(WSVN) - You have probably heard the offer. “Come to a free seminar to find out how you can get rich,” but many people end up saying, “I got taken,” which is why one South Florida woman called Help Me Howard with Patrick Fraser.
Say medical marijuana and some people see green.
Amanda Rosa, signed up for seminar: “This is going to be a business. It’s going to be really big here in Florida.”
If there is a gold mine out there, there are people claiming they can help you cash in.
Amanda Rosa: “We heard it on the radio a few times. They also had a couple of billboards on the way to Miami.”
It was a company called Cannabis Talk Network that was advertising on the radio and online.
The company then offered free seminars in South Florida to explain how to strike it rich with medical marijuana.
Amanda Rosa: “They will show you how to get started, how to make a plan, and they will hook you up with investors, and you should be making money within a couple weeks or months.”
Amanda and her husband went to one of the seminars. The sales pitch was impressive, she thought.
Amanda Rosa: “The whole thing was mostly, ‘I’m this rich. You can be like me. This is my airplane.’ It was very motivational, too. It was a lot of like, ‘You can do this, too,’ you know? You get inspired.”
While the seminar was free, you had to pay $997 for the three day training session to learn how to make the marijuana money.
Amanda gave a $600 deposit in cash and then went home.
Amanda Rosa: “I was Googling Cannabis Network. It seemed too good to be true.”
As Amanda dug further, she saw many people who said it was too good to be true.
Amanda Rosa: “There are people that invested $10,000 with a business plan and everything, got numbers from investors and was dead end, so some people have lost a lot of money.”
Instead of attending the marijuana training session, Amanda spoke to one of their salesmen to get her $600 deposit back.
Amanda Rosa: “They gave us a piece of paper written with the phone number if you wanted to get a refund.”
And…
Amanda Rosa: “And I spent days calling and calling. I tried emailing back, nothing, no response.”
Amanda and her husband hoped to roll in the money in the marijuana business. Instead, their dreams went up in smoke.
Amanda Rosa: “Instead of being a great plan for the future, it kind of throws your future in the toilet.”
Well Howard, the contract says you can get your money back, but if they ignore you, are you out of luck?
Howard Finkelstein, 7 News legal expert: “Let’s move past the fact that this is a company telling you they can make you rich, which we know is not going to happen, but they had a contract that gave you three days to cancel, and Amanda tried to. They have to return the money, but this is a company that has apparently done this to other people, making it difficult to get your money back.”
The Cannabis Talk Network would not return our calls.
Across the country, there are many angry former customers.
The Better Business Bureau wrote that some people have given the company up to $36,000, adding that customers that ask for their money back are never provided a refund.
Finally, the Better Business Bureau gave the cannabis company an F rating.
Howard Finklestein: “People who know how to get rich are not going to hold a seminar to tell you how to get rich, so whether it’s real estate, marijuana or finance, don’t give them your money.”
Amanda and her husband don’t have a lot of money. Losing $600 to a seminar like this really hurts.
Amanda Rosa: “It set us back a lot, because it seems like a little bit, but in the grand scheme of things, that puts everything back.”
Feel so bad for you, Amanda, but the bottom line, there just aren’t any ways to get rich quick, other than winning the lottery.
If you don’t think you were treated fairly by a business, there are state and federal agencies to file a complaint with. The link to them is down below.
Hopes of solving your problem going to pot? Don’t be the butt of someone’s joke. Cut through the weeds and call us. Our eyes light up when you ask for help.
To File a complaint with the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services online at www.800helpfla.com or by phone at 1-800-HELP-FLA.
You may also file a complaint with the Attorney General’s Office online at with the Attorney General’s Office online at www.myfloridalegal.com or by phone at 1-866-9-NO-SCAM as well as the Federal Trade Commission online using their complaint assistant portal at www.ftc.gov/complaint.
You may also file a complaint with the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, which acts as the State’s consumer complaint clearinghouse, at www.floridaconsumerhelp.com.
CONTACT HELP ME HOWARD:
Email: helpmehoward@wsvn.com
Reporter: Patrick Fraser at pfraser@wsvn.com
Miami-Dade: 305-953-WSVN
Broward: 954-761-WSVN
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