Have I been the victim of a scam?

[JamesPL]

I'm very new to business and I'll be honest the first few months have been a struggle. So when I got a call from Unite the Union offering to talk about joining their discount scheme I leapt at the opportunity.

Turned out it wasn't offered by Unite but rather a separate company called 'Staff Discounts UK Ltd' who work with them. I was suspicious, but when I discovered they also worked with police federations and several big companies (Merlin Group etc) I started to relax a bit. After all, wouldn't the police do their due diligence? I had a meeting with one of their sales people and I ended up signing a contract with them. Fairly cheap at roughly £50 a month, get placed in front of lots of people etc.

It was only after talking to a friend who said it could be a 'business publishing scam' that I started to panic. I'm probably a prime target for these being a very new company. My wife and I have made a lot of sacrifices to allow me to build up the capital to start this, and if I have indeed been scammed then I'll be deeply ashamed.

Anyone who knows more about Staff Discounts UK please share what you know, I'd be very grateful.

 

[tony84]

I dont think it is a scam, but I think the likelihood of it paying for itself is pretty slim.
I met up with them when starting out, when they gave me heir T&Cs, I needed a magnifying glass. I just thought that if a company needs that many T&Cs for something so basic then they are probably not a company I want to work with.

There are other versions, NHS and so on.

 

[APW]

The reviews on their Facebook page tell it’s own story.

I’d say scam based on that alone

 

[fisicx]

5 minutes on Google and it doesn't look good. Don't expect to get anything back for your £50. I doubt very much they will even publish your advert.

 

[BusterBloodvessel]

I’m confused about how they work. If they offer “exclusive discounts”, what were you paying £50 a month for? To get the discounts, or for your product/service to be promoted at a discount price?

 

[JamesPL]

Thanks for the replies. Yes, the deal was to get my products promoted and I had to give a special discount too. Wasn't too bothered about the discount side of things as I do that for most of my products anyway (I sell specialist parts for home appliances)

I still don't know if it's a scam or whether they're just not giving a good quality service. I'm going to be doing a bit of digging as to whether police federations/groups really are signed up with these people.

 

[obscure]

.....but when I discovered they also worked with police federations and several big companies (Merlin Group etc) I started to relax a bit.

Did the police tell you they work together or was it Staff Discounts UK Ltd?

It is what I refer to as an "under-performance scam". They promise that your ad will be seen by Union members/police/NHS/The Golf Club membership but if you go and ask any of these organisations they have never seen these magazines/promotions - or else the company distributes a whole 10 copies just so they can show you your advert, which no one will ever see.

 

[Newchodge]

I would contact Unite the Union and ask if they know anything about it. Ask for their membership benefits section. If they know nothing, then cancel the direct debit and don't pay again. Write and tell them that you have cancelled the contract because of their fraudulent misrepresentation with regard to Unite the Union.

In future, never, ever, sign a contract with any supplier, whether it comes from cold calling like this (which is usually dodgy) or whether you contacted them until you have read and understood every word of the contract, slept on it, read it again, and compared the contract with what the salesman offered. If the salesman and the contract differ, DON't sign it.

 

[Root 66 Woodshop]

Me personally, I love em... I let them give me all their spiel, waste as much of their time as possible... and then when the final crunch comes I tell them it's not my decision they'll have to send an email, once they send the email I reply back with:

Remove our companies details from your mailing list.



Sorry to hear you've been duped...

 

[The Byre]

A Police Federation spokesman said: “We do not endorse any company or product but we did engage with Staff Discounts to arrange discounts with reputable companies for our members. However, we became aware of issues around the company. As a result, we have terminated our relationship with them when the contract finishes in April 2011.”

 

[Blaby Loyal]

Me personally, I love em... I let them give me all their spiel, waste as much of their time as possible... and then when the final crunch comes I tell them it's not my decision they'll have to send an email, once they send the email I reply back with:

Remove our companies details from your mailing list.



Sorry to hear you've been duped...

Boom! - love it.

 

[Root 66 Woodshop]

So, very interesting indeed @The Byre

So Staff Discounts are obviously acting fraudulently yet the police do nothing to stop it?



