A Few Coupons Short of a Happy Meal
Ad touting $2,000 in grocery savings could cost hundreds.
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MOUNT PROSPECT, IL - MAY 31: A shopper pushes her cart in a Costco Wholesale store May 31, 2006 in Mount Prospect, Illinois. Third-quarter earnings reported today were up at Costco, the nation's largest warehouse club operator, although current oil prices affected margins at their associated gas stations. (Photo by Tim Boyle/Getty Images)
There's generally no such thing as a free lunch, and it turns out there's also no such thing as free groceries, either.
But that's not what a new radio ad might have you believe.
The ad, from the Nelson Research Group, touts "$2,000 worth of grocery savings," but the fact is, it could cost hundreds to get the "savings."
First, there's the $7.95 handling fee. And there are no grocery "certificates" --that implies something for free. There are coupons for as little as 10 percent off, valid for 90 days, but in the end, it costs about $200 to get what the ad touts.
Unhappy customers in several states and in South Florida claim the ad is, at best, misleading.
"It's convincing, it's a very convincing ad," said Mike Galvin, with the South Florida Better Business Bureau. "It really lures you in."
Galvin said the Nelson Research Group is actually a firm in Reno, Nevada called Products for Life, and they have dozens of complaints. Galvin said the word "certificates," used in the ad, makes it sound like you're getting $2,000 to spend as you wish on groceries.
"We know that's not true, but that's what the consumer would be led to believe," Galvin said. "And you have to remember that consumers today, in this time of economic hardship, are looking for ways to save money. And on the sidelines are the predators."
The Nelson Research Group and Products for Life said they have lots of satisfied customers, but the owner didn't respond to a request for an interview.
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