FYI I saw and ad in a magazine for a free bottle of Focus Factor. They do require to you to pay $4.95 shipping though.


The Number is 1-800-406-4571

So...I decided to call the number to get my free bottle of focus factor. I gave the women my payment info for the $4.95 shipping and handling.

AFTER I gave her my info she then tells me that since they know I will love Focus Factor so much that I will automatically be signed up for an optional subcription to focus factor where I will recieve 3 bottles for the price of 2.


I said so you only tell me this AFTER you take my payment info. Told her I thought this was a SCAM and that they were taking advantage of people with AD/HD since many of us probably won't realize that we signed up for something. I the told her that many of us would forget to cancel the supscription too.

Then I tell her to Cancel the whole order. Get this...she asks me why? I told her because it is a SCAM!!!.

I ended up hanging up on the woman because when I asked her questions that should have had a yes or no answer she started rambling on.

I figured they would do this. All those mail-order companies use this trick. It's just like when AOL used to send out those free disks with free hours. You needed to use your credit card to activate the free hours, then they billed you the next month regardless of if you asked for it or not. They got in big trouble for that.

But you say it was presented as an "optional" subscription. Did the telemarketer elaborate on that? How easy is it to get out of it during that initial phone call?

I'm very curious about this product (as you know from my Yahoo group post).

I was just watching Regis and Kelly and Regis was talking about calling the toll free number for Focus Factor. He said he called to get the free bottle over 2 months ago and it still has not come yet.

can you buy focus factor in any stores or just online?

My wife works in a General Nutrition Centre and I could swear I've seen it in her store.

I will ask her her opinion of it, she's fairly knowledgeable about these sorts of products and companies.

1- i've had focus factor - its not in my opinion anything special

2- i found out a year after ordering it that 2 companies were putting charges on my bank account, for large summs around 79.00 each. i called the companies, they promptly reversed the charges, and i asked if they ever charged my account before; yes, one year earlier they charged my account when i "joined". They agreed to refund those charges too, without any argument...it was almost as if they get the request day in and day out, an survive on those who never discover the charges. Then I inquire where they got my credit card number...guess where...from Focus Factor. When I ordered Focus Factor, they automatically signed me up for memberships in 2 additional "clubs" that I never heard of in my life...as far as I'm concerned it was a total scam.

Watch your bank accounts carefully

Jonathan

Its scary that our governemnt does almost nothing about this kind of crime, yet they put little petty theifs in prison for years, or even for life in some cases. Its ironic and moronic, these are the kind of criminals that deserve to be shacking behind bars, sophisticated, with brains, capable of running large companies, capable of majr marketing campaigns, capable of finding a needed niched market....and they resort to crime...yet the governemn does nothing about it, and allows them to give our credit card numbers to toher companies....

whose in charge in washington?

ohhh...Georgie...and he is busy fighting foreign wars or babequeing for his $50,000 donors at his ranch....we wouldn't want to bother those Washingtonians for anything that bothers us everyday American taxpaying citizens.

Jon

My wife looked at the stuff online and says it looks "okay". She thinks some of its ingredients are illegal in Canada. She doesn't get it in her store, and has never had any customers use it, so she hasn't heard any of the billing troubles either...

The ingredients in it are mostly vitamins and other nutritional supplments like omega-3 fish oil. I have been taking a number of supplements for a while and thought that getting them all in one bottle would be worth the $4.95...

Warning - Focus Factor -

they took my credit card number and joined me in two "clubs" that i did not request or give permission for, and those clubs were billing my credit card!!!! This was more than $100 in charges I had to call around to get reimbursed! And when you call them, its like they were expecting your call, and they politely remove the charges. I wonder how many people don't see it on their statements and don't call. I didn't catch it until a year later when they automatically renewed my "club" membership......and thats when i dound out it was a "renewal" which made me ask if they charged me the year before, and they had to refund me all of it. The scary part, they wer not surprised. Scarier, they are not Focus Factor, they got the informatoin from Focus Factor, including my creidt card number!!!

Watch out if you ordered Focus FAcor. Check your accounts carefully. I had cancelled my focus factor orders a long time ago, and then i find out about this??!!

I'm not a Focus Factor fan! Personally, I think its a scam. I think a very good vitamin combination would do the same. In my case, Body Balance does much better and no strange billings from them so far.

Jonathan

Jon,





What really upsetting me is I am seeing the ad for the "Free Focus" factor on TV now too.

