Fake sale ads for big-name retailers. Don't be conned.

Advertising 6 items for £42 yesterday! Just too good to be true

And so many comments under each ad saying "I bought 10 items for my mother . ." or "I bought 8 items for my mother . ." or "I bought 6 items for my mother . ."

One ad had a long list of likes, all with names that showed they came from the same small country in SE Asia. What a co-incidence!!!

I got caught by a White Stuff sale advertised on FB last year - ordered about £50 worth on the link, it all looked just like White Stuff as they had obviously cloned the whole website. I realised almost as soon as I'd done it and contacted my bank who cancelled the transaction but they said no crime is committed until the goods don't turn up. I mentioned it to the White Stuff shop next time I was in there and they said a lot of people had been caught by it. They were quite smug about it almost, obviously thinking we were all mugs. They had 'done a course on it' and said if it's too good to be true then it probably is. Absolutely right of course.

I learned my lesson and now if I see a sale like that I go to the official website rather than follow the link. There's a lot of it on FB.

My Facebook feed is flooded with adverts for iPad Pro's being given away, only payment for postage. I wouldn't touch them with a bargepole. Hundreds of comments from people who have supposedly won one, I don't believe any of them.

I nearly got caught by the Seasalt one, fortunately I just got bored ploughing through the 42 pages and didn't bother!

Unfortunately FB is no longer interesting as all I see is adverts for something or other

I reported the facebook "80% off Seasalt" one to the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA). and got the reply below. It seems the organisation to report it to is Trading Standards.

"Thank you for contacting the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA). I understand you’ve raised concerns about an imitation website of Seasalt Cornwall.

We’ve considered your complaint carefully and identified that other regulatory bodies may be better placed to resolve the issues you’ve raised. Please see below for further information.

Our Remit

The ASA’s role is to regulate the content of “legitimate” advertising, and to require the amendment or withdrawal of ads that breach our Codes. The issue you’ve raised ultimately relates to an issue that goes beyond the content of the advertising itself, which means the matter would be more appropriately dealt with by the relevant statutory authority. Trading Standards are better suited for dealing with concerns about fraudulent business practices that stretch beyond problematic advertising. As a result, we will not be taking your complaint further.

What Happens Next?

The following organisations may be able to assist you:

If you have personally lost money to this company, we would advise contacting Action Fraud who deal with matters relating to online scams. You may also wish to alert your bank.
If you have not lost money, then we’d advise you raise any issues of potential scams/illegal products to the Citizens Advice consumer service for free, confidential and impartial advice on consumer issues, and referrals to Trading Standards. You can contact their helpline on 03454 04 05 06 (Monday to Friday from 9am to 5pm) or you can find further information at www.adviceguide.org.uk.^

I hope you find this information helpful, and you are able to pursue your complaint further. Thank you for contacting us with your concerns.

Yours sincerely,

Louise Kendaru

Complaints Executive

asa.org.uk | 020 7492 2185 | [email protected]

I nearly got caught out by that a few weeks ago. Facebook aren’t interested if you contact them.

Oh dear! I thought I would be too sensible to be caught by a scam, but the Seasalt one got me! Thank you for flagging this up Elegran; I have just contacted my bank and got it sorted.

Seasalt x 6 items £45
Yes , I saw this on Saturday & called Seasalt head office , to question & report . I also reported 2 adverts that I saw on fb ..
Disgusting scams which people will unfortunately fall for , nearly had me as I had recently purchased a jacket & was looking at one of their Jumpsuits 🤔for holidays .
Picking it up from a retail outlet today though

Many thanks for that, had wondered but ads did look genuine initially.

MayBee70

I nearly got caught out by that a few weeks ago. Facebook aren’t interested if you contact them.

Wise advice ..

I never purchase anything online .. No need to, when located within walking distance to 3.000 plus retailers ..

Be careful as there are a few fake adverts on Amazon.

I got caught by the white company too, very annoying, had to cancel my card and get a new one !

Not really the White Company, of course, but someone impersonating them (just in case anyone misreading it thinks that the White Company scammed them)

Just remember if it's to good to be true it usually is. I'm not the trusting type and if I miss out so be it.

What about the ads purporting to be Clarks ….. I’d love to order but I looked into it and found the website address is Japan 🤷‍♀️ anyone ordered shoes from this ad?

Yes, I was tempted by the Seasalt one but noticed that the website address was almost similar to the actual one but was seasaltscornwall with an extra s.
Well done, those who reported it. I didn’t think of that but will do if I spot similar again.

Thanks for posting that Elegran.

Sadly I well and truly fell for it!!! Most unlike me I’m normally 100% wary of scams. I guess I’ve just lost the money!! A lesson learned!

Yep I ordered shoes from the Clarks one a few years ago and was sent a fake Cartier bracelet with oriental writing on the packaging after a long wait. I also ordered Crocs from a European site which weren't the size ordered. I now only order from the wbsite

I see the ‘Seasalt sale’ is still appearing on my Facebook. They have changed the website address it is now Seasaltcornwalldealsbut it is the same scam.

Strangwendy, could you contact your bank/ credit card company likechoughdancer and cancel transaction as fraudulent?

Nandalot

Yes, I was tempted by the Seasalt one but noticed that the website address was almost similar to the actual one but was seasaltscornwall with an extra s.
Well done, those who reported it. I didn’t think of that but will do if I spot similar again.

Yes, Nandalot a tiny difference in a website name or an email address is one thing to look out for.

Reporting what you believe to be a fake to Facebook or Google may not get any action. They don't seem to care. Trading Standards would be better. You can contact their helpline on 03454 04 05 06 (Monday to Friday from 9am to 5pm) or you can find further information at www.adviceguide.org.uk.

The other thing to do is to add a disbelieving comment below the ad - it could make someone else stop and think before ordering anything.

Be prepared for your uncomplimentary comment to vanish, though. You can change the option on Facebook of which comments are shown - the default is "most relevant" but choosing "all comments" is interesting. If there are supposedly 100 or so comments, but you can only find 20 or so, then you may suspect that the other 80 have been deleted by the site owner - and come to your own conclusions about WHY they don't want them on view,