I can see that Readers' Source has been a source of pain for others. Here's what happened to me...
On March 5th, an employee of Readers' Source claimed that I still owed three years worth of payments to a five year subscription plan. He also claimed that I was given a two year grace period which was now over with. I happened to be doing my taxes at the time and while I had no recollection of this, I also had no desire to leave an unpaid ($1431) debt. I was led to believe that I was merely settling an old debt and would pay for it via my Discover Card. I also pointed out that I didn't want to renew anything.
But in the subsequent days while gathering relevant tax information documents, I also decided to dig up my monthly statements. I went as far back as 2003. If one is to believe the claims made by Readers' Source, I would've easily found two years of these payments that I supposedly made. Imagine my reaction when I found absolutely no transactions of any kind from Readers' Source!
But the real clincher happened on March 10 when I received a letter from Readers' Source. (Hard copy available to the staff of complaint upon request). It states that an authorized representative (Treasure Coast Enterprises of Fort Myers, FL) placed a subscription order for these magazine titles:
Baseball Digest (40 issues)
Boating Life (45 issues)
Men's Fitness (50 issues at 10 issues a year)
PC Gamer (36 issues)
PC Magazine (36 issues)
PlayStation: The Official Magazine (36 issues)
But I never specified any titles. It also states, "Your account was established on 03/05/08." Subscription order? Three to five years of new magazines? Account established on 03/05/08? How can any of this happen if I'm paying off an old debt? If Readers' Source ran a car dealership this way, one could lease a car for five years, pay the first two years, not pay for the next two years and then pay the remaining three years while leasing another car (s), of a make, model and configuration chosen entirely by the dealership, for three to five years. This is, at best, absurd.
With the help of Discover Card's customer service people, I was informed that I have unwittingly supplied enough information to possibly become a victim of identity fraud. I was also informed that a common scam artist tactic is claiming (to their victims) that money is owed. This compelled me to cancel my Discover Card that was used in this fraudulent transaction and begin the dispute resolution process.
I have absolutely no trust in Readers' Source whatsoever and have terminated all contact with them after snail mailing them a letter similar to what I've written here. Therefore, I had to inform the respective publishers of the previously mentioned magazine titles (via email and snail mail) that I have no desire to begin, renew or extend any subscriptions.
Things have gotten more twisted with this response from someone that deals with PC Gamer:
"Thank you for contacting PC Gamer.
Your order was placed through an independent sales agency and it will be necessary for you to contact them. The agency information is below:
Budget reading service
1 north superior st
Sandusky state: oh 44870
800-654-9204
We apologize for any inconvenience caused.
If we can be of further assistance, please let us know. To ensure your future concerns are handled in a timely fashion, please include all previous e-mail correspondence.
Sincerely,
Sally"
Good grief, how far does this chain of deceit go? I'm wondering if I need to get the Attorneys General of CA and KS involved. Will I have to include FL and OH too?
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