Yes Tara,

They have a great pitch, catches all us ADDers with what they know we will want to hear, and we will buy if they say all the right things.

too bad we can't depend on the regulators to regulate scams, especially large scale scams like this and AOL...its appaling, isnt it. Why do we have govt watchdog agencie(s) being paid huge amounts of money, if these scams are allowed to continue?

But I have to admit, I didn't call my congressman about it either...so it is my fault too.

Jon

They are really taking advantage of people with AD/HD. These ads are aimed right at us especially undiagnosed ADDers.

When I called I had a feeling that there was more to it so I was on guard. I'm sure many people call just expecting to get a free bottle and only pay shipping. I'm sure many people don't really process or even hear the thing about signing us up for a subscription.

Ok, lets assume that people were aware that they had signed up for the subscription and plan on canceling it later. I'm sure the people at Focus factor are well aware that people with AD/HD procrastinate or forget about those types of things.

Is there not an Agencie that can be contacted about this

No one will know unless someone speaks up

Yes...but we have ADD...lol

Actually I am planning on writing to "Psychology Today" which is the magazine in which I saw the ad and called about.

I have also recently seen the comercial on Lifetime and Plan on contacting them also.

I think the agencies to contact are the Better Business Bearuea, Office of Consumer Affairs and maybe even the Attorney General.

good going Tara

Good idea, to call the companies that allow them to advertise in their forums, magazines, commercials, etc. Very smart strategy, and then add the attorney general heat to the mix....maybe we can get somewhere.

We need to start protecting people with ADD from this kind of targeting.

Jon

Well, I went ahead and ordered it after having had a nasty fallout with a very good friend over how long it was taking me to finish a job for him- I felt like I needed to do SOMETHING, ANYTHING, to get my scatteredness under control- and I figured I would just cancel it immediately once I got the bottle.

Which I did- and recorded the whole conversation on my celphone so they can't claim I didn't cancel. Found out that if I hadn't cancelled within 30 days, they'd also have signed me up for some discount "Omega health program" (which is a pretty lame name for a health program) and auto-charged my cc for $200!

Someone else on here had said they saw a couple of charges from other companies? Could you tell me what they were so I can watch out for them?

Oh, and the pills don't seem to help much. Even if you take 8 a day! (4 is the "regular" dosage)

And the ingredients seem to be basically identical to your average daily multivitamin. There's not even any acetyl-l-carnitine in it, which is something I've had good results with, though I quickly develop a tolerance.

Focus factor does have some added ingrediants that a normal multi vitamin doesnt have but its not really to treat ADD.... its just to maintain health in a normal brain.

yeah, I noticed that once I looked closer at the bottle, and I think you're right on lil, I did feel a little more brain power, but no lessening of scatteredness.

It did help a little, but it's no substitute for meds for those who need em.

Yep I agree. In the infomercial they run though... they really make it seem like a magic little pill. All those stories about children who had horrible behavior & problems in school turning into perfect little angels... they pretty much list the symptoms of ADD and say that their product can take care of the symptoms but right after that they have some small print flashing in the corner of the screen.

"Important Notice:
Focus Factor ™ is a dietary supplement designed to support normal brain function. It is not intended for use in the treatment of any disease."

The company is obviously well aware that a lot of people are going to buy the product thinking it will treat their ADD... After all the "success stories" and listing all the symptoms the product will "treat" and talking about how great it is for an entire half an hour they flash that quote in tiny print in the corner of the screen for about 5 seconds..... obviously the only reason they do that is so people cant sue them for false advertising. Then you call up for your "free" bottle and they try to sign you up for 5 different things after they take your credit card number...... uhg :rolleyes:

Its pretty sick marketing ---- Hocus HAcker - Hacks your creidt card!

The companies were some lame name like "Home Improvement Club" or somethign like that, both almost identical in name, why would someone join one of them, let alone two of them, if they sound the same???

I agree, they do nothing or little. Maybe a little energy boost. I think there is a possibility for a placebo effect for a couple weeks, because one might notice a slight change, but again, it does not seem to solve any real problems.

Jonathan

This is kind of a funny aside --

I was on my cell phone in the car to sign up for the Free Focus Factor, and the lady wanted my credit card number for 4.95. I couldn't drive and do that at the same time. I told her I would call back when I got home.

I forgot to!! Now I'm glad I did!

It's such a bummer that there are so many dishonest bozos out there!

So are you saying we saved one more soul from being sold? GREAT!!!

Jon

Wow. I am glad I went to this post. I have seen the commercials, and I was going to place a call to them when the commercial came on again so I could get the number....again for like the sixth time.

