How I Got Ripped Off by the Bedford Fair VIP Plus Scam

Looks like so many people got scammed by the Bedford Fair VIP Plus they don’t allow new members.

Nobody sets out to willingly become a victim of the Bedford Fair VIP Plus Scam. It happens by accident to most of us, I believe. Hopefully by me writing this blog, it won’t happen to you. The money is not enough to go after the company to get it. It’s not worth complaining to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau because that arm of the government has come under attack by our present administration.

Doubt the government cares about such ripoffs like the Bedford Fair VIP Plus Scam. They probably applaud the slickness. To start with, this is not a website I would usually shop at. I tend to stick to familiar websites and luxury brands. But I was looking for “old lady shorts” and didn’t want to spend a lot of money on this purchase. Liz Claiborne used to make “old lady shorts” and then about 20 years ago she stopped.

Old lady shorts are light-weight flannel with an elastic waist and drawstring. It’s like jogging pants, only shorts and roomier. Easy to step out of, no fussing with zippers or snaps or buttons. And the only place I could find this product was at Bedford Fair. They were cheap, too, like $15. So I bought a bunch in a variety of sizes.

How You Get Suckered into the Bedford Fair VIP Plus Scam

Bedford Fair then offered me a discount, and said I could apply a $15.00 credit toward my purchase. Like most people, I’m a sucker for good deal so I said OK. Little did I realize that I was being sucked into the Bedford Fair VIP Plus Scam. They applied my discount and that was that. They had my gmail address but I did not set up an account.

Yesterday, I noticed on my November credit card a charge of $14.97 for the Bedford Fair VIP Plus scam. Hmmm . . . seems I had noticed that before, if memory serves. Yes, on my October statement, and I had planned to check it out but forgot about it. It started in September, I think because I recall wondering if it was a charge for a single shipment.

Turns out for a good 3 months, Bedford Fair has been collecting $14.97 a month from me. For what? I searched my gmail account for a “welcome” notice and there was none. Oh, wait, what is this, in my promotions folder? Back in August, an email that laid out the entire program which, if I had received the email, I would have immediately canceled.

Well, it’s my own fault for getting suckered on a slick website. But I know when the discount offer applied to my last purchase, none of the terms was disclosed in the offer.

I’m generally pretty thorough. I don’t click on links by mistake and I pay attention to my shopping online. But this little gimmick has tricked a lot of people, it seems. I never got anything for it except I’m out 45 bucks and I learned a good lesson I won’t repeat.

On top of all this, their old lady shorts don’t fit well. The small is too small and the medium is too big, and the length is too long. So it wasn’t a good choice anyway. Wouldn’t be surprised if they were made in China. My suggestion is if you want to buy cheap clothing, go to Target.