Pimsleur Approach


Country United States
State Pennsylvania
City Philadelphia
Address 1600 JFK Blvd, 3rd Floor
Website www.pimsleurapproach.com

Pimsleur Approach Reviews

Most Useful Comment
  • Sep 8, 2014

So i was buying online with my card details and all then i i tries to go back and cancel but it disappeared so I thought its cancelled. ok after i dont remember how long I received the package n i thought ok it was just 10bucks forget then i never bothered to open and actually use it because I was so busy working. And like every three months or so i startef getting other packages and again i didnt open them n assuming its just trial so put them aside. And just recently it came to my attention that they actually been deducting money from my account without my knowledge and permission. That got me so angry that why im being charged for something i didnt even order or used it. And imporant thing is my money being deducted without taking my permission. How dare they. I work hard for every single penny for my family and they took it like that. no way...i want that money back

Mark as Useful [1 vote]
  • May 9, 2015

Essentially, when purchasing a language learning cd online for $9.95 you are trapped into a "negative option" plan.

After the original cd purchase of $9.95 i began to receive unsolicited boxes of additional units and without my authorization my credit card has been charged ****$384**** ($64 at a time) since the original purchase of $9.95.

None of the boxes that i received after the original single cd order of $9.95 have been opened. The company Today) provided an rma# Return merchandise authorization) for a very small portion of the units to be returned which i will be doing.

Thus, without taking further action my refund will be negligible. I have proceeded to file complaints with my state's attorney general as well as the bbb.

**also** - a lawsuit against this company was filed by the washington state attorney general's office for violating rosca.

  • Apr 10, 2015

I ordered a cd to learn spanish for $10. I recieved a package with cds a short time after and was charged $10. After a month I recieved another package with no additional charge on my credit card. After a few months I noticed 2 chargers on my credit card from the company.

At this point I contacted the company and was told that the additional package was sent because the $10 cds I recieved was a trial and I had to call them if I didn't like the product. If I didn't call they would start sending me more cds, which would cost over $250 with charges split into smaller payments throughout the upcoming months.

Also, I couldn't return the new cds because there was a 30day return policy that expired.

  • Feb 21, 2015

I received an offer to learn a language in a very short amount of time. The offer was to receive a set of tapes for $10.00.

The offer did not indicate these were for a trial basis only nor did it indicate we would be charged $64.00 per month during this trial. This is completely deceptive advertising.

The product itself is not bad. If they advertised it in an ethical manner than people would not have been upset. I contacted the customer care department to cancel the service.

They attempted to rebuttal me and upsell me additional products. I cancelled any future shipments and asked them to provide me with a Return Authorization.

  • Feb 17, 2015

This is my first time posting here, but I think anyone who is thinking of using a language learning software should be aware of this.

This one has to do with the Pimsleur Approach, a language learning software that guarantees some fluency in a language of your choice in 10 days through listening to one- it's stressed that it has to be only one- thirty minute session a day.

I have encountered the ad somewhere and decided to give it a go. I purchased the French and Spanish Lessons.

I didn't think too much of it because it was $20. This was back in August. However, I received something else from the company that sent me the CDs. It was the Gold Edition, sent to me without any prompting on my behalf. There was no invoice in the package listing the amount of the item. It turns out they charged $256 each for Spanish and French. So $512 was charged just for level I. They proceeded to send out Levels II, III, and IV. When I look back in the fine print it is ambiguous and makes it seem like the most you will be charged is $256 dollars per course .

By the time you realized it, you owe $2000 for something that was supposed be a trial product for $20. You only have 30 days to return it but they send it out the slowest USPS rate so that you won't have anytime to return it. They also charged your card mulitple times for $64 dollars in one billing period so you won't be able to catch it unless you are on top of your credit card statements every month. Very deceptive practices.

