Playboy Enterprises review: subscriptions to minors 70

I received another Charles Martin Playboy billing scam from Harlan IA... I sent a return letter in the envelope, with HIS address as a return address (when the post office sends the letter back to the sender for no postage, it'll go to ole Charlie for postage due... that's my thinking anyways). What can be done about ###s like this? What about the people who get a threatening letter like this and PAY it because they don't want to go to collections? (Even though they never ordered the magazine in the first place).

I have received the same threatening letter from Charles Martin about sending me to collections, and like you, i also had not even ordered the magazine. they sent me one issue about 4 months ago and i have rec'd about a dozen other invoices with no address or phone number attached to call and complain.

What can we do to avoid this problem without paying the invoice? I don't want to be sent to collections over a measley $14.68 but this has to stop somehow.

My son started receiving invoices from Playboy about 3 months ago. He called me from AZ (I live in IL) asking what to do about it. I asked him if he got the magazine and he said no, so I told him to ignore the invoice as they were probably trying to get him to subscribe. Last night he phoned me again saying he got a very threatening letter signed by Mr. Charles Martin. The letter said if he did not send $17.00 he would be turned over to a collection agency. However, there was no invoice number, no date of subscription, or account number...rather odd wouldn't you say? I told him to give me the phone number on the letter and I would call them. Imagine...no phone number either.

Wonder how many people have actually sent them money to keep their good credit.

You subscribed to playboy, this is a legit bill.

It is definitely not a legit bill. I just received a second invoice for one I've never ordered, as has at least one of my friends. The fact that I was talking to about 5 people from my dorm and another one of them also received this means that it must be very common. I am planning on just ignoring them and filing a complaint with the usps. He can't actually send me to a collections agency, right? That would be a little to risky for him, I think.

This bill is not legit! Here is the deal... I have received this bill from playboy collection manager "charles martin" i never subscribed to playboy and would not dream of doing so. " I like real people not pictures ". So what i did was this, I went to the playboy site and ordered playboy with a false name and had it sent to a friends address. We waited to see what would happen and sure enough no magazine was sent but we received a bill from "charles martin" he threatened to go to collections and the whole bit! I just laughed because for one thing he never received any kind of information whatsoever ( except where to send a magazine ) on the person that he is sending this bill to! No ssn or anything like that and he would need this information to place anything in collections on anyone! So screw him and just ignore the bills and please send a complaint to the playboy headquarters in Hollywood calif. We all know that the small amount of money for postage on these bills does not seems to affect such a big corp. But when the owner or the accountant gets wind of it you can bet that they will re-think about what information they collect on someone that is ordering their service so that the thousands and yes i did say thousands of dollars spent on this form of collections is not wasted ( that is just for the postage not to mention the cost of printing these bills and the envelope & paper ). I'm sure " hef " would not enjoy hearing how his money is being wasted. It does add up believe me...

Good luck everyone and i hope this has helped you.

I am LIVID! My 15 year old son received a postcard solicitation in the mails with an offer for Playboy Magazine. The postcard had a 3/4 naked woman on it! Can I file legal action... anyone?

This is a legitimate bill. If you took as much time to search for a customer service number as you did to post this complaint you would have found it [protected]) and easily fixed the problem. Playboy doesn't just send out bills to people; an order has to be placed to generate a bill. Usually when you order a magazine subscription, you are expected to pay the bill before your subscription starts. Some publishers will send you 1 or 2 issues and then stop until you pay but who expects to get a years worth of magazines and then pay AFTER the fact? That's just ridiculous thinking. Also, if you ignore the bills, nothing will happen. You will be sent to a collection agency, but if you don't pay them either, they simply close the account and write off the debt. No negative information is sent to any credit reporting bureaus.

Playboy sends out postcards to people to start a subscription and all you have to do is return the postcard back to them. You'd be amazed at how many people go through your mail and especially if you're in a dorm, ANYONE could send that card back in as a prank to you. I wouldn't be surprised if some unscrupulous post office employees even sent them back in.

More than likely your son is on a mailing list that Playboy purchased. Obviously they don't solicit minors as this is against the law (and I've seen the postcards you're referring to and they aren't nude, otherwise it couldn't go through the mail). However, if your son has anything in his name such as other magazine subscriptions or even if you let them use your credit card to pay for something in their name from BMG Music or Columbia House, his name will be on a mailing list that Playboy can purchase.

You should simply call their customer service number [protected]) and let them know to remove your son's name and address. Be sure to give them any nicknames your son goes by as those can come up as well. There's no need to get nasty about it, make a 2 minute phone call and it's taken care of.

