THE Q:
After making a purchase on Restaurant.com recently, reader Richard Szymkiewicz decided to take a survey for a $10 coupon good toward a future purchase.
He said he later discovered that he was "fraudulently charged $14.95 per month for a membership" he did "not knowingly join."
"Restaurant.com gave our card information to a company, AP9/Shopping Essentials, without our informed consent," Szymkiewicz said. "They do tell you your information will be given to companies they think you might be interested in. What they don't tell you is that all information means your credit card number as well. ... If Restaurant.com is running a reputable business, it should not be passing on credit card information to AP9."
Is Restaurant.com guilty of sharing customer credit card numbers with another business without permission?
The A:
Have you never seen an online survey you didn't like? Do you occasionally fill out questionnaires to get freebies, coupons or other deals? Are you then shocked to discover some obscure charge on your credit card?
If you answered yes to any of those questions, I must tell you to please read all fine print carefully and be mindful of where you click should you choose to participate in survey offers.
Many of those "freebies" aren't so free.
Restaurant.com connects consumers to the $10 coupon offer, but the offer comes from Shopping Essentials, a separate company.
To take advantage of the coupon, consumers must fill out the survey and agree via electronic signature to join the Shopping Essentials' savings club for a monthly fee, said Jeff Conlin, vice president of Restaurant.com's corporate communications.
'Clearly stated'
"Terms are clearly stated on a page that the customer must click on and thereby agree to before any agreement with Shopping Essentials is formed," Conlin said.
In examining the 2007 Consumer Survey offer, which asks three questions about your shopping habits, the end of the survey does clearly state that by "clicking 'Yes,' I have read and agree to the Offer Details displayed to the left and authorize Restaurant.com to securely transfer my name, address and credit/debit card information to Shopping Essentials+, a service provider of Restaurant. com."
Offer details
