Reading The Fine Print Before You Sign

Reading The Fine Print Before You Sign

READING THE FINE PRINT:

17 Phrases To Understand Before You Sign

By D. S. Mitchell

Red Flags

Most consumer contracts and service agreements contain a lot of legaleeze. Best selling author Bob Sullivan warns consumers to read the fine print. Red flags should go up when you see any of the following common phrases in a contract you are about to sign.

1.)Free”  We all know nothing is free. You have probably heard the expression, “if you aren’t paying for the product-then you are the product.” The meaning of course is that your personal information is probably being sold to advertisers. OR, maybe it is free now, but you may be committing to pay later. WHICH, takes us to:

2.) “Free Trial”  You often see phrases like this one, “Free 30 day trial.” (We won’t charge your card until the end of the trial period.) Do you really expect to remember to cancel on the 29th day?  Corporations have spent millions of dollars to learn that the average consumer will not cancel before the end of the 30 day period.  

3.) “Reduced Price for Six Months” This one falls in the same category as ‘introductory price offer’ and ‘free trial’ scam.  $59.00 a month for six months may sound great in January, but if it is going up to $150.00 in June is it actually a good deal? You are the only one that can decide that. And again, will you remember to cancel before July 1st if you decide that the high monthly price after the six month period isn’t worth it?

Continue reading