Raffle draws, lure of gifts and fake promises

Published: Wed 16 Oct 2019, 9:00 PM

Last updated: Wed 16 Oct 2019, 11:24 PM

I recently fell prey to the marketing tactics of a dodgy tour company. The tour company guys had a stand at the hypermarket. They lured me, and many others, with free invites to a raffle draw and asked us to fill a form with our details. Two days later, they called and invited me for their anniversary celebration and promised two gifts. They said they have offices in the US and Europe, and got tie-ups with more than 600 hotels all around the world. But when I reached there, what was on offer was a deal for a membership package that costs Dh10,000. The package provides hotel stays for 15 days in a year, and could be cancelled at any time. Such contracts with terms and conditions run into pages, and people usually skip reading the finer details. In this case, cancellation fee is 25 per cent of the amount paid. No one tells you, but then we sign on it and become liable to pay. I fell for this scam, and now as I am trying to get it cancelled, the officials are not helping. I am writing so that other people don't get trapped.
-Vijayakumar Ramalingam, Ajman

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