Anyone else seeing charges fo TODAY’S ESCAPES and PASSPORT TO FUN on their credit cards? Each charge is for $12.95. I have no idea how these got on the statement. I’m guessing I bought something online and this was some sort of ‘extra’ bonus I may have opted into. Immediately call the nubmers on your statement and cancel. You might have to workaround the phone menu but you’ll be able to cancel by phone. Later: Some sites are saying this might be from aggreeing to some of the helpful offers when ordering thru VistaPrint.
Update 20070424: Due to comment trolls I’ve closed comments on this post.
I am closing comments on this post to save the annoyance of everyone. The relevant information on removing yourself from these services has been posted several times. But remember that when you respond to idiots, it only spurs them on. You don’t have to bite your tongue, just don’t react.
I also got scammed by Passport to Fun.
This is how they scammed me.
I was signing up for the Disney DVD club online. Passport to fun is affiliated with Disney’s webservice and many other sites as well. So after signing up with Disney I was offered a $25 dollar gift certificate as appreciation for my business on Disney’s website. I want to make it clear that this was not a pop up window. To receive the $25 dollar gift all I had to do was enter my e-mail address as they already had all my information. There was NO disclaimer on the offer. But once I entered my e-mail I had somehow agreed to a free trial membership with Passport to fun without even knowing it and being that I did not receive any kind of e-mail verification as to my membership I did not call to cancel the membership. Hence the charges to my credit card.
My credit card company told me that these are valid transactions as companies such as Passport to Fun are affiliated with other online sites. So there is nothing they can do.
However after a four way call between myself, my attorney, my credit card company, and Passport to Fun I was able to have all my charges reimbursed. Though it was my credit card company who reimbursed me for the charges.
They can also get you by having you fill out online surveys for these websites. Pay attention when signing up for anything and never fill out surveys or gift offers affiliated with services you have ordered online. That really is the only way to avoid these kinds of scams.
Well this company is still stealing people info and money. I found 5 charges to my cc. thre of them were $1 charges on the 16 of feb and two charges of 19.95 on the 24 of feb. PassPorttofun, shopping essentials……and savingsmart.com.
I am sure I was dooped just as all of you the same way. I signed up for Stamps.com through and web offer and from that day I was being defrauded. I have called all the numbers and have had the cc reissued……but we as a whole group need to file charges to have these companies held for liabilty for their actions of stealing……They are flat out stealing and there has to be something we can do. Please anyone with a class action suit information please contact me. I am willing to pay to have these thieves jailed.
OBTW……..I signed up for the stamps.com on the 15 of feb. I was charged within just a 9 days. The offer says you have a 10 day grace period……..well do not believe them because they charged me before the time elapsed….without every sending me any notices of entering to any agreement.
I have since also canceled the stamps.com offer since I fill like they are part of this problem.
I have looked at http://www.adaptivemarketing.com/ and found that they are the owners of these scamming companies as well as being part of the etrust group.
How can we trust people like this?
SOMETING HAS GO TO BE DONE
JUST ANOTHER PISSED OFF VICTIM
I just found the same thing on my card today when I opened my new bill, I called the numbers on there and it says it’s cancelled, let’s see if it works… I’m just glad I caught it before it got any worse than this
and mine were for Passport to Fun Plus and Shopping Essentials Plus.
I also have the 1.00 charge from Saving Smart
but you get the run around on everything, bout irritating…. that class action suite still going?
After doing a survey for a company and in exchange I was to recieve a $25 gift certificate for Walmart. I did NOT agree to pay for a membership but according to passportoffun…I must have missed the $1 membership fee to get this suposed $25 gift certificate and an additional $19.95 that hit my checking account 7 days later.
Since I did not give any of my bank account info to this survey site, it makes me wonder how they actually got my account number?
I did manage to call them and tell them that I wanted the money back and the membership canceled. I also made sure to tell them that its a shame when you can do an internet search on passporttofun and the first thing that pops is are the mentions of scams.
look out for value plus they are out there too getting u the same way
The passport to fun charges also appeared on my credit card! I don’t know how it happened… it wasn’t through VistaPrint. I canceled the account in which the charges appeared, received a new account number, and the charges then began appearing on the new account. So, beware, a new account number may not solve your problem. I had to cancel my credit card completely.
