aibu - inertial selling scam - fabletics?

[rytonsister]

ive been had.

a quick google shows im not the only one however. i saw an ad on facebook and followed it to purchase some gym wear. however its a subscription that to opt out of you have to weave through some shite and basically say " save £50% of this purchase? of course i dont want to save money" to bypass it. it hooks you in with a money saving offer but does not make it clear you are then going to part with £44.00 a month thereafter whether you purchase or not.

it essentially "sells" you a "credit" each month you dont purchase more gym gear and ive only just realised having paid 3 months into this thing.

it also says there is no obligation to purchase in the T&C so i dont understand how they can then just keep taking £44 anyway?

ive probably been thick but feel completely duped and they wont refund me the £132.00 they have of mine.

ive rung the bank and theyve now made sure they cant take more money but it doesnt help me get the £132.00 back!

im pissed off! it seems like a scam. aibu or really thick?

(i know it says its a subscription on the telly ad but i didnt see the telly ad...)

Surely that goes against their own t&c though where it says there is no obligation to buy?

You can go in every month and tell them you don't want it.

@Summerisdone I just used their online chat function to cancel, instead of calling the premium rate number.

@Guineapiglet345 thanks for letting me know, I'll have to do that. Honestly, I'm still subscribed nearly 2 yrs on because I e just not been bothered to see if the number is still premium rate or if they now have online chat, but back at the time the only option was to call the premium rate, and I just wasn't prepared to do that as I'm too tight

Your bank will be able to cancel the recurring payment authority but will make it very clear that all this does is stop fabletics getting the money, you must cancel the subscription and if you don't they are well within their right to pursue you for the money as you 100% signed up for an ongoing subscription.

I deal with this daily and the one thing I repeat again and again is if something, especially on FB, looks too good be to true it def is.

I’m a member, and I really like their clothes. Their business model relies on people not bothering to read the small print. But it’s great if you work it properly.
I don’t know how you missed the VIP Info it pops up on page about 3 times as you’re signing up! I understand your frustration but really you can’t blame them.

You can cancel via email or the online chat now too. So in theory you can just get the £12 leggings then cancel once they arrive !

I got sucked in last year. I thankfully was told by someone and cancelled but they had taken the first £44 so I have 2 pairs of very expensive leggings that are not worth what I ended up paying for them. They’re thin material, not good quality in my opinion.

There is no obligation.. if you don’t want anything then you ‘skip the month ‘.
I also did it on my phone and it was very clear that it was a subscription service .

I was caught out once when I forgot to skip but that was my fault

YABU. It is very clear what you’re signing up for, you just chose not to read it. It’s not a scam.

If you’re concerned about the money I would advise always reading what a page is telling you (especially when it’s not even hidden in the small print) before inputting your card details.

I think when I signed up it wasn't quite as clear .

No issue with the quality of the stuff - others said not good quality? I found the quality fine but I only wanted the two leggings and 2 tops I bought ! Certainly wouldn't buy gym gear monthly and think that's why it totally threw me. I just didn't see that it was a subscription and I'm pretty certain they must rely on people doing that as so many others been caught out - can't just be me being thick . It's an underhand selling ruse.

I also take issue with no obligation....
If you do nothing you are obligated to spend 44. A month before you realise. !

That's an obligation in my book .

Well...logged into account today to find no credit at all despite them having taken 132!

So after screen shots and a phone call in which I spoke very very softly but told them unequivocally that this would be going to the European on line resolution commission and the small claims court they finally agreed to refund 88 with 44 remaining in the fab account for use whenever. I can live with that.

that's interesting it clearly says on the website if you do skip or buy they take the subscription ££ but you can spend it on their good as credit - has this changed?

No it's not changed and they persisted in telling me I had credit- I didn't, it didn't show anything on the account at all. I rang the extortionate help line yet again and asked them to show me where the credit was showing and they logged into my account and admitted it wasn't there.

At that point they finally refunded me.