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Consumer Complaints and Reviews

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Satisfaction Rating

On June 27, 2016, I enquired about my Subscription status by emailing rdcare@intoday.com. On July 1, 2016, I get a response from Kabita saying "We regret to inform you that your payment made by you through online has not been realized from the bank". In other words, although my Credit Card was charged after making online payment, they are not going to send any issues because of some internal problems.

I responded the same day asking "why am I being penalized if my payment made online has not been realized from the bank?" Kabita again responds on July 08, 2016, now saying "We would like to inform you that your subscription has been lapsed w.e.f October 15 issue against the subscription number..." and "we tried to contact you at... but we are unable to get through". Hogwash!

I get calls from all over the world, but only Reader's Digest is "unable to get through"! Also what earlier was "your payment made by you through online" now became "your subscription has been lapsed"!!! On July 11, 2016, I receive an email from Sugandh asking for an "alternate number". I responded the same day saying "Please just call for once on... and I'll answer". There has been complete silence after that! No call or email and most importantly, not a single issue of Reader's Digest! What was once a publication held in extremely high esteem and something I grew up reading, has now fallen to these dismal levels. DeWitt ** and Lila Bell ** must be turning in their graves. PS: The dots (...) above represent my Subscription and Mobile Numbers that I'm not comfortable revealing in the review. Thanks for your understanding. However, if I need to, I most certainly will. Please let me know. Thanks.

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I think of Reader's Digest with fondness because this magazine could usually be found around our home as common reading fare. Although some serious readers say that digests like RD giving shortened versions of books deprive readers of the much richer reading experience of going through the complete book. On the other hand, they could serve as stepping stones allowing a brief glimpse of the featured book so that readers can get the full book if they liked the abbreviated version. Digests can also serve as trainers for beginning readers to develop the reading habit easily.

The magazine features entertaining human interest articles which tug at the heart, as well as interesting and informative travel and culture articles. However, the articles dealing with politics are quite conservative. RD also has regular sections such as "Laughter, the Best Medicine" which posts humorous anecdotes sent in by readers. I remember using the vocabulary section of back issues as helpful review materials in preparing for school entrance and scholarship exams. I also appreciated the colorful covers with beautiful paintings. With its ubiquitous presence in our home, RD seems like an old, familiar friend.

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I love Reader's Digest to death... Reader's Digest makes me more knowledgeable of what happens at all over the world. I also love the funny anecdotes and the vocabulary games. I will definitely recommend Reader's Digest to anyone who likes reading.

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I super love the Reader's Digest. I grew up borrowing my mom's collection for the Laughter the Best Medicine section... Then All in a Day's Work, Life's Like That, Word Power, Quotable Quotes --- until I started reading the more lengthy sections. It has taught me to love reading and I am glad that over the years they did not disappoint in giving me information that made me more educated about different cultures all around the world, religion, psychology, etiquette --- you name it - Reader's Digest got it.

They always go out of their way to feature great life stories from which you could learn a lot from. One issue of the Reader's Digest could keep me entertained for a whole day. It really lives up to its name. It's a shame that the more technology advances, we people have become more engrossed in other leisure activities far less worth the while than reading a good book such as this.

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I am subscribed for Reader's Digest. A week ago you told me you will send a subscription copy and free gifts along with a Reader's Digest copy. Still now I have not received any copies. Probably your courier man has not identified my address properly. In case of I not receiving any copies I would consider this Reader's Digest subscription and sweepstakes as fake and I am may lodge a complaint against this. Please be honest and sincerely give my free gifts as I was ready to pay my 761 Rs cash.

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I got a phone call from a sales person in Reader's digest and agreed to pay an amount of AUD 60 (approx) on my credit card for a year's subscription and a book. Not having received a single issue of the magazine for 3 months after that, I left a complaint with their customer service online. They emailed me, promising to re-send issues of the magazine and the book. No magazine issues of the book appeared in the mail for another 2 months, so I lodged another complaint, getting no reply this time. Another month later, I disputed the transaction on my credit card and successfully reversed it.

Last week (nearly 9 months after the phone call), I got a threatening email from "Black Collection Services" Sydney informing me of my debt to Reader's Digest Australia of an amount of AUD 49.95. I was directed to pay or suffer loss of credit rating via default registered with Veda Advantage. The email from "Black Collection" had my postal address wrong. This made me realize that they might have mailed magazine issues to the wrong address for a few months until I disputed the transaction, following which they probably stopped. The person who called me offering promotional rate for 1 yr subscription obviously took down my postal address all wrong, which is not my problem.

I lodged another complaint with their customer service explaining the history of the case, demanding they withdraw the collection notice. Now their customer service department appears to ignore the full content of my messages lodged online and annoyingly keeps asking me for proof of payment made. I would strongly advise anyone against dealing with Reader's Digest as their customer service is dumb and callous, resorting to unfriendly tactics when the problem arose from their own mishandling.