Heck, I have been wanting to place the call for a good year, but kept on misplacing the number or procrastinating on calling them! ADD and this forum rescued me!

Companies like "Focus Factor" are not just praying on ADDers (as many like me don't have credit cards as we forget to pay the bills) but on any one who has problems focusing that would inclide those with early Alzerhiemer's, onset of metapause ( lack of estrogen causes women to lose the ability to focus) any one and every one who falls in this catagory of difficulty focusing not just us we are just parts of the equasion.

I don't use credit cards nor do I use electronic banking over the phone or internet, as I don't have the attention span. If a company refuses to accept money order (can't access any more money than money order states, no access to checking account # ect) I figure they have more money than they need so they don't need mine. I will happily wait till money order arrives to recieve a product or service. This works for me, but then that is just me.

Tammy Lee

I remember reading somewhere that there was a law suit against this guy who developed Focus Facter. Something about his claims being unproven.

I wouldn't trust it.

Maureen

Let's face it - If there were a simple nutritional "tweak" we could do to "fix" our ADD, don't you think they'd have found it years ago? Sorry - I'm a skeptic. If it was all that amazing, they wouldn't have to resort to cheezy infomercials to sell it. It's all about building a better mouse trap....

David Pershing

I'm really glad to see this discussed. It's obvious to us that it's a rip off, but unfortuantely many people looking for help will get hooked into the BS. I mean if this sort of thing did work, it would be on the cover of TIME and we would have been at the front of the line to try it.
I'm grateful that the FORUM is here to help carry the message of what's real and what isn't. Excellent post. Thanks.

Wow! I ordered focus factor for my daughter last year, I'll have to go back and look thru my statements and watch for any yearly charges.

Focus Factor didn't help my daughter at all.

Not worth the high price.

If you want to try it,,, go to ebay and they have plenty to sell for a fraction of the cost.

It doesn't work at any price :)

Report them to the FTC (federal trade commission), who handles this kind of thing. Of course, not much will likely happen since this agency is hopelessly backlogged and with much worse cases than this, and yes this is a direct result of 10 years of Republican domination of the federal gov't. They put business ahead of consumers as a matter of party ideology, without argument. They would say that the "government meddling" is a bad that far outweighs the good of stopping truly bad business practices, and that in the end you save money as a consumer from not having this meddling. No numbers to back up this assertion, of course.

You should also report any incidents to your state bureau of consumer affairs, which is usually an office of the Atty General. If your state does not have an office of consumer affairs, report it to the atty. general. You might not get far if you got your money back, but unauthorized charges are just the kind of windmill that state AGs love to charge at so there's hope if a lot of people report them.

There are also scam websites that you should always visit before shopping online at a site that looks dubious...god, I can't remember now what the URLs are but they're 10X better than Better business bureau or even the ftc in its current state.

Apparently our government was on the job when FF was fined $1 million in 2004...

here's a link to the story:

http://www.consumeraffairs.com/news04/focus_factor.html

Seriously, the first thing I thought when I saw the commercial was... they're trying to manipulate me because I have ADD by using key words and other various childlike manipulation skills. Wow it's got natural vitamins and **** in it that do basically **** all. Like really Ritalin isn't for everyone, but focusfactor isn't for anyone. At least they give the money back though, I was reading up on these other scams on google when I searched "SMC Scam" and "Infomercial Scams" and some of the stuff you read is terrible. This one dude fell for a trick and lost everything, they overdrafted his account, ****ed his credit, ****ed his life. He had to sell all his possesions to pay the banks back etc and still hasn't. He lost his family cuz they thought he was crazy, his friends got ****ed over too. Really sucks. These people don't give a **** about the people they sell this **** to, it probably hasn't even been tested properly or manifactured correctly, I bet if they pump out enough of this ****, people start dieing. Wonder what chemicals they don't tell u about are in that ****.

- Steve

Does focus factor actually work?

Well, if it actually worked, they'd file for FDA approval, patent it, and sell it for a lot more money, and they wouldn't have to resort to bait-and-switch tactics to get rich.

Incidentally, if Focus Factor is shipped across state lines, and it almost certainly is, then that makes them agents of interstate commerce. In fact, if they scammed people in a state other than their own, then that is also interstate commerce. The reason why I specifically mention that term is because anything involving interstate commerce is, under the US Constitution, subject to the jurisdiction of the federal government. That makes pulling a scam like this a federal crime.

This thread does the Consumer Ed teacher's heart good! My work lives on.