You can also call any companies that send stuff to your son in his name and ask that they not sell his information.

More than likely your son is on a mailing list that Playboy purchased. Obviously they don't solicit minors as this is against the law (and I've seen the postcards you're referring to and they aren't nude, otherwise it couldn't go through the mail). However, if your son has anything in his name such as other magazine subscriptions or even if you let them use your credit card to pay for something in their name from BMG Music or Columbia House, his name will be on a mailing list that Playboy can purchase.

You should simply call their customer service number [protected]) and let them know to remove your son's name and address. Be sure to give them any nicknames your son goes by as those can come up as well. There's no need to get nasty about it, make a 2 minute phone call and it's taken care of.

You can also call any companies that send stuff to your son in his name and ask that they not sell his information.

I have recently received the same type of threatening letter from the infamous Charles Martin regarding my awful negligence about me not paying my playboy subscription that I never subscribed for. I live in southwest Florida, and this is the second letter from this scammer. I noticed the subtle peculiarities these letters possessed or lack thereof: No invoice number, due date and no phone number to reach their billing department. Frankly, I am not worried about this letter. Hope this ### gets caught!

I received a letter in the mail from a charles martin, collections manager, stating i owed 15.96 and i had to reply back in 7 days or i would be sent to collections. I never sent for a subscription to playboy and to my knowledge in order for a account to be sent to collections they send you a notice in the mail or a auto dialer calls you and tells you of your late payment. In my line of work anytime a collection notice is going to be placed in effect there is always a call back number to where you can dispute the charges.

Get a life, all of you. A young teen boy needs a few playboy mags every now and then.

[protected]

There you guys go... call and ### the poor girl out like i did. This number will cancel your subscription if you ask, and you can file complaints there. I suggest you do.

My son recently got one of those post cards on the mail as well.And they are 3/4 nude. Very obscene in my opinion.And obviously Jason there does not know the effects of porn as boys are drilled from a young age that sex and looking at nude women are the norm and totally o.k. He does not know that porn encourages rape.There is a stong connection between rape statistics and pornography readership statistics.In 1983, to university of New Hampshire sociologists, Murry Straws and Larry Baron, studied the corrolation between rape and readership of pornography.What they descovered was indeed chilling.Studying the FBI's annual Uniform Crime Report for rapes reported to and recorded by police, they found that alaska & nevada were number 1 & 2 in the nation for occuances of rape.Alaska & Navada were also number 1 & 2 in the readership of pornography.An interview with several known child molesters they reported a growing dependancy of viewing porn from childhood.And that is not even all the damage porn can and will do.But these porn places have society believing that it won't hurt anyone and its ok.It not and I agree with her, I am LIVID about it.

I too was frustrated with these collection letters, however if you call [protected] you will get playboy and if you follow the prompts through to customer service, they will cancel this billing.

I just checked my mailbox and found the same thing addressed to my husband. Fortunately, I got to the mailbox today before my 11 yr. old.

Except that this isn't a legitimate bill. There is no 1-800 number, and I have severe difficulties believing that Playboy would be patient enough to wait six months before threatening action. This is further undercut by the fact that about a week ago, I received a bill from the "National Credit Audit Corporation." Claiming that they were a collection agency contacted by Playboy to squeeze the $10 out of me, although in less coarse language. As has been previously stated, no contact information has been provided, other than the location which I am to send my "payment" to. There is no phone number, no email address, not even a website. Not to mention that as of now, a years subscription to Hugh Hefner's fine publication costs approximately $26.97. A whole year that I didn't ask for, for just two fifths the normal price? What a great deal. I have a great deal of difficulty believing that, even if we assume that this is part of a marketing ploy to bring in more customers. I also find it interesting how much the billing center moves around. Other potential victims have been informed that the billing center is in Des Moines. Sure, Playboy's a big company, but even Microsoft doesn't need two billing centers (mines in Harlan, where's yours!?). Also, I hope to God that real Playboy bills don't have "collection agency, or six months, or the next seven days or any bloody words for that matter," underlined for effect.

I keep getting a letter in the mail by Playboy by a R. Duncan for Playboy saying they will send my bill to collection manager for mags I never even got! How can they send a past due bill to collection for a mag or item that I never even got or ordered?

This letter is coming from Harlan IA.

I have the exact same thing! I've never ordered this & theres no fn # to dispute only a PO Box. Did you ever get it resolved & if so how? TYVM!

I received a letter and bill for 17.26 and sent back a letter saying i didn't receive anything from the company and do not want to receive anything from the company. I sent it Certified and got a signature back from Stacie Frederick. I don't know if that helps anyone out, but i kept the copy for my records. I will ignore anything else from the company.