Thank you to all of you because I was able to cancel my debit card before I saw the charges. I have recieved emails from Vista Print, Saving Smart, Today’s Escapes, Passport to Fun, AND Value Max! All thanking me for being a member. When I called the number listed here (1-888-840-6303), they knew exactly who I was but only had Value Max listed as the “only” membership I had. They cancelled that. But for fear of the other ones’ after reading this I quickly reported the issue to my debit card account and they issued me a new one.
It is so sad that no matter what we do or how safe we think we are, the internet can be a damaging and costly pain in the rear end.
I HAVE BEEN CHARGED 19.80 FROM OCTECT PLUS, AND PORT TO FUN ANOTHER 19.80. i AM SO MAD. WHAT CAN I DO TO GET MY MONEY BACK. I DON’T EVEN HAVE THE PHONE NUMBER OR ANY CONTACT INFORMATION TO SEE WHERE THIS IS COMING FROM. DOES ANYONE HAVE ANY INFORMATION THAT MAY HELP ME?
I got nailed too by TODAYSESCAPES the thieves -I called and asked them where they got my credit card number. They said it was through a banner ad – I can certify that I wasn’t even in the country FAR FAR away from the internet when this charge was made. Someone please put them behind bars…..
Got hit with the first charge of $14.95 for PTF last month. Called, cancelled and charges were reversed within a few days. Well, it’s a new month, and guess what – a new charge for $14.95 showed up when checking my on-line banking statement. My wife called and got a recorded message that said our membership had been cancelled. Really? Will now wait until Monday and repeat the process. Have no clue as to how they got my debit/credit card info. In reading Victoria’s comment from 26 Feb, cancelling the card for a new one may not even work. At a minimum, my state’s AG Consumer Affairs office will get a complaint, as well as my bank. Whether or not any of this makes a difference remains to be seen.
I have one of my CC for $14.95 from Passportof fun. I have no idea where it came from either but I can calling my credit card company and telling them that it is a charge I did not authorize and have them take it off.
For those who have been told by their credit card to send a certified letter to the PASS PORT OF FUN regarding unauthorized charges and have had a tough time getting the folks who answer the phone at 1-888-999-0557 tell you what their addres is, try this:
9500 West Dodge, Ohmaha, Nebraska 68114
First, let me say that you guys were a big help to me. I have this pre-paid credit card that I use on-line instead of my Credit card for security reasons. Everytime I reload it money just coming up missing! I called tonight and the rep from priva cash told me that right after I loaded it the last time “shopping Essentials Plus” and “passport to fun” both charged me 19.95 each! I very rarely use my prepaid card. I mostly use it for Netflix. He gave me a number for both companies but I am having a hard time getting a hold of anyone. I feel very used and pissed off! The rep from priva cash also told me that they have been charging me for months now! This sucks.
You know what! I was just reading something from someone about Disney DVD! I also signed up for that recently! I wonder if that is where it came from!
My CC company reversed my Dec. and Jan. charges from PPof Fun and VPREWARDSUS.COM, issued me a new card and told me everything was taken care of. Lo and behold, when I get my statement today, there are two more charges for Feb! This time, they refuse to do anything. In the mean time, the scum bags are laughing their heads off when they see so many of us being taken. May diarrhea be with them!
Just an idea, I know I will never give my credit card online, why do they ask for it when there is an add saying it is free. People, I just advise to read what you are clicking.
What goes around comes around…..that’s all I have to say. Know your destiny.
The sneaky part about them is they got our CC number after we purchased online from a company that was totally unrelated to them. We didn’t click on any ad banners or accept anything for free. They just stole our information including our card number, phone number and address!!! We did not give them our information directly and they were not offering me anything for free. I didn’t even know of their existence.
I was also charged for Passport for Fun two different time once in January and once in March, both for $14.95. I have not recently used Travelocity but I have bought business cards thru Vista Print. Not sure if it came from there or not. But I called them and they immediately refunded my two charges and canceled my membership. Not sure how I even had a membership, This is outrageous. But my refund should be credited within 2 days . We will see.
These people are not amateurs. They are assholes. They are gonna reap what they sow!
I will never again even CLICK on (let alone take part in) any “special offers”, “polls”, etc… As the saying goes, there’s no such thing as a free lunch. Noone is going to give you a free $25 Walmart gift card, free DVD, etc… In the future, I will only give my credit card # to reputable companies, such as Gap, Banana Republic, etc… Companies that stand behind their online purchasing. Tell your kids & your relatives to do the same. Hopefully over time, everyone will have been burned enough to wise up to these scammers, and put them out of business. I know I’ve certainly learned my lesson. NEVER CLICK ON SOMETHING YOU DON’T KNOW…. Good luck, everyone!