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I have not received the refund of Rs.579 from your end against the cancellation of Subscription No. ** and please pay the refund amounting to Rs. 579 as early as possible. I had given repeated mails to the customer care of Reader's Digest & they had mailed me that they had send the money by money order & on 08.01.2016 they mailed me the following: "Mr. **, This is with reference to your complaint for the non-receipt of refund. Please accept our sincere apologies for the inconvenience caused to you. We would like to inform you that, we have already processed the refund via money order and you expect the same within 7-10 days time."

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I paid for a year's subscription for Reader's Digest a few months ago for the first time, and still have not received an issue. My credit card has been charged months ago. Any word when I will receive them?

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I have subscribed for this ** Reader's Digest book few months back. My subscription id is : **. They had taken all my yearly subscription charges online. They never send copies until and unless you send tons of reminders. Sometimes I even came across things like "despite of continuous reminders they never respond to your emails." But no ** from Reader's Digest had sent me copies so far.

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My Grandmother subscribed to this magazine for many years and as a child I loved reading. I was always excited to visit my grandparents house and could not wait to read the latest edition of RD. It was a wonderful experience. Fast forward to a few years ago when she had a stroke. Her subscription ran out and then the bullying began. She began receiving "Overdue" notices and threats to turn her over to "Collections". She was almost in tears when she showed me the "Collection Notices" and asked me what she should do. I returned ALL of the correspondence with a note to cancel the subscription. It continued for quite a while until they finally stopped. I believe based on her subscription period they knew she was in the later stages of her life and susceptible to these attacks. Never again will they receive money from me or my family!

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I started the select editions in 2013 and in one summer I read 22 books which included some ancient condensed novels. Last year not as much as time DID not allow. I look forward to again this year spending time on our patio swing reading with great enjoyment and sipping limeade. Thank you Reader's Digest.

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I paid for a one year subscription to Reader's Digest for 2014 for my sister, intending it to be just for that year, no mention of renewal anywhere. This week (end March 2015) I received a "Gift Subscription Renewal - Payment Reminder", saying they had already sent the second copy of this year's subscription to my sister. The letter had large red writing and a red banner across and was obviously intended to resemble an overdue payment request. Very poor tactics by Reader's Digest, intending that their demographic of mainly older people would be taken in easily by the appearance of an overdue payment demand, and of course until I checked, I couldn't remember whether I had started that subscription for this year or last - it was a Christmas gift. No more transactions from me, gift or otherwise, with Reader's Digest for such underhand marketing.

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I'm getting annoyed with these people with high prices with books, dvds and cds. The highest price for 1 of the books is $69.96, the highest dvd price I've got is $79.98. Today, I got the demand for payment letter bill showing I owe them $317.41 that's including the administration fee is turns to $10. They also give you stuff you didn't order and also demand payment. I've seen people on YouTube going downhill from Reader's Digest bills giving us letters and repeating their crap. It's just a big rip off, it's like they don't care. If they did, then why are we pay so much for their stuff. These people should be stopped.

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I do not understand why they are doing this. You tell them to cancel. We did not ask for these books. They called my Dad at home, he said okay. Did not understand what they fully wanted which is common for 80 year old. They kept sending these books and billing him. I called and cancelled 3 times on his behalf. He was on the phone with me. Returned all the books. 3 months later I get the books and bill again. I am not sure what Reader Digest have in mind, but it is taking so much time and effort to get them to stop. I am complaining to my state Attorney General office today. Because this is harassment. My family including cousins all canceled their subscription because the way they treated my parents. As much as we enjoyed reading the magazine, this was not worth it.

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I have been dismayed for several years over the content of our beloved Reader's Digest. I even stopped subscribing for a while. Recently I have observed a marked improvement in content. It isn't the old condensed books we enjoyed so much, but it also isn't the flimsy stories about entertainers and their personal life. I am enjoying the practical advice we are once again receiving. I see some stories about real life and the heroes of today. I would prefer to not get my magazine filled with not-easy-to-pull-out card stock ads. Overall, I am still pleased with the return to some of the values of Reader's Digest. I am renewing today.

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Every month, I'm once again dismayed at the content of my Reader's Digest magazine. It used to be such a good read, almost from cover to cover. Today I actually took the time to turn to the organizational page to read who is presently responsible for the pitiful volume in my hand. Then I sought to find an online place to share my thoughts and concerns. A Google search brought me here to Consumer Affairs.

