively easy to set up but can be hard to cancel, causing problems for consumers trying to manage their finances,the FCA said.

 

Now, following the FCA review of how the largest high street banks and mutuals process requests to cancel CPAs, they have agreed that they will ensure that when a customer asks for a recurring payment to end, that will be sufficient to cancel the arrangement. They have also confirmed that should a payment go through by mistake following cancellation by a customer the customer will be refunded immediately.

 

In addition to securing this commitment, the largest banks and mutuals have agreed to review every individual complaint they have received about the non-cancellation of a CPA and to pay redress where payments have continued to be made despite the customer cancelling the arrangement. This applies to all complaints since November 2009 when the Financial Services Authority, the FCA’s predecessor, began regulating banking conduct.

 

Clive Adamson, the FCA’s director of supervision, said: “It’s important that consumers are confident that banks are meeting their everyday banking needs. Today customers can be confident that when they ask for a Continuous Payment Authority to be cancelled – it will be cancelled - and that it can be done easily.

 

“We recognise that historically this is an area where some customers have struggled but the banks and mutuals have responded positively to our work on this issue. From now on we expect them to be getting this right. In addition, they have committed to review past complaints.”

 

http://www.ftadviser.com/2013/06/28/...J/article.html

[seanamarts]

I think the fact they took the money 2 days before they were supposed to, should help in your claim for a refund.

 

Ive read through their T@C's again CB and they say they dont take any money until 30 days after you sign up, so technically they have taken the money more than two weeks earlier than what they should of done.

[seanamarts]

Done a few checks and a company called Phytoscience Ltd which has the same P O Box address which is at the address mentioned in their web page and the same postcode.

 

there is also a phone number: 01506 848649

 

Although the phone numbers on their home page are different

 

http://www.phytoscience.co.uk/contact.html

 

 

 

there is also this address (from Companies House) but the postcode is different

 

PHYTOSCIENCE LTD.

MAILING HOUSE MILL ROAD INDUSTRIAL ESTATE

LINLITHGOW BRIDGE

LINLITHGOW

WEST LOTHIAN

SCOTLAND

EH49 7SF

This is what I have been trying to look for, thanks foxy you are a star I shall try giving them a call in the morning and will fire off an email to them now.

[BRIGADIER2JCS]

That makes it clear your bank MUST make a charge back immediately.

[seanamarts]

Thanks DX I will get all this printed out and give it to the bank tomorrow. I wont be leaving until I get the money put back in my account.

 

Thanks all for replying. Im still seething at myself for being so stupid for even applying.

[seanamarts]

That makes it clear your bank MUST make a charge back immediately.

 

Will do Brig, I will be taking a copy of the T&C's plus emails I have sent cancelling and letting this company know that I hadnt received any of the products.

 

Hopefully that in itself will be enough to get my money back.

 

The bank told me this morning that it is in a holding place somewhere in limbo by the sounds of it. Im hoping that this hasnt even reached this companies bank yet. Im wondering if that would make any difference though.

[antone]

That address is 10 mins walk from where I live. Any value in going to check it out?

[stu007]

You could do it on the pretence of looking for work

[antone]

You could do it on the pretence of looking for work

 

Well, there I go. I have a task for tomorrow.

[seanamarts]

Thats brill thanks antone

[sillygirl1]

Would be very interesting to see what it is - who bets it is a holding office for loads of other companies?

[silverfox1961]

I did a google map search on the postcode and it pinpointed a new build office block. At the time of the streetview photo, it looked unoccupied and had a different name (also the car park was blocked off). Further checks implied to me that this was indeed serviced offices.

 

I would think this is just an answering service for the main US company

[dx100uk]

it seems these companies rely on the CPA

 

following the ruling in june

 

i'd go down that route

as the card is not presented at each payment claim, it must be continuous payment authority they are using

to get the money

 

this link should get your money back immediately according to the text /l link

banks are now duty bound to comply.

 

New june 2013

 

Regulator orders Banks and mutuals to review complaints about not cancelling recurring payments from November 2009.

Consumers who have set up a regular payment from their account will now be able to successfully cancel that arrangement by contacting their card provider, the Financial Conduct Authority said.