I just looked at my acount activity and found two charges of 14.95 on there. One was from Passport to fun and the other was At Home Rewards. Thanks to this website i got a number to call and cancel and demand my money back. They were trying to tell me that i had indeed verified these charges when i signed up for time magazine. I just kept repeating the following phrase “I did not authorize this and i want my money back” the man finally said that he would reimburse me and cancel my subscription. Just think for every one person that catches this, there are a lot more who do not. This guy is making some serious money from stealing and he needs to be in jail.
Add Orbitz to your list of scammers! Passport just slammed my account for $24.95
Watch out for credit reporting agencies also!!!
Yes, I feel stupid too! I thought that I was going to be getting a $1000 gift certificate to Target, but oh no I didn’t. They first had me sign up for all of these super deals and for some reason I’m still paying…NOT GETTING ANYTHING! I’ve talked on the phone to many people trying to clear my name, but new people keep on charging me. The latest is David J. Luiz this month for $19. Shopping Essentials was last month for $19.95 and Today Escapes has been all three months for a total of $59.85. I’m not rich so please stop!!! I’m calling the number that I got from this website – 1-888-999-0557. Thanks!
Jill, Have you called all of the asswipe companies? Look on your CC statement and their phone numbers should be below their names. Call all of them to cancel and to get the charges refunded back to your credit card!! I’ve read on this site that some will only go back 2 months. HURRY AND DO THIS NOW!! I called my CC company and asked to block them from charging, and they said they could’nt do it. So, read your statements VERY CAREFULLY EVERY DAY OR WEEK. I’M WAITING FOR THEM TO CHARGE ME AGAIN. Good luck and time is of the essence here.!!
3/11/07 I forgot something, Jill, they will try to reel you in again on the phone by making you other deals. JUST SAY NOOOO!!!!!!
I was lucky to have had money in my account. I called the number that was on my bank account. It was disconnected. I did a search on line, and found this site. Thank you btw. They could not find account. Sent me to a suprervisor, who refunded said they will refund my money in 2 days. We will see
Those Bastards got me also!!!
ATHOMEREWARDS 8884255874 CT $1.00
SAVINGSMART 8003168774 CT $1.00
TRIAL HOME BNI 8003331915 CA $1.00
ATHOMEREWARDS 8884255874 CT $19.95
BARGAIN HOME W 8003331915 CA $39.80
PURCH+FIN.CH &PERIODIC RATE $ 5.42
SAVINGSMART 8003168774 CT $1.00
ATHOMEREWARDS 8884255874 CT $19.95
BARGAIN HOME W 8003331915 CA $39.80
PURCH+FIN.CH &PERIODIC RATE $ 6.45
Those Bastards! Look at all the same telephone numbers.
Is that Class Action Suit Still active, if so please let me know.
My Credit Card Company Citicards said they would reimburse me 100% so we’ll see. They said after they investigate my “application” which I mailed a few days ago.
THESE CREEPS HAVE GOT TO BE STOPPED. I’M ALSO GOING TO CONTACT ALL INVOLVED bbb, aTT’Y gENERALS AND dIST. aTTORNEYS.
jOE mCdONALD, bOX 61, yULAN, ny 12792
These creeps have been billing my credit card for $14.95 for the past year!! I learned my lesson the hard way. Always just paid the cc bill without looking until the last time. Wow! I did inform the cc company and they have launched an investigation but could only refund the last 6 months. I have also purchased the credit protection now that monitors all unauthorized charges.
I forgot to add in my earlier comment that I did use the Vistaprint site a while back and I believe that it is from that site they took my info.
I’m so mad about this!! I just emailed my local news organization to get media attention if it hasn’t already received. I cannot believe that I called the number and was hung up on the first time I called! The next time, they finally gave me my money back. They didn’t even ask why I was calling, Just assumed it was to receive my money back. Very assumptive of wrongdoing. also, there appears to be a variance in what they charge, as I was asked on four different occasions how much I was charged.
Joe Here Again!
Let’s get a bit more info out there to all of you. I mailed five letters today to the 5 comnpanies that put unauthorized charges on my account, namely:
ATHOMEREWARDS
SAVINGSMART
TRIAL HOME BNI
BARGAIN HOME W
BARGAIN NETWORK & BARGAIN NETWORK, INC.
