There appears to be a phone sale scam that is making its way around chareidi areas, with a recent case reported in Modi’in Illit.

In short, an avreich received a phone call from telemarketing firm offering him a deal he could not pass up on an item, which would only cost him NIS 50. The avreich, a wise consumer, took advantage of the opportunity and made the purchase. The item arrived at his home in a number of days as promised. So far, everything is above board.

Not too long afterward he received a call from the same company, this time however the fantastic deal was NIS thousands, and admittedly, it was a good deal as well but he simply did not have that much discretionary income so he politely passed up the offer. A number of days later, he received an automated phone call with a computer-generated voice telling him the order has been processed, and it will be shipped out and he will be billed.

All the avreich’s efforts to cancel the order that was never made were in vain, prompting him to turn to his rebbe, who directed him to an attorney. The attorney explained that the company violated the law by maintaining his credit card information on file, not to mention ordering an item without authorization. The attorney armed the avreich with the relevant legal statutes and after a series of telephone calls, he reached the right person, who realized this guy is not going to fall for it and the options are to cancel the unwanted order or take a beating in court.

This case ends happily, albeit not without a considerable aggravation for the avreich, and the order was canceled.

(Yechiel Spira – YWN Israel)