Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP
Posting-Version: version B 2.10.2 (Tek) 9/28/84 based on 9/17/84; site hammer.UUCP
Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!ulysses!mhuxr!mhuxt!houxm!vax135!cornell!uw-beaver!tektronix!orca!hammer!andrew
From: andrew@hammer.UUCP (Andrew Klossner)
Newsgroups: net.consumers
Subject: Re: Filing a Complaint
Message-ID: <1733@hammer.UUCP>
Date: Fri, 10-Jan-86 15:28:13 EST
Article-I.D.: hammer.1733
Posted: Fri Jan 10 15:28:13 1986
Date-Received: Sun, 12-Jan-86 00:28:39 EST
References: <42400010@gypsy.UUCP>
Organization: Tektronix, Wilsonville OR
Lines: 32

[]

	"Can someone tell how to go about filing a complain with the
	postal inspector for a company that advertises falsely?  I
	suspect that there is some special form or application that I
	would need.  Any insight into this matter would be greatly
	appreciated."

Go to any post office and ask to speak with the postmaster.  He or she
will take it from there.  It's mail fraud if you paid for something and
didn't get it (or got something bogus) within thirty days from when
they took your money (cashed your check, charged your credit card), and
some aspect of the transaction went through the mail.  Usually the
postmaster wants you to have exhausted the normal lines of inquiry
(follow up letters) before they will take official action.

Official action takes the form of ceasing to deliver any more mail to
the fraudulent company.  This will shut down a mail order company in
jig time, but won't get your money back.  Sometimes it's better to
*threaten* the company; for example, I have written to the postmaster
at the other end, with a copy to the company, asking for an
investigation, and subsequently received the ordered merchandise quite
quickly.

An example of fraud that is *not* mail fraud is seeing an ad in Byte
magazine, phoning in a credit card order, and never receiving the item.
The postal service can't help you there, but the FTC can, although
they're harder to get moving.  Of course, the threatening tactic may
still work here.

  -=- Andrew Klossner   (decvax!tektronix!tekecs!andrew)       [UUCP]
                        (tekecs!andrew.tektronix@csnet-relay)  [ARPA]