Keep on keepin' on. The FTC was started because of the work of Chase and Schlink-and companies keep on doing the same thing today.

Go to the FTC website for more info
http://ftc.gov/ftc/consumer.htm
and get your inner activist going!

Medications or supplements effect different people in different ways. And imbalances or lack of certain vitamins & minerals along with allergies can cause behavior issues.
But before taking anything over the counter or otherwise especially if you are on other medications you should consult with your doctor first.
Also, any medication or supplement can cause side effects and I myself would rather go a natural route first.
With that said, I decided to look for Focus Factor today and found it at Walmart for more than Half off the price off the internet or tv. The 120 count for kids was only about $10 and the adult bottle of 60 was almost $20. Beats being scammed and I believe it's worth a try.

Shouldn't you also report this kind of stuff to the Better Business Bureau? --> http://www.bbb.org/

apparently, the company that produces focus factor has had any number of complaints:

http://www.consumeraffairs.com/nutrition/vital.html

scam artists will always be in business as long as people have hope...

apparently, the company that produces focus factor has had any number of complaints:

http://www.consumeraffairs.com/nutrition/vital.html

scam artists will always be in business as long as people have hope...
Yeah, the Better Business Bureau reports alot of complaints as well!

I didn't realize how extremely thorough the BBB reports were about companies! Check it out!

http://www.bosbbb.org/reports/reliability_report.asp?FirmId=0000073544

I thought the below information was particularly interesting:

Company name: Vital Basics, Inc.
Tai Vital Basics

Additional File Information

On 05/10/04, the company filed for reorganization under Chapter 11 of the federal Bankruptcy Act, case# 04-20734. This permits the company to continue to operate with court supervision while developing a plan of reorganization. Those with monetary claims against the company are advised to obtain a Proof of Claim form by writing to US Bankruptcy Court-District of Maine, 537 Congress Street, Second Fl. Portland, ME 04101 for resubmission to that source. The case number should be entered on the form. Claims must be submitted by unknown.

Hey "hope" is what led me to my savior, Concerta!

(wonders if "Hope" is one of those stridently anti-medications people, and if so, can I have a piece of her too?....cracks up and takes mid-day meds)

Medications or supplements effect different people in different ways. And imbalances or lack of certain vitamins & minerals along with allergies can cause behavior issues.
But before taking anything over the counter or otherwise especially if you are on other medications you should consult with your doctor first.
Also, any medication or supplement can cause side effects and I myself would rather go a natural route first.
With that said, I decided to look for Focus Factor today and found it at Walmart for more than Half off the price off the internet or tv. The 120 count for kids was only about $10 and the adult bottle of 60 was almost $20. Beats being scammed and I believe it's worth a try.Do keep us posted as to how this product works...:cool:

I went on Focus Factor's website where you order the bottle online and two paragraphs under it, it say the following:

Terms of FREE offer:

Each shipment of FOCUS factor comes with a money back guarantee (less shipping and handling). Limit one free bottle per household

You will be charged only $4.95 to help cover the cost of shipping and handling today for your free bottle of FOCUS factor which you will receive in about 5 business days. If you call to cancel within the next 18 days the $4.95 shipping and handling fee is ALL that you will be charged. In about 18 days as a FOCUS factor preferred customer we will be sending you another bottle for $59.95 with FREE shipping and handling. Thats $15.00 off our regular price per bottle plus FREE shipping! Every month thereafter, you will receive a new shipment of one bottle for $59.95 with FREE shipping and handling.

You may call our customer service toll-free at 1-800-825-1423 to cancel or customize the timing of your preferred customer shipments. Customer service hours are Monday through Friday from 9am-5:30pm EST.

Consumer Notice: You will only be enrolled in the Preferred Customer Plan when you agree to the terms and conditions of the Free FOCUS Factor offer. You will not be obligated to stay in the program for any amount of time, and you can cancel at anytime.

It is deceiving as you only want the free bottle. Nobody asks to be a preferred memeber. I hate that.

I dont know if you guys also heard about Constant Focus and Lucidal but both of these like Focus Factor are 'brain supplements'. Their websites are constantfocus.com, lucidal.com and focusfactor.com respectively

This is will probably help many people.. so pls read along:

I have just discovered that Constant Focus and Lucidal (brain supplements) are both one and the same company!! and just maybe Focus Factor is also a sister company!!

background:
I have been researching on the web which brain-enhancing products are good for my out-of-focus problems..

