GPM*MERCHANDISE DIRECT - Snuggie Very Deceptive from the start. Hidden fees, outrageous S&H and repeated charges. You DO NOT get what you pay for! Beware of this SCAM. Wallingford Connecticut

I attempted to order the Snuggie from the website on 1/27/09. Thought it would be a good product for my wife. From the very start, the website is not user friendly. The ad for the product along with a video are all on the same page as the entry tabs for billing info. The inital $19.95 + $7.95 S&H is the first part of the scheme.

The company says that they will send you a sencond Snuggie when you purchase one. You DO NOT have the option to buy just one, you have to get both or none at all. So the inital price you think you will pay of $27.94 actually adds up to $35.85 because you have to buy both. They convienently offer free book lights for each of the Snuggie's that you buy. To add further insult, on the website as you continue entering you payment method and info, the company offers to upgrade your Snuggie to a "thicker" fleece for another additional $5. At this point I became discouraged with this company and site.

There is no way to back out of your menus or this site once you get to this point other than to close your Internet Browser all the way. The way the website is setup you can only go forward in the menus through checkout. It is not what it appears. I consider myself computer savvy so I couldn't imagine what others have experienced with this who may not be.

After closing out all the menus before confirming my order and deciding I did not want to pay the $35.85 for this garbage I thought all was well. I was still charged the $35.85 on my credit card statement the same day. Luckily I used a prepaid credit card with only $30 on it (since I thought initially that I was only going to be paying $27.95) and my card declined it for insufficient funds.

This company not only continued to collect this money but the next week on 2/02/09 I was charged $35.85 and an additional $97.55! This total of $133 continued to be charged to my card on 2/09/09 and on 2/16/09 from Snuggie's billing company called GPM*MERCHANDISE DIRECT. I also noted that on the bottom right corner of the Snuggie website there is a customer service link next to privacy policies tab.

This tab states in black and white that:
"Your credit card will not be charged until your order ships"WHAT A BUNCH OF CRAP!

I called the Snuggie customer service at 1-800-663-8166 and spoke with a lady named Christina of whom I informed her of my outrage and demanded my order be cancelled. I made sure to ask for some type of a confirmation number of my cancellation of which she belted out a 17 digit number to me and said my order was officially cancelled.
I requested to Christina that I wanted the phone number for this GPM*MERCHANDISE DIRECT of which she told me was 866-430-8155.

I hung up with her and attempted to call GPM*MERCHANDISE DIRECT but it was after hours and all I got was a brief and vauge message stating: "Thank you for calling customer service we are now closed" It gave normal buisness hours and then hung up. Not suprising, it did not state the name of the company.

I am so furious with this company and its affiliates for its outright deception. I urge anyone considering purchasing from this company to not waste your time. HUGE SCAM!!!

Here is the contact information for Snuggie if you or others you know are getting duped. If you have to cancel an order, make sure you ask for a confirmation number and the name of the operator you are talking to.

Snuggie
P.O. Box 3179
Wallingford, CT 06494
1-800-663-8166

Matt
Portland, Oregon
U.S.A.