Prize Offers: You Don’t Have to Pay to Play!

Prize Offers: You Don’t Have to Pay to Play!:
Here is another article that we found on the Internet that we think would be of interest to our members.



Telephone Solicitations

Telemarketers frequently use sweepstakes and prize contests to sell magazines or other goods and services. These telemarketers make an initial contact with consumers through 'cold calls,' or take calls from consumers who are responding to a solicitation they received by mail.

The Telemarketing Sales Rule helps protect consumers from fraudulent telemarketers who use prize promotions as a lure. In every telemarketing call involving a prize promotion, the law requires telemarketers to tell you:

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the odds of winning a prize. If the odds can't be determined in advance, the promoter must tell you the factors used to calculate the odds.
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that you don't have to pay a fee or buy something to win a prize or participate in the promotion.
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if you ask, how to participate in the contest without buying or paying anything.
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what you'll have to pay or the conditions you'll have to meet to receive or redeem a prize.

The Telemarketing Sales Rule prohibits telemarketers from misrepresenting any of these facts, as well as the nature or value of the prizes. It also requires telemarketers who call you to pitch a prize promotion to tell you before they describe the prize that you don't have to"

Prize Offers: You Don’t Have to Pay to Play!

Prize Offers: You Don’t Have to Pay to Play! - Consumer Protections:
"Several consumer laws help protect consumers against fraudulent sweepstakes and prize offers promoted through the mail or by phone."

Prize Offers cont'd: You Don’t Have to Pay to Play!

Prize Offers: You Don’t Have to Pay to Play!: "Skill Contests
There's one notable exception: skill contests. These are puzzles, games or other contests in which prizes are awarded based on skill, knowledge or talent - not on chance. Contestants might be required to write a jingle, solve a puzzle or answer questions correctly to win.

Unlike sweepstakes, skill contests may legally require contestants to buy something or make a payment or donation to enter.

It's important to recognize that many consumers are deceptively lured into playing skill contests by easy initial questions or puzzles. Once they've sent their money and become 'hooked,' the questions get harder and the entry fees get steeper. Entrants in these contests rarely receive anything for their money and effort."

So as we always say here at MyFreeSweeps.com, "you do not need to pay to play".

More of the "You Don’t Have to Pay to Play!" series

"And The Winner Is...

Everyone loves to be a winner. A recent research poll showed that more than half of all American adults entered sweepstakes within the past year. Most of these contests were run by reputable marketers and non-profit organizations to promote their products and services. Some lucky winners received millions of dollars or valuable prizes.

Capitalizing on the popularity of these offers, some con artists disguise their schemes to look legitimate. And an alarming number of people take the bait. Every day, consumers throughout the United States lose thousands of dollars to unscrupulous prize promoters. During 1999 alone, the Federal Trade Commission received more than 10,000 complaints from consumers about gifts, sweepstakes and prize promotions. Many received telephone calls or postcards telling them they'd won a big prize - only to find out that to claim it, they had to buy something or pay as much as $10,000 in fees or other charges.

There's a big difference between legitimate sweepstakes and fraudulent ones. Prizes in legitimate contests are awarded solely by chance, and contestants don't have to pay a fee or buy something to enter or increase their odds of winning. In fraudulent schemes, however, 'winners' almost always have to dip into their pockets to enter a contest or collect their 'prize.'"

Once again, if you are ever contacted by a supposed company by phone/email/mail never ever give them your credit card information. It is against the law and probably a fraud waiting to happen.

"You don't have to pay to Play" series

Congratulations, it's your lucky day! You've just won $5,000! You're guaranteed to win a fabulous diamond ring, luxury vacation or all-terrain vehicle!

If you receive a letter or phone call with a message like this, be skeptical. The $5,000 "prize" may cost you hundreds of dollars in taxes or service charges - and never arrive. Your "fabulous" prize may not be worth collecting. The diamond is likely to be the size of a pinhead. The "vacation" could be one night in a seedy motel, and the ATV, nothing more than a lounge chair on wheels!

Scam artists often use the promise of a valuable prize or award to entice consumers to send money, buy overpriced products or services, or contribute to bogus charities. People who fall for their ploys may end up paying far more than their "prizes" are worth, if they get a prize at all.

What these people are likely to get - especially if they signed up for a contest drawing at a public place or event - may be more than they bargained for: more promotions in the mail, more telemarketing calls and more unsolicited commercial email, or "spam." This is because many prize promoters sell the information they collect to advertisers.

Worse yet, contest entrants might subject themselves to a bogus prize promotion scam. So the moral of the story is if ANY company asks you to send money or asks for your credit card information DON'T DO IT.