Yet another scam.

[Das Pirate]

Hello, this is my first time really ever using this site besides browsing it once or twice. My mother nearly fell victim to a common scam and I want to just know how to really report this. The scary part is it has all the labels of Royal Caribbean International. I've seen this years ago posted and I am myself wondering the truth behind these "Complimentary Postcards." I'm going to attach the images I've scanned of this post card for you all to look at. Any help or information would gladly be appreciated.

*Areas blacked out are to protect information.

(Photo removed as per Forum Rules, will be replaced with link. -LP)

[Das Pirate]

I know this is a noted thing, but is there anything we can really do about it to end this?

[poormom]

If you do a google search of the phone number, you'll find numerous threads, Apparently thet are a 'discounted travel company' You pay a fortune to be in their club, and they give you vacations that you can get everywhere else for the same price. I think technically, they're not doing anything illegal if you willingly hand them your payment. You could try contacting your attorney general, but they don't list the company name on the mailer.
Do some people really fall for theses scams? How do companies like this make money? Any time some one asks for my license and credit card for a 'free' anything, a big red flag goes up!!!

[LisaP]

Two suggestions to add to poormom's excellent one about contacting the Attorney General. First, contact the office in your state that deals with Elder Affairs / Elder Abuse. Second, contact your state's office of Consumer Affairs. (Both might be within the Attorney General's office, yet they're more targeted.) Also, contact the Better Business Bureau. I haven't done either. You can do a reverse phone look-up for the name of the company. (Putting on the Administrator hat, don't list the company name here -- we don't want any trouble with them.)

Now, they do mention in the fine print that the offer is not associated with the cruise line nor the airline. Still, the AG's office (or Elder Affairs/Consumer Affairs) is likely to have a checklist of ways to spot a scam and what to do if you fall for it.

Good luck!

[Das Pirate]

Thank you for the quick responses, I will try these things in the near future and send the word out to anyone else who gets on these mailing lists.