I got this letter in the mail today stating that I had won US $10,000 from Willoughby and Johnson Ltd. So, here I am freaking out, I got totally excited to the point I was crying (hey, for a person on unemployment with tons of debt, this is truly a Godsend) So, me being the trusting person I am, I filled out my credit card number and signed the form and faxed it back this afternoon.
What I should have done was a search on the company first. Especially since I do not remember entering any contest or sweepstakes in the first place. They wanted me to pay $6.95 for shipping and handling as well as $2.00 for the optional insurance. They also offered a Huari Rechargeable Shaver at a discount price of $36.95. I don't want or need a damn shaver, so I left it blank... Afterall, the document states no purchase necessary.
The letter itself looks totally legit, it even has an "encoded" back round. See, because I am obviously a total moron, I allowed the excitement to take over and expelled any reason or logic that would have been very useful to avoid this situation.
First of all, any legit company should have a contact phone number or toll free number if their customers or "award winners" have any questions. This document provides you with a mailing address and a fax number. That is it. I even tried to find a phone number for them on whitepages.com with no luck whatsoever. Apparently the address does not even exist. Wonderful.
Secondly, no website. Any company that can afford to give out $10,000 can afford a website. Especially if they are trying to sell products at the same time.
Third, if you typed in "Willoughby and Johnson LTD" guess what is going to come up in Google search... Scam and fraud warnings much like this site here. Wow, it's getting better and better huh?
So, now because these pricks went out of there way to send me a fraud letter that I happened to fall for, I now have the wonderful inconvenience of cancelling my current credit card and waiting 2-3 weeks until a new one comes in the mail and explaining to my friends and family the embarrassing story of how this is a scam, and I am still, in fact, a poor unemployed loser with a huge debt load. Trust me, when I read this letter, I called everyone to tell them the good news. Man oh man do I feel like a stupid dweeb.
Thanks a lot to the "authorities" who sit back and ALLOW this to continue to happen to people. Excuse me, but is it not their job to uphold the law and put a stop to scammers? E-mail ones might be difficult, but direct mail? C'mon! You have a mailing and street address for fu* sakes! Give your head a shake! I am obviously not the first to receive this letter and am quite sure that I will not be the last.
Thankfully, I found out about this today and not tomorrow or a week from now. There is still time for me to screw these jerks over like they tried to screw me. I love how these scammers play on your emotions huh? To most of us, this prize is a dream come true. It is finally a long needed "break". Temporary stress relief. Then BAM!!! You discover that you have just been ripped off and fell for their little scam here. Congrats scammers, I sure hope you feel good about yourselves for what you put others through. It is my firm beleife that what goes around comes around. No worries to everyone sinking in the same boat that I am. They will get theirs, and we can all sit back and laugh at them when they do.
My apologies to those of you who have already been taken in by this. Isn't it great to know that the police care enough to do something about it? Up yours to the "authorities" who sit there and do nothing and a huge FU* OFF AND DIE to you a*holes at Willoughby and Johnson ltd. I hope you rot in hell.
Thank you to those who went out of their way to post warnings to other potential victims. You saved me money and time. I am so glad I found this site in time to cancell my credit card. Thank you again.
Trust me people, you are not alone. I am a pretty smart and reasonable person, and I usually do know better. But this time, I was "had". If you get this letter, GET RID OF IT IMMEDIATELY! If you have no way to contact them prior to sending payment details, it is a load of horse sh*. NEVER NEVER NEVER give your credit card information until you confirm that it is legit. Learn from my mistakes. Please do not let this happen to you. Thanks for reading, I sincerely do hope that I have helped someone out today.
Amber
Winnipeg, Manitoba
Canada
0 comments