Shame.

 

[Mr D]

So, very interesting indeed @The Byre

So Staff Discounts are obviously acting fraudulently yet the police do nothing to stop it?



Shame.

Civil or criminal matter?
Hard enough to get the police involved when someone chucks a brick through front window.

 

[Root 66 Woodshop]

I've sent the details to someone that deals with such companies via another sector of the police force, hopefully they'll be able to shed a bit of light on whether what they're doing is fraudulent or not...

 

[The Byre]

This kind of B2B scam relies on the scammer complying with the original contract to the letter, but not in spirit.

For example, the publishing, magazine, calendar, on-line listing, etc. scam. An advert does indeed get printed in some bogus publication, but nowhere is there any guarantee of distribution or circulation figures.

This scam is hundreds of years old and still people fall for it! But as they have (just) fulfilled their side of the contract, it remains a civil matter only. Honest it am not! But an outright criminal fraud it am not either!

That is why I always stress the importance of doing due diligence on EVERYBODY you do business with.

 

[Noah]

That is why I always stress the importance of doing due diligence on EVERYBODY you do business with.

I'll take that under advisement.

 

[Richard Dove]

I'm very new to business and I'll be honest the first few months have been a struggle. So when I got a call from Unite the Union offering to talk about joining their discount scheme I leapt at the opportunity.

Turned out it wasn't offered by Unite but rather a separate company called 'Staff Discounts UK Ltd' who work with them. I was suspicious, but when I discovered they also worked with police federations and several big companies (Merlin Group etc) I started to relax a bit. After all, wouldn't the police do their due diligence? I had a meeting with one of their sales people and I ended up signing a contract with them. Fairly cheap at roughly £50 a month, get placed in front of lots of people etc.

It was only after talking to a friend who said it could be a 'business publishing scam' that I started to panic. I'm probably a prime target for these being a very new company. My wife and I have made a lot of sacrifices to allow me to build up the capital to start this, and if I have indeed been scammed then I'll be deeply ashamed.

Anyone who knows more about Staff Discounts UK please share what you know, I'd be very grateful.

Bjjh

I'm very new to business and I'll be honest the first few months have been a struggle. So when I got a call from Unite the Union offering to talk about joining their discount scheme I leapt at the opportunity.

Turned out it wasn't offered by Unite but rather a separate company called 'Staff Discounts UK Ltd' who work with them. I was suspicious, but when I discovered they also worked with police federations and several big companies (Merlin Group etc) I started to relax a bit. After all, wouldn't the police do their due diligence? I had a meeting with one of their sales people and I ended up signing a contract with them. Fairly cheap at roughly £50 a month, get placed in front of lots of people etc.

It was only after talking to a friend who said it could be a 'business publishing scam' that I started to panic. I'm probably a prime target for these being a very new company. My wife and I have made a lot of sacrifices to allow me to build up the capital to start this, and if I have indeed been scammed then I'll be deeply ashamed.

Anyone who knows more about Staff Discounts UK please share what you know, I'd be very grateful.

They approached me last year ,l paid £756 for a year memebersip and not a single person turned up to buy anything from my shop. They said they ve had 2000 members and if l give them discount they would come and shop. Is there any way l can claim my money back ? It says on their contract that they do not guarantee if any member of the staff will come and shop but l haven't even had one,they would have asked for star discount and no one did . I think it a a scam ,legally set.

 

[Mr D]

Bjjh

They approached me last year ,l paid £756 for a year memebersip and not a single person turned up to buy anything from my shop. They said they ve had 2000 members and if l give them discount they would come and shop. Is there any way l can claim my money back ? It says on their contract that they do not guarantee if any member of the staff will come and shop but l haven't even had one,they would have asked for star discount and no one did . I think it a a scam ,legally set.

What have they promised in their contract?
2000 members - they may indeed have put something in front of those 2000 members however could be they don't want your products or you are too far away or have not bothered reading mailshot.
You tend to find these companies stick exactly to their contract. Not what they say, what you sign.

Next time investigate before signing. Afterwards may well turn out to be - not a scam - but not worth the money.

 

[MikeJ]

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