January 8, 2019 – Consistently, leading off New Year Resolutions for Americans is weight loss. Year after year, we recommit to eating healthier, getting more exercise and dropping the pounds. Too often, however, it’s mostly our wallets that thin down. Scammers and schemers seem to make their own resolutions involving getting as much of our money as possible. Your Better Business Bureau (BBB) examines some of the weight loss pitfalls that consumers should be aware of as they try to honor their get-healthier resolutions. The temptation is strong to try some of the many “miracle” products that claim to help you shed those extra pounds without any physical effort. But the Federal Trade Commission says that year after year weight-loss products top all of their complaints from ripped off consumers. One of the favorite methods that scammers use is the “free trial offer.” Thousands of hopeful consumers find themselves suddenly in debt to unscrupulous companies that hooked them in with these offers.

These “free” offers often have fine-print conditions that are overlooked – like the very short time period one has to return the product if not satisfied. Missing that deadline can cause you to owe over $100 to the company for a product that basically does nothing to help you lose weight. You may even have signed up for monthly shipments charged to your credit card without your knowledge. Social media has been particularly instrumental in the spreading of such scams.

Here is BBB’s advice regarding “miracle” weight loss products:

• The old saying is true: If it looks too good to be true it is. Beware of products with inflated, over-the-top claims about weight loss. Any product that claims to provide dramatic weight loss fast with little effort on your part is lying.
• Don’t fall for vague scientific claims. “Research shows” and “laboratory tested” are among these. If a study is not cited and a link provided to it, don’t believe the claim.
• Long lists of references are suspicious. They are counting on you not having the time or inclination to check out those references.
• Testimonials should be looked at skeptically. Sounds too good to be true? You know what to expect.
• Always take the time to do a search for the company online, with words like “complaints” and “reviews.”
• Check bbb.org to see if you or others have had issues with the company.

For more information about “miracle” products and free trial scams read BBB’s International Investigations Report “Subscription Traps and Deceptive Free Trials Scam Millions with Misleading Ads and Fake Celebrity Endorsements” at bbb.org/scamstudies.