  • Feb 7, 2015

In August 2014 I took an online survey and was offered the choice of four free products - I need only pay for shipping. I chose Pimsleur Italian. For $9.95 in shipping costs, I was to receive 2 language CDs. I billed this to my American Express. The following month an Italian Language Course arrived in my mail and a $64 charge showed up on my credit card bill. In December I was charged $64 twice in a 3 day period. Another $64 bill in January. A total of $256 was charged to my card. I never received an invoice or statement explaining what was going on. A call to their customer service department informed me that when I agreed to the $9.95 shipping charges, I agreed to their terms. Pimsleur uses very deceptive business practices, I have been scammed. Questa è una società di artisti della truffa.

This is a company of scam artists

  • Jan 21, 2015

My 13 year old saw an offer from the Pimsleur company to get a CD for intro Japanese and intro Arabic for only $10 each. I gave her permission to buy it.

Next thing we know we are being automatically billed $128 per month. Called the company and was told they had delivered several boxes to our home. If this did happen, they were left outside on our doorstep - we have only found one box on our doorstep to date.

According to reprsentatives from this company when my child bought the two CDs she also signed up for a gold program which costs $64/month. This must have been somewhere in extremely fine print because we only found out once we realised money was being withdrawn from our debit card.

  • Jan 10, 2015

In Oct-2014, I ordered a CD from PimsleurApproach for $9.95. When I received the CD, the letter in the CD box told me that I would also soon receive four installments of CD'd for the "Gold Course" which I was not aware of at the original purchase of the $10 CD. I immediately called their customer service and told them I did not want this course and to cancel them sending me these additional CD's. They said they would, but a month later I received a $64 CD in the mail. The CD was immediately send back (Tracking #9452110200881388921035). Today(01/09/2015) our Charge Card showed a $64 charge for this CD that I did not order. I called customer service to complain about the charge. They denied that they ever received the CD, but when I told them about the tracking number, they backed up and said that they will remove the charge. They have lied to many times and I don't believe them. This company and their sales personel belong in jail!

  • Jan 7, 2015

Although I was not notified before I placed my order, I was charged a monthly part payment of $64 after purchasing a product of about $10.

  • Oct 13, 2014

After participating in a survey on the internete, I was offered a free prize which was a CD learning Manderin Chinese.

About a few weeks to a couple of months maybe, I received a notice of a package being delivered and a price charge connected to that.. This was unexpected because I did not make any additional request. I unsuscribe to their website and offered to returne the merchandise which until now is still unused. They declined and continue to charge me for over $300.00 and have been consistant ever since.

I honestly feel that those survey gimmics are part of these people scams to manipulate people into hundreds of dollars of charging them without people making additional request And the bait was the free gift for participating in a survey that have NO cosiquences at all towards their lives.

  • Oct 8, 2014

To whom it may concern,

Be aware. The $9.95 for the Pimsleur Approach is a total scam.

When I purchased the CD, I did not understand that I would have to pay 4 x $64 per CD, 4 times or 1 time for each CD. I thought I could just purchase the first set for $9.95 and I had no idea they would keep charging me. I was not at my home for health reasons for a few months. When I got back, my daughter that help me with my finance (I'm an older lady) told me I had over $600 of charges on my credit card from an Internet company, for what seemed to be the Pimsleur Approach. I was completely taken by surprise and I called them to try to return all the material they sent (I did not open it). They said that because it was past 30 days, they would not accept any return. I tried to return all of it, and I was willing to pay the $9.95 even if I returned all the CD, and they refused. Leaving on a fixed income, this has been very hard for me as I now have credit card debt because of those charges.

I never authorized any of those charges and I now rely on the credit card company to help me fight and get a refund. I really feel I was taken advantages of and I encourage everybody to absolutely avoid this company.

This is a complete SCAM, do NOT purchase. Be very careful as this company is very dishonnest and their advertising very deceptive.

