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NEWS-SUN, EVENING STAR
& HERALD-
REPUBLICAN
|
Sweepstakes industry
hits unlucky streak
Attorneys general
allege contests not 'fair, free or fun'
Originally printed in the Evening
Star 2/25/99
By CINDY BEVINGTON
INDIANAPOLIS - "Fair, fun and free."
At a national meeting of attorneys general in Indianapolis
Wednesday, representatives for mail-order companies that use
sweepstakes for their promotions denied that the offers make
people think they have to buy something to win.
"(Our) sweepstakes are fair, fun and free," said
Linda Goldstein, of the Promotion Marketing Association. "Eight
out of 10 households (get the offers through the mail) ... and
the vast majority of consumers understand how they operate, that
there is no purchase necessary."
Goldstein and two other mail-order industry representatives,
Robert Sherman of Direct Marketing Association and Michael Pashby
of Magazine Publishers of America, were invited by the attorneys
general to testify at the public hearing.
The attorneys general, 11 of whom attended Wednesday, have
formed a subcommittee to investigate sweepstakes fraud. Headed
by Indiana Attorney General Jeff Modisett, the committee believes
the mail-order industry has gone too far with mailings that say
things like "YOU ARE A WINNER" or "ONLY YOU AND
ONE OTHER PERSON HAS THE WINNING NUMBER" in bold print and
personalized with the recipient's name.
The mailings are deceptive and dishonest, the attorneys general
told the three sweepstakes industry representatives. And, the
attorneys added, senior citizens are especially susceptible to
believing they are winners. Some even purchase tens of thousands
of dollars worth of merchandise they don't need and can't use,
all in the belief that buying something makes them more qualified
to win, the attorneys said.
To prove their point, the attorneys invited four seniors or
family members of seniors who lost money on sweepstakes offers
to testify. The daughter of a man who died broke last year said
her father spent $108,000 buying magazines and a myriad of gadgets,
books and other items - all in the belief that he was a winner
of sweepstakes such as Publisher's Clearing House, American Family
Publishers and United States Purchasing Exchange.
An Indiana woman who was featured in The Evening Star in January
also testified, saying she had lost more than $50,000 trying
to win USPE's and other sweepstakes. Betty Weimer, who initially
wanted to remain anonymous but later changed her mind and went
public, said the mailings made her believe she was the winner.
Weimer's three daughters, all of whom either live in or own
businesses in the four northeast Indiana counties, tried to get
her to stop spending her money, Weimer testified. But, even after
her garage was filled to the brim with things she didn't need,
and even after she'd spent her entire life savings, she didn't
stop, she said
"I couldn't," Weimer said. "I felt I was in
too deep to stop. I know I hurt my children. But I felt like
I had to get my money back." Holding up a fistful of canceled
checks to USPE that totaled more than $16,000, she said, "I
truly believed them when they said I was the one."
It was a mind-set similar to a gambler's - that the losses
were so big only a win could validate what she'd done. Two professors
from Yale University and Arizona State University testified as
to the psychology of why seniors seem to be more gullible than
other age groups when it comes to sweepstakes offers.
And, even though the sweepstakes industry representatives
repeatedly told the attorneys that only a "small percentage"
of people have this mind-set, the attorneys zeroed in on testimony
such as Weimer's.
They have received thousands of complaints from sweepstakes
victims across the nation, they said, and each victim's testimony
is the same - with only the amount of losses differing.
Saying they believe the complaints they've heard are only
"the tip of the iceberg," the attorneys blasted industry
officials when they said "internal" policing from the
industry could reduce the number of victims. The sweepstakes
offers are not fair, fun or free, the attorneys general said
one by one to the industry representatives.
The industry is dragging its feet in coming forward to help,
said Florida Attorney General Bob Butterworth, and that is why
some kind of national legislation and governmental action is
necessary.
In fact, the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives are
looking at the industry, too, with drafts of bills that would
impose regulations, the attorneys said. "I think we've made
it very, very clear we have an issue that needs to be dealt with,"
Modisett told the crowd.
Then, with every major print and broadcast news agency in
the country present, Modisett announced that the attorneys general
- many of whom are pursuing litigation against sweepstakes companies
in their own states - won't take any more excuses from the industry.
All day long, TV crews and newspaper reporters swarmed around
the victims who came to testify. Weimer, in particular, was in
demand for interviews. TV camera crews met her in the lobby of
her hotel as she checked in the night before the meeting.
Cameras descended on her as soon as she walked into the hearing
the next day, and focused on her all day long. About mid-day,
she learned that NBC's "Today Show" officials - who
had told her they wanted to interview her - planned to whisk
her off to New York City on a plane.
She appeared live on the show shortly before 8 a.m. today
with one of her daughters. The media attention, coupled with
what she heard at Wednesday's hearing, enlightened her in no
other way possible, Weimer said before she left at the hearing's
close.
"I think I've realized I'm not winning. I just think
they need something like this to convince people, to show them
they are losing their money and taking away their future,"
Weimer said. "If I could see the light, I think others will,
too."
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STAR REPORTER'S
SWEEPSTAKES SERIES WINS NATIONAL AWARD
EXCLUSIVE TO THIS WEB SITE:
A letter to The Evening Star editor
from Indiana's Attorney General
Want to read another paper's stories
about sweepstake scams?
Why do the elderly seem more susceptible
to believing sweepstakes promises? Two experts give their opinions
Why do the elderly seem more susceptible
to believing sweepstakes promises? A gerontologist shares his
studies.
Iowa has seen it before
National issue, local example,
big news
Persons to contact if you believe you may be the victim
of a sweepstakes scam:
National Association of Attorneys
General
750 First Street, NE, Suite 1100
Washington, DC 20002
PH: (202) 326-6000
FAX: (202) 408-7014
Office of Attorney
General
Steve Carter
402 W. Washington St.
Fifth Floor
Indianapolis, IN 46204
PH: (317) 232-6201
FAX: (317) 232-7979
National Fraud Information Center 1-800-876-7060
National
Consumer's League
1-202-835-3323
Federal Trade Commission 1-877-382-4357
(toll free)
E-mail
Cindy Bevington
or Evening Star
editor Dave Kurtz.
WATCH FOR ADDITIONAL STORIES EXCLUSIVE TO THIS WEB SITE!
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