Same with me. I was going to call Playboy to report the fraud but I figure they must be swamped with complaints by now.

Peter.

Solicitation was sent to my son as a student discount (12 issues for $10.00). Zip code doesn't match the address. No contact information or phone number to remove your name from their mailing list.

I just received a solicitation concerning the Playboy Magazine. "You've been selected to enjoy PLAYBOY for just $1 an issue, ou absolute lowest price! And gat a FREE DVD!" A woman on the front without any underwear on and private areas barely hidden. Breasts hanging down in several pictures.

This was totally unsolicited, I do not go to sites like that on my computer, I am supposing that my name was sold. I work for a county's children services. I do not like this FILTH in my life. That aside, I have an 11 year old granddaughter, and a 14 year old grandson that live with me. This is the 2nd time I have received this type of solicitation from Playboy. My grandson has those "raging hormones" kicking in. Clothes catalogs (bras), get the picture? I intercepted the first solicitation, however, my granddaughter got to the mail before I did and of course she couldn't wait to tell her brother. Luckily I intercepted it before he got his eyes on it. I WANT THIS MAIL STOPPED FROM COMING TO MY HOUSE IMMEDIATELY.

What can I do to make sure that this happens. It looks like it is happening to a lot of people that are not pleased about it.

I got that same scam.

I recieved a notice thanking me for my order and telling me that they will start sending out merchandise that I didn't order. What a big scam. I will not accept any of that trash at my house. I will call that number to make sure that my children don't find that trash in the mail.

1 buck? sweet jesus thats cheep!

the phone # is [protected]
I never ordered the magazine but was sent a bill anyway. After a lengthy search, I found this number. They were actually helpful, removing me from their subscription list and zeroing the account balance.

I received an invoice for playboy magazine from "R. Duncan for Playboy" on 3/10/08. I never ordered this smut magazine - EVER! This is an obvious phishing scam. There is no correspondance - only a PO Box number in Harlan, IA. They tell you to send in your check, and don't even indicate who to make it payable to. DONT SEND THIS LOSER YOUR CHECK! Once he has it, he's got your signature, address, and account number. Your identity, and good credit standing will be in the hands of this bottom of the barrell ###. I have filed a complaint with consumer affairs, and I sent a letter to Harlen, IA authorities about this. Let's hope this crook gets what he deserves.

John R.

I agree that it is not o.k.! Common sense tells you that with all the divorce rates and the growing misconduct between adults and children, there are just too many effects of decay caused by the immorality of it all. I have had my own experiences with it in my family and am truly an advocate of fighting it. I am not insecure about my self and am by no means unattractive. So none of this stems from my insecurities. I can truly speak from experience when I say it is morally decaying to a persons view about reality and responsibility. It's also obvious that they are not aware of the effects because they have already been brain washed into thinking it is o.k. so they really wouldn't know.

Playboy does not send out bills to people to try and get them to take a subscription to their magazine. If you're receiving a bill, then they have an account for you and an order for you. If you people would just do as much research on how to contact Playboy as you did to find this complaint website, you would easily find that their phone number is:

[protected]

Call them up, ask them why you got a bill, and the answer just might surprise you. Usually orders are sent in as a joke. Come on, who hasn't gotten an order card and filled it out for someone else as a prank? Also, you can order online and check "bill me later", that's an order too. Instead of vilifying this guy, you should look around and see who among your "friends" is playing tricks with you.

My cousin even got a letter from playboy for the amount of $15.96. He hasn't order anything from playboy. this is probably a scam or as stated above that a friend might have played a trick on him. we'll surely call the number and find out.

I recieved a notice from the charles martin guy and instead of disputing this I paid it last year. I wrote a letter to them saying to cancel it and now I have another auto renew from a R. DUNCAN. How do you get them to cancel or quit automatically renewing the magazine?

I discovered a card in our mail today offering my husband a subscription for $1 an issue. I, too, am livid at receiving this in my mail as I have teenage children who don't need to see this obscene literature. The phone number listed above was helpful. A very nice woman said we'd be removed from the mailing list immediately. My only worry is other porn-related businesses that have purchased the Playboy list.

I also received the same letter about a sir Charles Martin for playboy reguarding me not paying a subscrition someone else filled out with the wrong last name saying that i havent payed my subscription for 6 months and the irs will be contacted, so i called the lady and got the subscription cancelled, they said personally that sir charles martin is fake and to disreguard the information, theywere trying to get my interenet money!

here is phone number for playboy billing center magazine [protected]. if anybody never order playboy & receive bill from playboy under {charles martin } call playboy number .tell them what's going on ...do not send money .