So what is wrong at Reader's Digest? Just about everything. I have the impression that the editors must be very complacent in their work because almost all the content of the magazine can be harvested off the internet social boards in just a few hours. Here's an example. People send me jokes and commentary articles frequently and a lot of them are funny - the first time I get them. Over the next few weeks, other people send me the jokes, articles and comments again and again until they're no longer of interest and are becoming a nuisance and a bore.

Then next month, I get my Reader's Digest and what is there besides the worn out jokes and comments and thrice-read articles from my internet experience? Not much. Obviously, somebody just collected a month's worth of internet drivel and published it in a book form. To be fair, there are several comments printed that I've not seen before. But they're typical of those that follow most any article on the internet. If I wanted to read a long list of comments following an article, I can do it anytime on my computer and read all of them - not just the ones that some editor selected out of the group for publication.

In other words, there is very little that is printed in Reader's Digest these days that we can't all go and read for ourselves to our heart's content until we become totally bored with the endless mass of it. We certainly don't need a printed magazine reiterating the comments from Facebook, Twitter and various online blogs. I honestly believe that I could single-handedly go on the Internet and put the whole content of a typical Reader's Digest issue together in a few hours.

The problem being, why would anyone want to read it in a printed page when it's all right there on the screen in front of us? Plus, we can be selective about those articles that strike our interest and we can even add our own comments at the end - along with everyone else's. In my opinion, executive editors, Barbara O'Dair and Courtenay Smith would do well to spend some time away from Twitter and Facebook and exert some energy in finding something to write that we haven't all been reading for ourselves all month ad nauseam. They've been wasting a lot of paper.

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I assumed that a company shouldn't send out products without receiving the payment, but I guess I was wrong. Exiting from the payment page didn't stop the RD from mailing me the items, which I didn't even open the boxes they came with. So I explained to them and asked for return labels. They sent me two return labels with a Canadian address, so I mailed two items back. But I have two more items and despite my 10+ requests, RD kept sending me US return labels, which were useless in Canada because I had to pay for the international shipping fee. So I mailed the rest two items to the same address I mailed to the first time. And I thought it's the end of the story. But I was wrong again, I received a bill notification for all four items yesterday. I really don't know what to do now. Can somebody give me some advice? Thank you.

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They smartly send gifts and renew subscription without customer's intent and send bills. No services should be provided unless and until the customer asks for it. I have been forcefully made to shell out money for the books and gifts which I never wanted. I would never advise people to subscribe for RD. If you want to read, buy copies from the stand.

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After collecting my data, and my credit card info, I was informed that I had purchased a Gift Subscription. I did not order a Gift subscription nor did I want one. I cancelled the order and requested proof of cancellation. So far I have not received proof.

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Just looked at my bank account and saw unauthorized withdrawal. I called and was told I was on automatic renewal. Had received several notices about my subscription ending and was debating on whether I wanted the paper or digital edition. After this fraud, I will no longer be reading ANY form. And my refund will take one to two billing cycles, which is 7 to 10 business days. Basically, whenever they get around to it. It's not the money, it's the principle.

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I registered about several years ago for the $5,000 daily giveaway Reader's Digest Contest. Honestly, they make it so difficult to enter. Every day they ask me to sign in, so I sign in with my email and passcode, then they say Hello to me - when I enter the daily code for the contest, they then tell me I have to sign in. I usually have to do this at least 10 times, but today I have signed in 18 times and they still will not let me enter the contest. I have been their customer for nearly 40 years but I am sick and tired of their incompetence and nonsense.

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Ordered 2 books from them on July 29, 2013 for $29.95 each which I selected that I would pay upfront so I didn't have to pay any shipping or handling. I noticed that there wasn't a charge on my credit card and since I am unable to check the status of my order online - I call them on Aug 7. I call them and they had no information as to when it will be sent out. I call them again the following week and the woman on the phone advises me that they were switching warehouses so no books have been sent out. The company didn't even bother to send out an email stating that the books were on back order nor did the website say there was a back order. No further information on when it will be sent out.

I email them on August 21 in which no one to this day has replied to me asking them if the order has been sent out yet. I called them for a 4th time and the woman I spoke to was quite pleasant and told me that the books had been sent out on August 15th and that I should expect them near the end of August. Today is August 29 and I call them for a 5th time because I still have not received the books I ordered now over a month ago. The woman I spoke to on the phone today was extremely rude, I know that I am a frustrated customer but her responses to me were quite snotty. I said to her that I don't think my credit card was charged when I ordered the books, because there was a deal that if you paid upfront you wouldn't have to pay S&H. So she advised me that my credit card was charged on Aug 17.

