As a web master who sells acai pills from time to time, I read about the recent settlement between the Arizona Attorney General and CCN with a mixture of interest, satisfaction, fear. Interest because this is a landmark settlement; satisfaction because these people are giving the industry a very bad name, and fear because customer trust is currently at a fairly low point anyway: this definitely won’t help that.

CCN – or Central Coast Nutraceuticals to give the group its full name – sells health products, of which Acai Berry is one example. These health products are invariably offered as part of a “free trial”. On agreeing to the acai free trial, customers are forced to enter their credit card details. Once the CCN has these details, the customer’s card is billed periodically for what is essentially a repeat subscription.

Often the customer is not aware this repeated charge as it is indeed in a very small small-print. Once they do find out about it – often after further products have arrived, and sometimes only when they view their credit card bill – it is difficult or impossible to cancel.

The settlement of $1,375,000 is a truly scary number, whichever way you look at it. I know that my business would be taken well and truly under with that hit. I get a feeling, though, that it’s but a drop in the ocean compared to what CCN have made with these shady tactics. Anyway, not all Acai distributors are bad, and those that run legitimate businesses should be absolutely fine.