The FCA has been examining how easy it is for customers to cancel Continuous Payment Authorities (CPAs) due either to payday lendersicon or for other regular payments such as subscriptions or gymicon memberships.

CPAs, which are also commonly called recurring transactions or recurring payments, are relatively easy to set up but can be hard to cancel, causing problems for consumers trying to manage their finances,the FCA said.

 

Now, following the FCA review of how the largest high street banks and mutuals process requests to cancel CPAs, they have agreed that they will ensure that when a customer asks for a recurring payment to end, that will be sufficient to cancel the arrangement. They have also confirmed that should a payment go through by mistake following cancellation by a customer the customer will be refunded immediately.

 

In addition to securing this commitment, the largest banks and mutuals have agreed to review every individual complaint they have received about the non-cancellation of a CPA and to pay redress where payments have continued to be made despite the customer cancelling the arrangement. This applies to all complaints since November 2009 when the Financial Services Authority, the FCA’s predecessor, began regulating banking conduct.

 

Clive Adamson, the FCA’s director of supervision, said: “It’s important that consumers are confident that banks are meeting their everyday banking needs. Today customers can be confident that when they ask for a Continuous Payment Authority to be cancelled – it will be cancelled - and that it can be done easily.

 

“We recognise that historically this is an area where some customers have struggled but the banks and mutuals have responded positively to our work on this issue. From now on we expect them to be getting this right. In addition, they have committed to review past complaints.”

 

http://www.ftadviser.com/2013/06/28/regulation/regulators/fca-banks-have-to-cancel-recurring-payments-if-requested-UxbeHUuYQIy0SEYbGRE4tJ/article.html

 

dx

[dx100uk]

updated link here:

http://www.ftadviser.com/2013/06/28/regulation/regulators/fca-banks-have-to-cancel-recurring-payments-if-requested-UxbeHUuYQIy0SEYbGRE4tJ/article.html

[seanamarts]

I finally got through to these people this morning. The company is called Orientlabs. The guy I spoke to was pretty arrogant and it was a call centre in pakistan. He first of all lied and said he was in Scotland, actually in the office that he stated the product comes from and is their head office.

I asked him to look out of his window and tell me what the weather was like, he asked me why and I said to prove to me that you are where you say you are. He kept saying I promise you I am in Scotland. I called him a liar and said he was in an Indian call center he laughed and said he wasnt and I said well you're not in Scotland either. It got into quite a heated conversation. I kept asking what the address of the company was so I could write and complain. He ended up putting the phone down.

Just shows that this company is not what they say they are.

 

Ten minutes after the phone conversation they sent an email cancelling my order, the order that I had never received but had been charged for.

As for my money, well thats still in limbo so where and I cant get to it.

 

I have been to see my bank and at first they wouldnt do anything about it, they basically said it was my fault and that I would have to deal with it.

I told them I wasnt leaving the bank until I spoke to someone who knew what they were talking about.

 

Well after several phone calls later the manager finally spoke to some one who did know what they were talking about.

I cant have my money yet until it shows that the company has taken it from my bank. If they dont take it by the 23rd then it automatically comes back to me. However if they do take it I have to call the bank or go in and I then have to fill in a form to state that I have not had the items and that I also do not recognise the transaction. then it goes to a dispute. So i still dont know if I get my money back.

 

Im exhausted

[citizenB]

It is without doubt a disgraceful situation and I am quite surprised at the attitude from your bank, seanamarts.

Edited September 18, 2013 by honeybee13
Name removed.

[antone]

Dammit, sorry, I was meant to go check this place out. I apologise for being remiss, I'll take a look tomorrow.

 

I don't expect it will make any difference to anything, but it's not often that these dodgy companies list their head office as just up the road.

[seanamarts]

It ok antone I have had quite a bit of communication with this company, they have admitted that they distribute raspberry ketoneblast amongst thousands of other products. I have also found out that they had sent mine to another address. They deal with the cancellations as well.

 

They havnt collect the money yet for the £180. odd which is still in limbo, I am hoping they wont as they have said in their email that they will be collecting no further payments from me. I still need to try and get back the 2 x £4.95 for posting and packaging. I feel that I may have lost this. but I will keep on.

 

These people shouldnt be allowed to do this, and the companies in this country should stop distributing for them as well. Its dishonest. Yes Phytoscience this means you.