Subscription Scam

[darrenp63]

I was awaken at 5.30 this morning by a text message saying I had subscribed to something and it was £4.50 per week. I have never subscribed to anything on my phone and even have a bar to stop this.

Just checked my account and £4.50 has been added to my bill.

I don't want to send 'Stop' only to end up being charged even more or on some kind of scammer list and this happen again.

So, will the amount be removed from my bill seeing as I have a bar and this shouldn't happen.

[TJ]

One of our team will be happy to access your account and take a closer look into this for you @JAG12 . Please get in touch via Facebook at Vodafone UK, or contact us on Twitter using the handle @VodafoneUK.

@zebadino if you'd also like to contact us via one of our social channels, we can take another look into why you're still being charged. 

Please also provide a link to this thread, along with your username; this will save time and we’ll be able to help you quicker.

[Oziwalkabout]

I think the fundamental point is being missed here. 

The issue is not so much how to stop these unlawful charges (albeit this is important) but in most cases Vodafone clients are stating that they never authorised such subscription services in the first place and how/why do Vodafone not challenge such requests up front.

My basic understanding (I'm not legal-minded) is that a subscription service is in effect, a legally binding and endorsed contract between the client and the provider.  It differs from a 'membership' whereas the latter may not necessarily derive financial benefit.

Therefore, my understanding is that there would have to be some form of legal authorisation and exchange of approvals between all entities associated for a subscription service to be activated (we the clients, the company as end-client and, Vodafone as the provider and administrator of the account on behalf of the client).

In the cases listed here, the majority are implying that no such transaction or exchange of approvals was ever initiated.  The end company simply started deducted payments illegally either because they sourced numbers from a pool of provided numbers or from someone inadvertently (or other) visiting their (or even a 3rd party-related) site and somewhere between surfing different URL pages, entered their contact details or registered completely oblivious to any underlying and covert financial agreements taking place.

I was recently hit by several 'subscription' charges from 'invitdigital' relating to a 'StrengthCoach' subscription I never registered for and definitely had never previously visited their site (it is an unencrypted insecure site as I later discovered).   

I contacted Vodafone and they told me the issue was between myself and the company and to seek reimbursement from the StrengthCoach company.  Fortunately they were able to give me a valid email contact and also placed a bar on premium number use.

After contacting StrenghtCoach fitness, they were not able or willing to provide me with evidence of any approved transaction taking place.  They simply provided a timestamp of when the alleged transaction took place (despite me never having visited their site).

So the question therefore, is how is it possible for any online company or provider (viz Vodafone) to request and authorise deductions from a phone account without the end users permission? 

How do Vodafone vet such requests and why do they approve them without evidence of confirmation or consent of the account holder?

I have waited long enough and have given up any hope of receiving reimbursement from StrengthCoach Fitness so I am now relying on Vodafone to reimburse payments as they clearly have an obligation to protect their clients from any unauthorised monetary transaction where evidence of acceptance from the client has explcitily not been provided.

In this age of mega scams and hoaxes bombarding us on a daily basis, providers such as Vodafone have an obligation to ensure their vetting systems are as watertight as those used by other financial institutions such as banks and investment companies. 

Similar to a Banks Direct Debit or transfer confirmation, a simple pre-qualifying check along the lines of ' we have received acknowledgement of your subscription or financial transaction to company 'XYZ' for the sum of £xx.xx per week'  or the like to verify would be a good starting point.

As someone eluded to before, if Vodafone derive financial benefit from these scams I guess they're in no hurry to implement a costly solution to deter them in the first place.

After 13 years with Vodafone I'm seriously contemplating moving to a provider that does have the required validations and preventative measures in place.  If it's this easy for companies to extract monies illegally what else are they capable of doing?  I don't want to stick around to find out TBH.

[chistery]

The PSA introduced new rules from today, so it should stop these scams.

https://psauthority.org.uk/news/news/2019/october/subs-reminder

[RGW]

Think about how this works. 

These scam companies have an agreement with Vodafone, otherwise they can't charge your phone. Probably there is a revenue sharing arrangement.

The only way to get a refund is to take them to small claims court. They will ignore you and deny you a refund except for some small perfunctory amount until court papers are served. 

I recommend people take a look at money saving expert dot com and look at the forums. There is a forum dedicated to bounce dot mobi PM-Connect and you will see a lot of people have made use of the documents and successfully recovered money from Bounce / PM Connect.

These other companies all operate the same way so the same documents would work, just need the legal company details that are available to anyone by searching the company name on the Companies House website.

If you google money saving expert bounce pm connect you will find it pretty easily.

[CLAUDIASE71]

Good afternoon. I just got into the same scam, the only thing is that I never received any text message and just realized it now when checking my account and I have been charged for 4 weeks on this scam called Demom Games. I spoke to Vodafone that promised to stop these charges and put a ban to any other charges like that but still will have to pay for 12 pounds of scam.

I'd adivse everyone to contact the company and put a ban before it happens to you too.

We trust the company, it should not have happened at all.

[muggles708]

---

@CLAUDIASE71 wrote:

Good afternoon. I just got into the same scam, the only thing is that I never received any text message and just realized it now when checking my account and I have been charged for 4 weeks on this scam called Demom Games. I spoke to Vodafone that promised to stop these charges and put a ban to any other charges like that but still will have to pay for 12 pounds of scam.

I'd adivse everyone to contact the company and put a ban before it happens to you too.

We trust the company, it should not have happened at all.

---

@CLAUDIASE71 

You should contact Demon Games and insist on either the return of your money OR clear proof that you subscribed to their "service".  Ask for:

• Screenshots of the subscription workflow where you were alleged to have signed up for this service.
• A description of what the service you are supposed to have subscribed to provides? Is this a newsletter, access to a web portal?
• Any evidence that after supposedly signing up for the service, you actually used it
• The complete web server log of the subscription, including the User Agent strings containing all device details (browser, device type, device IP address) together with dates and times.
• Full company details of the company operating the service, country of registration, full name of company, company number and registered company address.
• The name of the Accredited Payment Intermediary (API) which processed your payment
• Details of the company’s disputes procedure.

Contact details for Demon Games:

Customer care number

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Customer care email

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PM Connect Ltd
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PMConnect are members of the CommsADR scheme, so if they fail to refund you can refer your complaint to them here:  https://www.commsadr.co.uk/createclaim/

They will be bound by the outcome of ADR, but you will still be free to use the courts if dissatisfied.

PMConnect is a UK based company with a reputation for these scams, so if they fail to comply you can use the Small Claims procedure to get our money back.

You should also make sure you report this fraud to the Phone-paid Services Authority (PSA) here: https://psauthority.org.uk/for-consumers/report-an-issue

It's a disgrace that Vodafone continue to expose their consumers to the fraud ridden Payforit system by default. At least they allow you to bar Payforit. Three won't even let you do that.

For more help in dealing with Payforit fraud, see the Payforitsucks website: https://payforitsucks.co.uk

[MOD EDIT: This post has been edited to remove personal information please see Community Guidelines]

[RGW]

They will play hardball and refuse to pay you in full. I successfully took them to small claims court and was repaid in full including court fees.

[RGW]

Anyone needing the letters I used and court papers, please let me know.

Roger

[thehuskyhusky]

Yes please RGW, having the same issues as everyone else!

[RGW]

If people need the files, you need to send me a private message with your email address. Note there are restrictions on sending email addresses in private messages. Roger