So I check my account online and I see there was a charge for $31 so I said to her that they haven't charged me for both books. She then tells me that they only sent me one book and I said but I ordered two... The digest diet and the digest diet cookbook and she said that she only sees that I ordered the first one. So, now I'm obviously frustrated because it’s been a month and I still haven't received my books plus if I had to reorder the cookbook would I be waiting another month and a half to receive it? Then I bring up the fact that online on their readersdigeststore.com that I am looking at the book I ordered and it’s now saying its $14.00 but I had paid $29.95 for mine.

She did put me on hold to see what she could do but came back to the phone and said $14.00 is the American price, $29.95 is the Canadian price. Which is absolutely ridiculous considering that American and Canadian exchange rate is basically par. I advised her that once I receive the book that I will be sending it back for a full refund and that it was my first time shopping at reader's digest and that I will NEVER order from them again. Their customer service is the pits and you have to wait forever to receive an order... Still waiting on mine, I believe I have to wait another 2 weeks even though a month has already passed.

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I ordered and paid for a subscription 7 months ago and still have not received my magazines. I know I never will because when I called, they had no record of the order. I paid for this via a school fundraiser and received a confirmation notice about the subscription from the company. I figured because I went through the school, which went through the fundraising company, which went through Reader's Digest, that this was too many hoops to jump through to get my $20 back. But now I am furious since I ordered a subscription for my mom for Christmas 5 months ago and she still has not received a single magazine. I will be calling to check on this. Reader's Digest better get their act together. I love the magazine and want to read it, but I am afraid to pay money for it because twice in one year we have not gotten our magazines.

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This happened to me also! My aunt bought me a 1-year-subscription. They sent me recently a "past due bill". I mean, it was clearly a 1-year agreement. Is there anything we can do?

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On July 10, 2012, they cashed my check of $29.96. I did call them 3 different times and told me they were sorry and they will send my books. Now today, 4/5/2013, I called and demanded my money back. I hate this company.

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I hate RD with a passion! Last spring, I took RD up on an offer to get one magazine free. If I didn't want the subscription, just write cancel on the bill. I did precisely that then I started to get billed for the selected book club for books I never received nor had agreed to buy into. Then, the threats of taking it to collections came. I wrote one letter and it didn't help. I wrote a second letter, this time sending it registered so it had to be signed for. In this letter, I clearly told them they had no proof that I agreed to join their club for condensed books, no proof that I had received any of them, and that they had no proof of my signature agreeing to anything!

I didn't hear from them for several months. If my memory serves me correctly, I think I may have mentioned legal action. Now, I am getting a bill for items I never ordered. I will be sending a very direct but nasty registered letter where I will advise them that I will go to the Ontario Provincial Police who has a fraud squad and will report them. We are not powerless! As one person, we don't have much power, but if we organize as a group, that's a different story. As a group, we can start letter campaigns, write articles to the newspapers, contact news casts such as W5, 60 Minutes, 5th Estate, etc., and bring this stuff into the light of day in order to put a stop to it. If interested in doing so, make a mention in your posting with a way to get a hold of you via email so we can start getting things together. I have 20 years experience in social work which required a lot of advocacy. I am sure there are lots of advocates out there. Let’s send Reader’s Digest a message to slither back under the rock they came from!

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I have experienced problems with Reader's Digest demanding money for products I returned or even worse, products I did not order in the first place. Recently, they claimed they do not have the returned item in their warehouse! How convenient. I told them if the returned item was lost in transit or if a warehouse worker did not record the return, that is their problem. They have the colossal nerve trying to scam innocent, hard working people.

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Reader's Digest consistently sends me books that I never ordered and then require that I pay for them. There is no way for me to send the books back and again, I did not order them. What do I do?

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I received a book in the mail that had free all over it. A month or so later I received another one that stated the same, free, except this one also had a free gift enclosed on the box; it was a cheap ink pen. A few weeks or a month later, I received an invoice (bill) saying I owed them $. I promptly wrote a letter stating that I did not order the book. I sent the book back - at my own expense, and I'm still receiving bills! The second bill they were threatening to turn over to collections. The latest bill was yesterday. I didn't even open it. I wrote return to sender, but I did write on the envelope stating the same things I mentioned above. There is no phone number to call, just an address. This is my second complaint online.

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I got a one-year free subscription to Reader's Digest. Now, they are sending me books I didn't order. The first time, it said it was a "free gift." So I opened it. The second time, I assumed it was also free since I never ordered anything. Then I got a bill for $30! This was one of those mind stretchers books, one I could pick up from the magazine rack for $5. So I tried to fight it. I called them, emailed them, nothing. I got about four more notices and was in the process of buying a home, so I paid it. Then, another book comes. I refuse it this time, because their website says it will cancel the bill and future mailings when you do that. But guess what I received a month later? Another bill. So I tried to email them again. And I still have no response. I'm not paying this bill. I don't even have the book! I am so fed up with this company!

Reader's Digest Company Profile

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Reader's Digest
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