Mail Offers May Confuse Recipients
Question: I am enclosing the original of a “document” that I received in my rural mailbox recently. I’ve seen some come-ons in my time, but this bit of deception borders on blatant fraud.
Older people receiving something like this might well feel that they would have to declare and pay income tax as a result of it. You and I both know that this is harmless, but what about the gullible multitudes? I’ve shown it to several friends (elderly) and they were quite put off by it.--G.A.D.
Answer: What we’ve got here is an official-looking “window” envelope with a couple of grim references to the appropriate “United State Code” penalties having to do with the obstruction and/or theft of U.S. mail. But the really official look is in the large-type notification on the face of the envelope: “Exemplification of Internal Revenue Service Tax Form Enclosed,” and, under it, “Do Not Miss the 4-7-89 Deadline.”
Inside is a replica of IRS Form 1099 (“Miscellaneous Income”) with the addressee’s name and address neatly typed in the proper space and, in Box No. 3 (“Prizes and Awards”) the figure $7,500 is also typed.
The enclosed letter contains this sentence: “The IRS requires that major prizes and awards be reported on Form 1099. As the recipient of a major item, you must report its cash value as miscellaneous income on your U.S. Individual Income Tax Return for the year in which you received said sum. We have prepared the above example of Form 1099 to illustrate the IRS report.”
And, when we flip the page over, what we have is the same old time-share come-on: If you make an appointment to visit the time-share development and agree to subject yourself to a grueling sales pitch, then you may win a valuable prize-- a new Mercedes, or a home computer, or the Island of Guam, or seven partridges in a pear tree.
Nothing Illegal
Unfortunately--tacky, or not--there’s nothing illegal about the practice. “Anyone can reproduce any IRS form,” a spokesperson for the government agency said.
And, it has to be noted in all fairness, the look-alike Form 1099 does carry the notation: “Example only. This form is intended to be used for internal processing of major prize winners. Do not file this form with the Internal Revenue Service. Upon receipt of any major awards the required tax form shall be presented to you.”
Nor is it a violation of any postal laws, according to Steve Schneringer, the Postal Service’s Pasadena-based expert on consumer mail fraud.
“Because it’s not illegal,” he added, “about the only chance we would have would be to move against them on a civil basis and try to convince a judge that the mailing is misleading.” But it’s a thin hope, he admitted.
The big tip-off in any mailing like this, of course, is to be found in the upper right-hand corner of the envelope in which it was mailed: No government agency in the country uses a “Bulk Rate” mailing permit.
Let’s hope that everyone receiving it is as perceptive as your friends were and see through it equally clearly.
Q: Last October, I purchased a diet product called Fitness Images. I faithfully used this product and followed their diet to a T. I had not lost any weight, so in November, I returned the product. Shortly after that I received a phone call from Rickey Effron, the distributor, from whom I had purchased this product. She said she was not going to refund my money and was sending the pills back.
I spent $207 on this diet program. She told me that for an additional $50 I could buy the “booster” pill, which would make the original pills work better. I told her I was not going to give her another dime, and why isn’t this booster pill sold with the original order? I called the company’s Beverly Hills office, at Ms. Effron’s suggestion, and left a message and so far no one has called me back.
I cannot afford to lose $207, nor can I afford another $50 for the booster. Can you help?--A.B.
A: I hate to be a nag, but did you consult your doctor before embarking on this diet pill routine? Secondly, there’s no pill made that is going to trim off excess fat. It’s a matter of self-discipline: a medically approved and supervised diet and/or a regimen of exercise.
Diet Supplement
And Rickey Effron, the Encino-based distributor for Fitness Images, concurs with this. “It’s a diet program built around the pills, which are a diet supplement made up of herbs, vitamins, minerals and an appetite suppressant.”
Because you returned 2 1/2 cans of pills--making up a 3-month supply--Effron concludes that you gave up on the program after only two weeks.
The problem arises here, Effron feels, “because she obviously wanted a magic, and immediate, weight loss. And there’s no such thing.”
And diet pills, like any other merchandise sold without warranties or guarantees, are non-refundable. Write if off to experience and, next time, see your doctor first.
