ClubWhiteSmile scammed $120.99 from me through a so-called FREE Apple iPhone 6s offer via a phony news article. Frederiksberg, Denmark Internet

About 3 weeks ago I saw, what I thought was, a news report from the Daily Mail or maybe Globe and Mail (I can't quite remember which one). It was a news article entitled "Canadians getting the Apple iPhone for $1" (or something similar). Because I thought it was a news site, I assumed the ad was actually legitimate. Anyway, I proceeded to sign up to get my iPhone 6s from Apple. All I needed to do was pay for the $1.99 shipping. I should've known it was too good to be true.

There was no mention of ClubWhiteSmile anywhere, or their terms and conditions, otherwise I assure you that I would've read them and would not have proceeded any further. Now, skip ahead to about 3 weeks later... my husband is balancing our bank statements the other day and sees 2 mysterious charges on our Visa. There's one for $1.99 on Nov.25, and one for $119.00 on Nov.28, both from ClubWhiteSmile, who neither of us have heard of. My husband contacts the bank, and the Bank looks up ClubWhiteSmile. They inform him that "the charges would be related to a free product offer for a smartphone that was accepted."

That's when I recall the FREE iPhone offer, and mention it to my husband. The banker goes on to say, "In the terms of the offer, the merchant states that you are being signed up for a three-day trial for ClubWhiteSmile and that if you do not cancel, you are billed for a membership at $119.00 and this is subject to automatic renewal. If you accepted the phone offer, we have no right to intervene. The merchant request for payment is valid because you authorized continual payments for an ongoing service that you made no effort to cancel." So, even though I signed up for something that I had no idea I was signing up for, as there were no terms and conditions of that contract to view, and the name of the company was even fake, I was still expected to cancel a contract that I wasn't even aware that I had. So far, Visa hasn't been very co-operative in reversing the charges.

Since finding out about ClubWhiteSmile, I have gone to their website and reviewed their terms and conditions. They have never sent me the iPhone or 'welcome gift', nor did they send this 'welcome email' that they mention. If you don't receive the 'welcome email', a person is not aware that they are signed up for anything or can access their site, so therefore they do not have the opportunity to cancel any subscription (how convenient for them!).

In their terms and conditions, it states "by registering with ClubWhiteSmile, you TYPICALLY receive a welcome gift. In order to ensure you receive this, please follow the instructions that come in the welcome e-mail. The welcome gift will not be sent automatically to prevent wrong deliveries and fraud. Therefore, you must confirm your information online on our website if you want to receive the welcome gift. If you cancel your trial subscription within 1 day or if we are NOT able to charge the credit card, the welcome gift will not be shipped. Now they are saying you "TYPICALLY receive a welcome gift". But, you have to follow the instructions in the email... the same email that they WON'T send you. So, the gift won't be automatically sent unless you confirm your information online, but they won't send you the email in order to do this.

They also say in their terms in conditions the following: "If you wish to use your right of withdrawal you should contact our customer service immediately after your purchase by phone (+1 6133663413) to inform that you wish to withdraw your purchase. You will hereafter have your subscription cancelled and a form will be sent to you, which you must fill out and return. Since you have entered into an agreement on a subscription, you only have a right of withdrawal when the agreement is entered into, and NOT in relation to the on-going payment." So, does this mean they will cancel your subscription, but they will still keep taking your money??!!!

Anyway, they must've forgot that WE have laws and rules in Alberta, Canada too because I have rights and I am getting MY money back from these CROOKS!!!! We have the Province of Alberta FAIR TRADING ACT - Internet Sales Contract Regulation. It states that I have a right to cancel my contract if the supplier does not provide me with the appropriate information (i.e. copy of the contract, etc.). I also have a right to have my money refunded, so we'll see who will win in the end. ;-) I am going to fight this.