Publishers Business Services (PBS) will initially call you (especially if you just started a company, like myself) pretending to do a brief survey. A friendly but fast-talking rep will let you know that you will receive some magazines as a 'thanks' for answering the survey.
A few days later you receive a call to confirm your 'magazine order' (!!!). Again, a friendly and fast-talking rep makes sure to tell you about half of what you need to know about the subscription contract and lets you know the conversation is being recorded. You are notified that you cannot cancel for two years (!)
Once you receive the paperwork for your subscriptions you realize the following:
- PBS has randomly chosen magazines for you that you have not expressed interest in receiving.
- You must pay a fee to actually switch to magazines you're interested in receiving, even though PBS initially pushed random magazines on you
- The subscriptions are grossly overpriced but this is covered up in the way it is presented initially.
- You cannot cancel for 5 years (!)
- You are pre-paying the 5 year subscription over 2 years
- Payment options are limited and designed to lock you in to the 2-year pre-payment scheme
- Their magazine seletion is very limited, maybe about a 10th of what Publisher's Clearing House offers - or less!
I initially decided to stay with the contract I had been duped into like an idiot, but I soon got too unhappy about the terms of the contract. So, I decided I wanted to cancel.
At this time, I am starting to receive calls from them about non-payment. I was not paying the monthly fee as I was supremely unhappy about the terms of the contract. I sent an e-mail outlining the reasons I was unhappy and the evidence of their deceptive selling practices and I requested a cancellation of the account. I did not receive a response other than a call from an 'account manager'.
The 'account manager' was nothing short of an aggressive lackey whos only objective was to make me pay. I refused to pay and restated my request for cancellation. I was threatened with legal action and a negative credit report on my recently founded company (www.norseadvisors.com).
I checked the BBB and found a very negative report on the company. I know the opinions of the BBB on this forum, but I think there's agreement that if there actually is a negative report the company really is bad. There are two listings at BBB on this company name - they are both the same company! And both have negative reports on them.
I sent another e-mail, this time in strong words and with reference to the BBB file as well as a threat of legal action on MY part, stating the any future correspondence will come from my lawyer.
Update!
Shortly after sending the second e-mail I got a phone call from PBS saying they would cancel my account. Vindication!!!
The fact that my complaint was resolved does not change the facts of the deceptive selling practices and the ripoff that the price of their subscriptions is. Do NOT UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCE accept any contract for magazine subscriptions from this company - you WILL get ripped off!
A simple comparison showed that I could have gotten about twice as many magazine subscriptions for the money I was supposed to pay PBS, if I had gone directly to each magazine.
I will make the e-mails that I sent to them available to anyone who asks, so you can see what I wrote to successfully cancel my '5-year non cancellation' account.
And no, I'm not afraid to use my name here, as I am confident in the truthfulness of my statements. PBS runs a scam and will rip off their customers as a matter of company policy. Nothing they can say or do will change this FACT!
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