Monday 16 November 2009

Delices & Gourmandises - is it a scam??

Basically for those that Still believe in santa and the tooth fairy, and for those millions of internet searches that include the word FREE! in there posts.

"yes this is a scam"

The wordings in the material. I searched online for other issues with delices & gourmandises. didnt take me long to find a list of what i can only describe as ripe for the picking. this company sends you aload of blurb about the fact you have won a computer or fridge-freezer plus a cash prize of over £5000 or £7000 they even have your name and telephone number to make sure its you. but theres a catch you must order some of there fine chocolate or biscuits with your first order...mmmmm

so you do. you even receive the biscuits or chocolate, and to be honest I have tried these myself and there not bad, but no different to what you can get from tesco or sainsbury`s and certainly not worth the price tag of over £10 a pop. in the vain attempt that most people will fall for it.

SO WHATS WRONG?

Well, your not getting your all singing and dancing laptop, and if you was expecting to replace the fridge/freezer with a new one, well you better ask santa or at least hope for snow. as for the the cheque for £5,000 or £7,000 (I have seen different amounts, they are generous with the numbers..

How Do we stop them?
I was urged to start this blog, because I found my father was just about to send money again to these types of predators, they prey on the old and weak, those that know no better, even though after spending years on this planet, never thought to ask themselves if they ever got something of such high value for nothing before..???
That`ll be a No then!!

You can do your part by just replying to this blog, and let the search engines do the rest..the only way to stop these kind of scams or at least slow them down is to keep writing about them, then hopefully when people search for the title words we will hit the top searche results..

Just remember it could be your mother or father or Grandparents That fall victim to these slick operators. there tactics have changed but the end results are the same..give your support and post a note....

28 comments:

  1. My 84 year old dad has spent a small fortune with this company. They prey on the old and vulnerable - we are lucky enough to be able to research them on the internet whilst my dad would not know how to use a computer at all.
    The literature tells them they have won and all they need to do is complete a slip and post back with their order......... I have written to my MP to ask him to stop this happening to other people.

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    Replies
    1. My 92 yr old dad has also spent a lot with this firm. Just before Christmas 2013 he got yet another leaflet assuring him that he had won a lap top. So he sent an order for over £127 . He got the cheap chocolates etc but as I predicted no laptop. This firm just prey on the elderly & it is time something was done about them

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    2. My 85 year-old father spent over £800 with them and the same as the above: "someone will be in Maidstone next week to give you a cheque for £8,000". I'm keen to do something about the company and individuals who are preying on the elderly, so please supply any information that you can. I am taking this to Trading Standards in the first instance.

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  2. My 75 year old Husbandhas sent off now for 3 orders, each time they say with the order you can expect to receive the prize.
    The food is poor and expensive, frankly I could do better shopping in pound world.
    A husband however will not listen to sound reason when it comes from a wife.
    He is about to send off a 4th order as they say a cheque will be in the next order for £7,700.
    £65.00 could feed us for a week and as I have had a stroke and can not work at present every penny counts.
    We are proof that this company are scammers dont do it.
    from a very poor wife.

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  3. I have just found the contact website for Dlices & Goourmandises
    If you are unhappy about the non prizes offered please feel free to tell them
    You will be helping the Elderly.
    http://delicesgourmandises.com/uk/contact.php

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    Replies
    1. Sent away two orders and received no prizes.
      (What a mug. Never again).

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  4. Agree with comments on blog, however when you sit down and read the blurb, words pop out that should make you think? like,'Aim for' confirm your details
    to enable us to be sure you are the correct person? hello you have been sending orders to them for some time! 'you have won a free prize' (not)
    The quality of the goods are unbelievably expensive, can be found in Aldi at less than a quarter of the price, and in the food selection tiny portions!
    The chocolates on offer are good, but again terribly expensive, Thorntons so
    much cheaper. Give this company a thumbs down, YOU WILL NOT WIN ! and the worst thing is that the pictures of so called winners,are the same one's for the last 6yrs...Keep your money in your pocket' you can afford a holiday that way. Also some of the wording is offensive, for instance, 'You can afford to purchase from us now can't you' as a winner'
    Then 'you must place an order or you will not win' I have studied this company on and off over the years, how are they allowed to get away with their tactics!! So as always Buyer Beware !!

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  5. my dad is 74 and has been rescieveing posts from these for years. sadly enough he believes hes going to get the prizes. just in the hope because hes skint and well thinks maybe his luck has come finally. getting the old and vulnerables hopes up like this is disgusting behaviour. and if i could do anything to stop them preying then i would because how this isnt illegal i dont not know !

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  6. Dont get drawn in we have just been made aware that my 87 year old mother in law has been taken for over £400 per month since January - Stay away these people should be closed down.

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    Replies
    1. http://www.forres-gazette.co.uk/News/Forres-woman-warns-of-food-mail-scam-26092012.htm

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  7. http://www.bedfordshire-news.co.uk/News/BREAKING-NEWS-International-fraudster-who-conned-millions-from-people-across-the-world-has-been-found-guilty-20130403144420.htm

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  8. they tried to say i have won laptops and televisions but got nothing phonecalls from them 6 days a week upto 3 times a day reported to police its all a scam dont get anything from them im 38

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  9. Today 28th Oct 2013 I received a pack stating I have won £8.100 and a laptop etc I just googled this blog and realise that although the guy from Bedford was convicted of this scam, thatnks for the heads up I will be sending it back so it costs them postage.

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    Replies
    1. Thank you for the advice just posted it back. to them empty envelope of course.