Then I saw an ad on TV about Lucidal. Since Im naturally a skeptic I googled it on the web and found several negative reviews about its claim and efficacy

as I continued on my search I stumbled upon the site Product-Critic.com

When I visited that site I noticed that that site (although they claimed to have tested all 'brain' products) is so biased to Constant Focus.

Since Im both a website nerd and skeptic, I tried checking the Whois (or owner) of those websites.

Using Goddady.com to check the whois, I discovered that Product-Critic.com, ConstantFocus.com and Lucidal.com are owned by one and the same company.. The ff is the common info/address of each of the 3 sites:

15111 N. Hayden Rd., Ste 160, PMB 353
Scottsdale, Arizona 85260
United States
(480) 624-2599 Fax -- (480) 624-2599

That is why Product-Critic is highly recommending Constant Focus.. Its just a marketing ploy!

These so called 'Doctors' appear to just fool us and rob us of our hard-earned income by convincing us to buy their downright useless brain products. Probably they just change the labels and the tablets are just one and the same!

Here's another bomb:

Then I also noticed that the Payment pages of Lucidal and Focus Factor are almost exactly the same. let's say 99% the same!! Do compare yourselves:

At focusfactor.com click either Get it Free or Order Online buttons

then compare with

At lucidal.com click Order Online button

See the similarities?

Moreover their Homepage are almost similar too

So i say these products and their companies are but another scam trying to rip us off our hard earned cash!

I pray that our Government will seriously run after them!!

Let us not allow these guys to succeed in their evil schemes

So let's all be vigilant and to be cautious with any company esp when our bank accounts are involve

Peace :v:

Good for you for doing research. I wish there's more people like you. Lots of scammers out there. Goodluck!

Hi Everyone
I’m new to this forum and am wondering if any of you have ever used a product called “Focus Formula”? I’ve never tried “Focus Factor” and wonder about the differences. I get this stuff for about $20.oo at Wegmans supermarket in the health supplement dept. and it lasts me a month. It contains a lot of B vitamins among others. I really think it helps me as I am 55 live alone and don’t really eat as well as I should. I’m out right now and came online to see if I could buy it cheaper over the net and saw this forum.
Sincerely SGTJGB

Hi Everyone
I’m new to this forum and am wondering if any of you have ever used a product called “Focus Formula”? I’ve never tried “Focus Factor” and wonder about the differences. I get this stuff for about $20.oo at Wegmans supermarket in the health supplement dept. and it lasts me a month. It contains a lot of B vitamins among others. I really think it helps me as I am 55 live alone and don’t really eat as well as I should. I’m out right now and came online to see if I could buy it cheaper over the net and saw this forum.
Sincerely SGTJGB

“Focus Formula”

Vitamin C (as ascorbic acid) 120 mg 200%

Vitamin E (as d-alpha-tocopheryl succinate) 30 IU 100%

Vitamin B6 (as pyridoxine HCl) 10 mg 500%

Folate,Folic Acid,Folacin 400 mcg 100%

Vitamin B12 (as cholecalciferol) 30 mcg 500%


Soybean Phosphatides Complex (lecithin) 200 mg*

DMAE bitartrate 125 mg*

DHA Complex (7.5% EPA/DHA from fish oil) (Omega III fatty acid concentrate) 100 mg*

Siberian Ginseng Root Extract (0.8% eleutherosides) 100 mg*

Ginkgo Biloba Leaf Extract (24% ginkgo flavonglycosides, 6% terpene lactones) 60 mg*

Alpha Lipoic Acid 50 mg*

Gotu Kola Leaf Extract (10% asiaticosides) 30 mg*

Vinpocetine 5 mg*

Huperzine A (from Huperzia serrata extract [whole plant]) 100 mcg*

Water Spinach leaf and blueberry juice 10:1 concentrate 50 mg*


* Daily Value not established.

Since I have tried everything on that list but Gotu Kola Leaf, Water Spinach leaf and blueberry juice and in large amounts and various combination I doubt the formula will help most ADHDers.

Personally if I was a scumbag trying to premote an OTC product for ADHD(by spamming a forum) and still making it better than the above formula. It would be:

Theta's Focus Scam Product Thats Still Better Than The Rest Formula:

n-acetyl-l-carnitine (1000 mg)
magnesium dihydrolactate (133 mg Mg)
R-alpha-lipoic acid (100 mg)
l-selenomethionine (66 mcg Se)
green tea extract (adjust to 150 mg caffiene)
potassium citrate (99 mg K)

Made into an 8 hr time relase forumla. A person would take up to 3 doses a day.