Here is an email address you should contact: It is to the CEO of BNI. his name is Norm Dominguez and his private email is Norm@bni.com. His fax is 909-608-7676. his telephone number is 909-608-7575.
Address of BNI is 545 College Commeerce Way, Upland, CA. 91786 and that offices numbers are tel. 1-800-825-8286 and their fax is 1-909-608-7676.
Seeing that these Bastards are from NY, CT and CA. I have also written all those States AG’s.
namely: Attorney General Hon. Andrew M. Cuomo, the Capital, Albany, NY 12224-0341;
Attorney General Hon. Richard Blumenthal, Office of the 55 Elm Street, Hartford, CT. 06106; and Attorney General Hon. Edmund G. Brown, Jr. Department of Justice, PO Box 944255, Sacramento, CA. 94244-2550.
And lastly, I just received my first rtesponse! It is from info@adaptivemarketing.com
re: Comments from Adaptive Marketing LLC Web Site (#1513024), which states :
” Thank you for contacting Member Savings. You will hear back from us shortly. Please expect a response within 1 to 2 business says. In the event you need to contact us regarding this inquiry, please refer to the case number at the top of this message.
Member Savings Representatives are available to respond to messages Monday through Friday 7:00a.m. to 7:00 p.m. Central Standard Time, excluding holidays.
This is an automated response. Please do not reply to this message. You will hear from one of our staff shortly.”
SCREW THEM, i’m already in touch with Citicard, all Attorney Generals, all BBBureaus, all Distrrict Attorney’s and all of those companies that billed my credit card account with no authorization.
Here’s a good suggestion!
Why don’t we contact TV and get Coverage. I often watch John Duesman and that other retired Detective on Channel’s 5 and 9 I think it is. they are looking for just these type of stories. Oh Ya, Arnold Diaz also in SHAME ON YOU. Let’s contact them! If you do ask them to contact me at 845-557-6785.
These companies have no idea who they’ll dealing with! I’n a retired BDeputy Sheriff and spent over 20 years in enforcement. they have NO IDEA how far i’ll go to get back just those $1.00 charges. I’ll spend $100.00.
LETSA KEEP AT THEM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Joe
Joe Here Again;
GOOD NEWS.
I received a call from NYS Attorney General’s Office already. They’re interested in our plight!
I’m to send them as much more info as i can.
In addition keep at it with channel 5, 9 and 11 hotlines. As well as with any and all other news channel’s that may “put us on the air”! Joe
I do not know how these people got my credit card number. I rarely order anything on line. However, everything that everyone has said is true about me. In the last year I did book a reservation, did buy on line one or two things. But there is a huge time span for what i charged and now the Pastport to fun company charging things to me. I called my credit card company. The pastport to fun didnot even have the account in my name.
I am upset. I will no longer use the internet to purchase.
these fuckers really piss me offfff my GOD
HAVING COMMUNICATED WITH NY, CT & CA ATTORNEY GENELRALS AND ALL THOSE BASTARD COMPANIES INVOLVED I AM NOW ATTEMPTING TO CONTACT JOHN DUESMAN AND/OR ARNOLD DIAZ OF CHANNEL 5 FOX NEWS. I WENT ONLINE WITH MyFoxNY.com and was successful in typing a complaint to them. let’s see what happens with that?
One other thing, being in touch with the BBBureaus of NY, CT and CA I was told it’s better to deal with the Federal Trade Commission, so I am trying to contact them also.
LET US ALL KEEP TRYING TO PUT THESE BASTARDS IN JAIL, WHERE THEY BELONG. ……………STAY TUNED. Joe
OK, I just called PRICE STORE (affiliate of Bargain Network) and the guy LIED and said I never had an account there. When I told him “No, no.. I DEFINITELY just got an email from Price Store with my membership ID” he remained adamant. Even when I gave him the membership ID # from the e-mail, he conveniently “couldn’t locate any account information” and insisted that I did not have an account. AND he even accused me of calling the wrong number- He said I must have called Bargain Network and I should have called 1-800-211-0000. There was quite an awkward silence when I matter-of-factly told him that that was the exact number I had dialed to reach him. I even heard other “representatives” in the background answering “Hi, thank you for calling BARGAIN NETWORK!”