  • Sep 3, 2014

Stay far away from this company! They lure you with a very affordable Pimsleur conversational language CD (mine was Spanish for Travelers). If you look on the back of the invoice in tiny, tiny print you'll see that you will be send subsequent language CD's for $65 per set. Once you recieve these sets you have 20 days to cancel or you will be billed. As has been reported by others on Ripoffreport.com the package ships so late that its nearly impossible to cancel on time. Mine arrived 2 days before the cancel date.

I called and was told that I would have to pay for the first set. I agreed and said I didn't want any more of their product and did not want to be charged again. Within 45 days I was charged twice more for $65 and they ALMOST charged us again. I was able to get my credit card company to stop all payment from these crooks.

The BBB has taken no action on these maggots because they technically haven't broken any laws...

  • Aug 26, 2014

I was lured into buying an inexpensive CD on how to learn to speck Spanish. After I made my payment, the company began sending me very expensive CD tapes using my credit card without my knowledge. They also make it difficult for me to cancel the process. Paul for Estero Florida.

  • Aug 22, 2014

I bought a Pimsleur introductory Spanish lesson. Then, without my permission, I was sent the full Spanish lesson of 16 CDs (twice) and was charged for them without my permission. The introductory course was only $10.00, yet I have been charged hundreds of dollars for the unsolicited courses.

This is an internet trap which has probably tricked hundreds of others without their knowledge.

  • Jul 24, 2014

The "teaser" is a $10 sample of the lessons. What is not obvious is that you are signing up for four(4) shipments of 32 CDs, each at $256 for total of 256*4=$1024. They split the billing of each shipment into four(4) $64 payments. But they ship 32CDs every month automatically. (in just four months you have accumulated a $1024 obligation)

The return terms are 30 days.

My Complaint: 1) None of this is clear on the website until after you have made the initial $10 purchase. 2) Got the extreme hard sell when trying to cancel. After expressing a disire to immediatly cancel and return (within the 30 day period) I was offered "a fantastic deal" that only COST me MORE money. This was after being put on hold to "talk with a manager". The idea was clearly to keep me on the phone as long as possible. 3) I felt the telephone Pimsleur sales agent was playing word games to disguise the fact that they wanted to send me four sets of CDs in four months, and charge me $1024 at 16 monthly payments of $64. It took me half an hour to get the Pimsleur sales agent to acknowledge that those were in fact the terms. The deception is one of omission: he threw the number $64 around in multiple configurations, but the most I could get him to acknowledge that they want "four payments of $64 four times". It was up to me to do the math ($1024 at 16 monthly payments of $64)

It seems clear to me that the pricing and terms are designed to disguise the total.

The product is not bad, just outrageously over priced. Next time I go to the library.

  • Jul 4, 2014

I am a victim of the New Pimsleur Approach . I ordered the trial one thinking it would be great. Not so much I received the second and did not open it but sent it back. Again I received another set, I did not open and sent it back. I have been charged $64. at least 11 times. Sometimes 3 times in one month. I have called and asked them to stop. I have told them I do not have the product nor do I want it. I have received no response or been able to stop them from taking money from my account. I was to be charged $9.95. I have been charged $768.00. For something I do not have. I have told them I am going to turn this over the BBB and Attorney Generals Office. This is a total scam. I want my money back. What am I supposed to do?

  • Jun 21, 2014

In small print above a purchase confirmation button is a declaration "By clicking below, I'll be charged $9.95 and agree to the adjacent purchase program terms and conditions", but searching their site, I could find no such document. I am expected to agree to terms that are never disclosed to me. Searching for the terms using a popular search engine only revealed a number of complaints from people who proceeded to click, but no such actual document.

  • May 14, 2014

I bought Pimsleur Approach CDs for $9.99. Then they charged my Credit Card for $64.00. Then another set of CDs came in the mail. I called the company in Philadelphia but no answer. Then I got a mail asking me for $166.00 just saying that we are unable to charge this because your credit card was denied. Then a month later another mail came in asking for $684.0 saying the same thing, credit card denied also call immediately. Also they are recrutting people just like Amway pyramid scheme so they can bill through other people. This is a scam.

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