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  10. My neighbour has also been a victim of this scam. For months they have been telling him that he has won a prize. When I saw your posts I showed them to him and he has now asked to have his name removed from their database. They have an 0870 number but a Belgian address. When he called them the person who answered the phone said that of course it is a sweepstake; but that is not what the mailing implies. They have since sent him a letter which includes the following: "we would like to take this opportunity to remind you that the attribution of the main prize at stake is random and subject to conditions as stated in the documents you received and notably the terms and conditions. The winner of the main prize is designated following a prize draw undertaken by an Independent Legal Advisor and is personally informed of its won prize by registered letter with acknowledgement of receipt after the closing date of the sweepstakes". Dreadful that they prey on elderly people and imply that they have won something whereas in fact it is just a very expensive sweepstake.

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  11. I have also sent off for cakes etc. on the promise of laptop and of course money, one of 7000+ and another for 8000+.
    I did not expect to get the money but thought I might get the laptop if I placed some orders, stupid I know, I have sent them an email and look forward to reading their reply, if I get one.

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  12. Today I received a lovely envelope saying I had won a laptop and asking why I had not replied before to the prize. I have been on this plant for 59years and know that nothing is free in this life. I came straight onto the computer that I paid for from my hard earned cash from argos I might add to check theses fraudsters out and low and behold here we are reading all the stories about how people are conned out of there hard earned cash. Although sometimes I am tempted but this little alarm in my brain tells me to keep your bank and cheque book safe in my bureau and the person whom I have lived with told me to put in in the wood burner. To the scammers please can you make your communications from triple ply tissue paper as it is softer to blow your nose on. The a note to the scammers one day you will be old and then you will have to think very carefully about what offers are real or fake, and I hope that in your case you get it wrong every time and end up without a penny to your name, when you need most. Then you will know how all of the people you robbed felt and the disappointment.

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  13. I was fool enough to send an order received the goods but no prize or cheque.When Watchdog returns to BBC1 in January why don't we all complain to them perhaps they can do something about these con merchants.

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  14. ManiC
    I recently visited an 84 year old friend's accomodation. I was appalled to find that he has been conned by Delices Gourmandes for almost a year! There were boxes and boxes of cheap biscuits and sweets ( he's diabetic and doesn't eat any of these). There were a number of letters saying that he's selected to win £81,000 and a request to send a cheque. I checked his cheque book and he has send by now hundreds of pounds... I think we should join forces and get them busted for targeting and cheating the old and vulnerable. Approach BBC's Watchdog perhaps?

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  15. joan smith 24 february 2014
    I received a letter this week saying i had won a laptop. All i had to do was send the postage
    ALSO IF I BOUGHT SOMTHING FROM THEM THE POSTAGE WOULD BE FREE

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  16. Yes, my wife as sent in two orders and not received them! And they keep tell her she as won £8,000. I have told her not to order any more items. We have sent a letter to them that we want our money back (we shall see). We did not get this on the Internet, it came in the post.

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  17. Check out Think Jessica, a charity set up to protect the elderly and vulnerable from scam companies such at this.
    http://www.thinkjessica.com/
    https://www.facebook.com/ThinkJessicaCharity

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  18. Hi, I need advice here. How does one get out of receiving these products? My mother received two boxes this week costing £70.00. containing three small tins of chicken (coq au van) and the other had two chocolate bunny eggs and two packets of biscuits plus some small eggs. All could be bought for just over a third of the price. Do you need to close your account? Can you send back the goods at their expense? Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

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  19. How do this people get your phone numbers, I have had 2 phone call within the last 24 hrs saying do I want this laptop, was about to send off for an order and then thought better of it. Got the same kind of scam a few years ago, that time it was selling bathing products and a promise of a cheque for £7000

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  20. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  21. THIS COMPANY IS A CON! I am helping my parents with a similar experince from this company. As a former Post Office employee, and I currently work in Customer Service for a Mail Order company, I have advised the following steps to help them get this stopped or at least prevented. By law you are allowed to refuse any Mail/Parcels that you do not wish to recieve. If a parcel is attempted delivery (with a great prize or order from these or a similar con artist company) say to the courier you wish to refuse delivery and want it returned to sender. Any courier/delivery driver worth their weight will respect your request and you CAN ask them to make a note that you wish to refuse future parcels from the same address. As for any letters/circulars, they should all have a return address on the back, DO NOT open these, but circle the return address, and mark return to sender on the front cross out YOUR address, then put in any post pillar box. This is not 100% effective, but will seriously reduce the chances of them sending any future correspondence. I have done this myself with mail that I did not want, and it has worked. PLEASE DO NOT SEND ANY MONEY OR REPLIES - THEY ARE A CON!! Sorry for the caps lock but I do hope the message is clear, and that my comment/advice helps at least one person.

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  22. Are these people also targeting prospective customers via the postal system as well. I have today received a letter asserting I have won a Multimedia laptop, printer set and £8,100.00. My suspicions were immediately aroused on five counts.( I ) My name incorrectly printed on the letter.(2). The letter is composed in poor English which is grammatically incorrect. (3) The value of the prizes supposedly won. (4) The fact that the address on the enclosed return envelope is in Belgium and (5) When I decided to look on line The website gives a different Belgian contact address. The website gives an address in Virton but my return envelope gives an address in Etalle, Begium

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  23. Extremely angry
    My mother can be added to the long list of "victims" of this scam. Problem is that I can't seem to get any constructive assistance from different help offices who, apart from being pleasant on the phone, do not seem to have the authority to follow this up. It doesn't help that they are based in Belgium and also that my elderly mother cannot grasp the idea that they are out to cheat her!!

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