Of course, most everyone has
received chain letters sometime in their lifetime and if you are in the
mailorder business you should get several every day as a minimum. Chain letters
are illegal and do not work anyway. Need we say more?
We've all seen the ads offering job placement
and job opportunities. Most of them are legitimate but some are 100% non
existent or complete misrepresentations. Do not spend your money for the
required fee until you have checked with your local Citizen Advice Bureau or
Trading Standards Office.
Then there are those who promise huge profits
without risk in commodities, stocks, oil, gold, silver or coins, through the
mail or over the telephone.
There are hundreds of very fine investment opportunities
offered but you can't risk your hard earned cash, or in some cases people have lost
their life savings to mail order or telephone swindlers.
Several of the larger, well recognised firms
have gone bankrupt through internal fraud and management manipulations carrying
their client's investments right down the drain with them.
Always use caution and investigate the
company thoroughly before you put up one penny.
Another favourite of the crooks is home improvements.
Quite often you never see them after you sign a contract and pay them a deposit
to do the work. If they send you brochures through the post and the work they
perform is not as represented by the information it could constitute mail
fraud. Get estimates from local service companies to determine if the price of the
mailorder offering is reasonable and in line. Check the references of the
organisation.
The laws, regulations and paperwork involved
in setting up franchise operations are horrendous. Various large distributorships
are equally difficult to establish but generally do not have to conform to near
as many controls and regulations.
On the other hand, some mail order distributorships
and wholesale outlets require very little effort and the home company has little
control over their activities. If profits promised are unrealistic or if the
product or service is secondary to selling the franchise or distributorship,
proceed with caution.
When the mails are used to intentionally misrepresent
a product or service it constitutes Mail Fraud. The Royal Mail Postal
Inspection Service is charged with investigating violations of law, usually in
response to consumer complaints.
The best way to protect yourself from Mail
Fraud is to recognise that it is fraud and not become involved. This is not
easy to do because of the attractive wording in the deceptive ads. Anything that
sounds too good to believe is suspect. Medical formulas and gadgets that make
insane promises are probably insane and you should stay away from them.
Especially be cautious regarding some of the thousands of different weight loss
products and overnight cures.
Never purchase land through a mailorder ad
unless you or your personal representitive has seen the land, to determine if
it is as represented and that the value is there. If the sales person has shown
you the property report you can cancel your purchase agreement within seven
days. If no report was shown to you before signing an agreement you have the
right to cancel out within two years.
There are a number of insurance frauds
floating through the mails. Requests to sign blank insurance forms, last chance
bargain offers, payments in advance and cash payment requirements could
indicate a con artist at work.