I then called Bargain Network and out of sheer luck, I got a supervisor, who has access to BOTH company’s account databases (which was probably a load of shit, everyone probably has access to both), and he confirmed that I DID INDEED have an account with price store. He canceled both accounts for me.
BE CAREFUL! These people have no qualms about lying to you in order to rip you off! If you feel that you signed up for it… even if their fee isn’t on your credit card (it wasn’t on mine, though the first guy tried to use that as “proof” that I didn’t have an account)… then don’t listen to them! Ask for a supervisor or call as many times as it takes to get an honest answer. I hope you find this information helpful!
Good luck!
I have joined memberships like that before. The most confusing thing is when you click on one of their links to get your prize, they try to get you to join yet another club using your credit card number you submitted earlier.
Part of the way they make money is they automatically charge you renewal fees and membership fees. Unless your vigilant about keeping track of how many days you have left on your membership so you can cancel you’ll be sorry.
That being said I have received more gift cards than I have spent in membership fees. Lately, what I’ve been doing to protect my credit from their automatic charges is I purchase american express gift cards in small $ increments. After 30 days when I cancel, they will be unable to charge me automatically.
Another thing is those 7 day memberships aren’t worth it. After two or three days you get an email to redeem your gift card. You request for them to mail you a form, which unless you can mail it and they process it while your still a member, no gift card for you!
SECRET TO OUTWITTING these companies.
If you join, buy a credit card/gift card. Make sure it’s used up before they try to charge you again. Yes I have received my free gift cards from companies like complete home, but I don’t trust them enough to give them my credit card, especially when I see a lot of these companies have so many complaints and they are owned by the same companies.
OK so this sucks!! I have used vistaprint, enough times that I am a preferred member, to order my business cards. Now I see that I have two charges on my credit card bill for $14.95 each. I am very very upset and will NEVER use vistaprint again! I also plan to not only cancel my “membership” but to call the credit card company and telling them that I did not authorize the charges so that I can get my money back and “Passport to Fun” will also be charged!! DON’T LET THEM GET AWAY WITH THIS!! TAKE MONEY FROM THEM BY CALLING YOUR CREDIT CARD COMPANY!!!
VistaPrint sucks.
I tried to use their Free Website and inputted my CC number.
Now I called 5 times to cancel it but they put me on holds for hours and finally told me that they can not cancel it. I have to wait their tech support call back.
Really Annoyed
I noticed Charges and it goes back 3 months so I called to cancel, they cancelled it, but did not refund the charges, I called back to speak to an operator and I cannot speak to anyone because the account has been cancelled. I was scammed on the Passport to Fun for 14.95 per month.
When you call the 1-800 number it gives you the option to cancel the account, but nothing about refunding charges.
I have turned them over to the Attorney General in my state.
It’s time we all took action to shut down this so called business. I just found out today that they have been taking money out of my bank account since January 2006. I demanded a refund and they told me that they will. If they don’t WILL file a law suit.
When I saw the charge for Today’s Escapes on my credit card, I tried calling the 800 number to cancel and I got the message that the number has been changed to an international number (which was then given). I’m not making an international call to cancel something that I didn’t order! I contacted my CC company and they have permanently reversed the charge and it is now in dispute with Today’s Escapes. If it shows up again I will let my card company know that its a fraudulent charge and if necessary have my acct closed and a new card sent.
Hi Shelly. Try this number: 1-888-840-6303. If it won’t accecpt your number then type in a fake number. If that don’t happen, try again.
After that – good luck. I’m sorry – I feel for you. Please think of something else to do and when you do, please share.
These scumbags are thieves and have stolen over $500.00 from me and I am in the mood to kick some ass.
One thing I’ve started to to was to bug the shit out of reporter to expose this business. Please do the same.
Guys and gals I work for a bank and I have been getting calls with these guys on cusotmers profile all the time. one thing I didn’t see listed but maybe I missed, please ask your bank to close your debit/credit card and have a new one issued. They can’t charge your card anymore if they don’t have your card info any longer. I know that doesn’t help get your money back but it’s a way to prevent any further loss. Man I feel soo bad for you all I hope they put these passport ppl in a prison with lots of horny men
I had my CC account closed and a new card/number issued. New charges still appeared on my new account statement. Go figure!
Vista prints 14.95 twice this month now. I bought some buisness cards and kinda remember a bunch of adds afterward that would not stop popping up or let me submitt my order.