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Wine clubs are adopting controversial sales tactics that are leaving customers with a sour taste in the mouth.
Guardian Money has been contacted by readers who were sent promotional offers of cheap cases of wine - only to find that they are committed to future purchases that are automatically debited from their credit card.
Before Christmas, Niall Cooper opened his bank statements from NatWest and Halifax to find flyers offering a discounted mixed case from wine club giant Laithwaites. The NatWest leaflet offered the greatest discount (£50) so the father-of-three, who lives in Manchester and runs a charity, gave it a go. He bought one case, at the discounted price of £44. "The wine was passable but I didn't want to order more," he says. "However, last week I received a letter from Laithwaites telling me they were about to deliver another case, at a cost of £77, which I certainly wasn't expecting."
After trawling round the company's website he found he had inadvertently signed up for Laithwaites's "4 Seasons" plan, which involves being sent further crates every three months.
"If I had signed up, it was never made clear during the process. Worse, when I logged on to my account, there was no mechanism to cancel. One of their sales representatives confirmed that the only way to cancel is by phone. Yet the marketing letter I received had no contact details, no address, no phone number and no email."
Although the company has since cancelled his order - quickly and without question - he is concerned about the way the firm operates. "I'm sure I am not alone in having gone for this and I suspect others will be receiving their 'Wine Plan' crates in the next couple of weeks and end up accepting them, for the simple reason it's too much hassle to send them back."
However, it is not just Laithwaites. Another reader contacted us about an offer sent by the theatre and music ticket agency SeeTickets. Similar flyers fall out of packages sent by Amazon. The reader was offered a £40 voucher, redeemable at the new internet wine company Naked Wines, set up by the man behind Virgin Wines before he sold it - to Laithwaites.
Again, the voucher promises a big discount on a first purchase - in this case, a £90 mixed case would be sent for £30. But buried in the small print is a clause stating that anyone taking up the offer will automatically find themselves paying £20 a month into a wine fund. This money could later be redeemed to buy wines at any point in the future - with a 33% discount.
The vouchers sent out by Amazon have a different small-print clause which means anybody taking up the offer commits themselves to paying £5 a month to Naked Wines.
"My first reaction was 'great - a £40 wine voucher'," said the reader, who does not wish to be named. "It even said they had sent it as a 'thank you' for shopping with See. It was only when I went through the small print that I discovered that, by buying the initially low-priced case, I would end up paying into a savings account to cover future purchases. What sort of offer is that?" The reader decided not to go ahead.
When Money looked at the websites of both companies, the conditions attached to the offers were not as up-front as they could be. But, unlike the book club scams that have all too often featured in Money pages, the wine club deals do not lock customers in and both firms are clear you can halt your commitment to future sales at any time.
Laithwaites says: "It was clearly stated on the voucher that this was an introduction to the '4 Seasons' service. The web page [Niall Cooper] accessed to take up the offer is very clear with regard to an ongoing relationship, where Laithwaites would send a pre-advised case of wine every two or three months. Customers can cancel, or skip the next case, at any time. And he could have claimed a full refund, via our no-quibble guarantee, if he wasn't happy with his original case."
A spokeswoman for Naked Wines conceded the offer could have been made clearer and said changes have since been made to its marketing materials. "If the customers prepay £10 or £20 a month, we don't have to spend money marketing to them," she said. "We would rather pass a 33% saving on to our loyal customers. They can cancel at any time and get their monthly payments back - which are kept in a secure trust account."
How to sniff around for a vintage deal
Wine clubs use great initial offers to lure in customers, according to the respected Observer wine critic Tim Atkin. But if you put in some legwork, you can often find better value elsewhere.
The market is dominated by Direct Wines, which sells 4.5m cases a year. As well as Laithwaites, it includes Avery's, Virgin Wines, The Sunday Times Wine Club, NatWest Wine Club, Barclaycard Wine Service, British Airways Executive Wine Club and Warehouse Wines.
Atkin says the biggest part, Laithwaites, "relies on the fact that most of its 800,000 customers like wine but are happy for someone else to choose and deliver it, which is fine. Opening offers can be great value, but you need to be aware of what you are signing up to. However, trying to price the rest of the range is difficult, not least because it has so many 'exclusives' that, inevitably, aren't offered elsewhere."
Atkin says alternative home delivery services worth a try are (in no particular order) the not-for-profit Wine Society; Majestic Wines and Berry Brothers. He also praises Avery's (also part of Direct Wines) and Tesco's online wine service.
To access the Wine Society it costs a £40 one-off membership fee, which makes a trial difficult. But regular wine buyers have reported being rewarded over the years with more than their money back. Those who live near its Stevenage HQ can pick up their wine rather than pay for delivery, or receive a discount on orders over £75, which are free.
Majestic only sells in cases of 12, although buyers can mix up their choices. It does, however, offer free delivery all over the UK.
Knowledgeable buyers should check out wine-searcher.com. This excellent site lets users input a favourite wine; it then lists firms that are selling it, and how much it costs. Do a road test - you will be amazed at the differences in prices charged for exactly the same wine.
m.brignall@guardian.co.uk
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