I have never subcribed to play magazine and I habe been billed for, i am not liable for it, I believe it is a fruadulent matter

Wow... relax... I have not seen playboy since i was a kid but I belive it is very mild.

So throw the card away, tell the kid that seeing a naked woman will send him directly to Hell and be done with it... should make him as uptight as his dad.

PS: 3/4 naked woman? what, she has no head?

Here was my experience with unordered Playboy subscription.

I got 2 letters from a R. Duncan and one from Charles Martin, with no contact phone number and fishy wording.

Basically the letters said that I had not fulfilled my part of the agreement, and they were going to do something about it. The letter did not threaten collections, did not have a contact number, and did not look legit to me.

I got online, because I was damn certain I did not order this magazine. I put in Charles Martin and sure enough, this complaint site hits the top. If you sort through all the complaints to find out the legitimacy of this subscription, you will find a poster that says to call [protected].

Google this number, and it is not affiliated with Playboy, its website, or its merchandise. There's hardly 2 pages of results with the term: Playboy+[protected]

Of course, I call it anyways. The first time I got Kelsey. She did not introduce herself from Playboy, did not affiliate herself with Playboy and did not say the word in our conversation. She assured me that I had filled out a magazine card and sent it in Jan. 11, 2008, from a previous address, which I moved out of Nov. 31st, 2007 (I did not tell her this little piece of info). I told her that I was suspicious of this invoice and found it even odder that there was no phone number on it. She assured me that she had the original card and all I had to do was write her, explaining the situation, with my signature, and I could get a copy of the original. She was quick with me and gave me an address of PLAYBOY, PO Box 2007, Harlan, IA 51593. She did not end the call with any affiliation with Playboy.

I went back to the webs, because my gut was still telling me this is bs. Oh, and I moved Nov. 31st 2007, so there is no possible way I sent it from my previous address.

I went to Playboy.com to try and find a contact number to call their customer service, and nothing, nowhere. I found the -write to us- button, on the bottom of the page and I was directed to: http://www.playboy.com/help/email.html

In the first box, click -customer service Playboy.com- and you will be directed to:

https://w1.buysub.com/pubs/PY/PLY/PLY_ComboEntryForm.jsp?cds_page_id=1747&cds_mag_code=PLY&id=1213234422349&lsid=81632033423054589&vid=1

Ok, this is where it gets very interesting. All it asks to log in to your account is your account number off the magazine. Enter only 10 numbers after PLY, on your invoice...

...and voila, your information!

Want to see something scary? I am a pretty curious person so I looked up this http...anything with the prefix of
https://w1.buysub.com

and I found a Men's Journal one at:

https://w1.buysub.com/pubs/WM/MJL/login.jsp?cds_page_id=28631&cds_mag_code=MJL&id=[protected]&lsid=[protected]&vid=3

I put my account number from my Playboy magazine into the Men's Journal one
...and voila, some dudes information!

To top it all off, I could change his address and renew his subscription...with a button that says BILL ME LATER!

This is a horrible breach of security and privacy. I think you all can imagine how to get your hands on some magazine accounts.

SO, I call back [protected] but this time I do not put my account information through the telephone and just wait to talk to an operator. This time I get Stephanie, who also does not say "Playboy" once throughout our conversation. She asked for an account number and a name, and came back to tell me that this has been canceled. I told her it was mighty odd that someone had sent in the card from a residence I had not lived at for almost 2 months, and then to find out it just miraculously canceled. She was very short with me and thanked me and hung up, never saying thank you or sorry or any affiliation with Playboy.

I dearly hope Charles Martin comes after me again. I can't wait until he threatens me with collections or leaves a number to contact him at. I could care less what he does to me. Come on Chuck! Bring it on you lying, cheating POS!

Here are the addresses:

R. Duncan (2 letters; one starting, "When you ordered...", and a second one starting, "Because your account is seriously past due, ...)
PLAYBOY
P.O. Box 2007
Harlan, IA [protected]

Charles Martin (1 letter, much more threatening, probably 3rd notice or something starting off "Your account has been turned over to me because...")
PLAYBOY
P.O. Box 10915
Des Moines, IA [protected]

I really hope Chucky sends me another letter...might just have to go visit Iowa. But I think the real problem is with the buysub web sites.

I have a complaint about a gift subscription that I ordered for two years in a row in 2006 and 2007 to be received starting in Jan. of 2007 and 2008. Only 3 issues were in 2007 and none in so far in 2008 and now I am receiving a request that I order another Gift for the same person. I need to know where I would go to find out why they were never received. Please let me know so that I can check into this.