A KELTYBRIDGE resident is warning people about the perils of so-called free trials on the internet, after being stung for more than £200 for products she thought would be free.

The woman, who did not wish to be named, thought she was signing up for a free trial of diet pills but soon discovered that the company was taking money from her account over a period of several months.

“It was a competition and if you answered four questions correctly you won,” she explained.

“You only had to pay for postage and packaging and then received the free trial so I gave my card details.

"But what I didn’t know was that there was small print and if you don’t return the pills within 14 days they’ll charge you every month.” The ‘free trial’ seems anything but, and the terms and conditions on the company’s website indicate that signing up for the trial also means enrolling in an auto-shipment scheme which sends the customer a month’s supply every 30 days and charges for it.

The Keltybridge resident insists that no such thing was made clear in the competition she entered and as a result she has been losing money to the company for months.

“I first noticed that a strange amount, something like £49.96, had been taken from my account,” she said.

“Then there was another £80 gone and another £79. I went to my bank and they said the amounts were in dollars and that’s when I realised what it was.

“The people at the bank weren’t surprised to see me – it happens to people all the time.” Eventually, she found a telephone number for the company on one of the bottles of diet pills and called them to explain her situation.

She was told to return the bottles to get a full refund but she still hasn’t received it.

“They said I had to return the bottles within 14 days but that counts from the moment you order them and you have to send them back to the address in Colorado, so there’s not enough time.

“The people I spoke to on the phone were rude and I’m still waiting on my refund.” Upon taking the products to the post office to send back, the Keltybridge resident said that she discovered other people had heard of the trial and she realised that she wasn’t the only one to be hit by unexpected bills.

“I just want to warn people and make them aware,” she said. “I heard that some elderly people had been signing up and had been charged too. This company are taking lots of money from people every month.” Alan Hamilton, Fife Trading Standards service manager, said, “We’ve had one or two people contact us about this particular issue, which seems to share similarities to a generic phishing scam.

“People should be careful about how they go around these types of products. In any event we recommend people to be extremely cautious about giving out bank details and to be careful about terms and conditions.” Anyone with concerns can contact Citizens Advice Scotland on 03454 04 05 06 or visit getsafeonline.org