By David Radin

Deceptive advertising has long been misleading consumers by offering free items and money by direct mail (or spam e-mail). Now these deceptive ads are targeting businesses, with a likely result that many companies will be caught, simply because they have multiple clerical personnel handle their documents and vendor relationships.

I just received a check from an Internet company called Simple.Net. It seemed innocuous enough -- a check for $3.25 made out to my company. However, it wasn’t that simple. There was a clause on the endorsement block, stating that «… by deposing this check, I agree to pay a fee for this service, which is only $17.95 per month, preferably billed on my telephone bill, according to the terms 1 through 10, which were enclosed with this check.» The clause goes on to say how you can get a refund by calling a toll- free number within 90 days after depositing the check.

I handle every check that comes into my small company and gets deposited into the company account. And since I know which customers are taking advantage of my consulting services, I recognize the checks. But in many companies, small and large, the people who receive the checks don’t always verify that they come from a real customer before depositing them.

This Simple.Net check looks like a payment -- complete with a code number in the memo field that looks like an account number, and my company telephone number. I can see where an accounting clerk would easily decide to deposit the check along with the batch of checks that came in that day -- especially if the company normally receives lots of small checks. Perhaps expecting to apply it to the correct account later, that clerk would be inadvertently committing her company to paying $215 per year.

We’ve seen this type of con game before, especially from banks and long distance telephone companies.

With the banks, it’s typically where they put a signature line on your payment coupon. This according to the small print above it would sign you up for some insurance service on your account, payable by you, but protecting the bank. I must admit, I’ve almost signed these by accident, when I pay my bills at the end of a long tiresome day. But so far, I haven’t made that mistake. Hopefully you haven’t either.

Some long distance companies are more obnoxious because they send you checks hoping to goad you into depositing them into your account, thereby agreeing to switch your long distance service. Although these tactics are repugnant, they are apparently legal, and don’t count as slamming.

Slamming is the art of changing your long distance service without your permission; a change that is difficult and time consuming to fix and often costs you more out-of-pocket through fees and higher rates.

The Simple. Net check I received adds a level of deviousness because it looks like you have 90 days to fix it; but the enclosed terms say they’ll confirm your order within 80 days, which only gives you 10 days to act. Plus, how many business people do you know look through their telephone bills for this type of charge?

It gets worse. The terms of the Simple.Net offer state that you agree to let Simple.Net debit your checking account using an Automated Clearing House electronic transfer. You’ve even given them permission to take the account information from the account in which you’ve deposited that $3.25 check.

So examine those incoming checks carefully. They may create problems well in excess of their face value.