The Free Watch Scam

Various free watch websites have been going viral over the past few months, often they’re heavily promoted via Facebook ads.

In reality, it’s technically not a complete scam as you probably will get a watch BUT it’s certainly not free, you will be paying way over the top for the watch and often they arrive damaged or nothing like the original photographed watch.

The true cost of the ‘free’ watches

How do we know it’s a scam?

• Often the photos of the watches are edited copies of the originals (e.g. Daniel Wellington – cheaper on Amazon if you actually want to buy the legit watch) watches.
• The copies of the watches can be found for around £2-£3 on various Chinese sites or here (much cheaper than the £6.89 they charge). You even get free postage & it won’t be stopped at Customs due to the low value.
• The scam websites never mention the actual cost of postage until you’ve entered your payment details (a typical no-no)
• The Whois data is hidden for the sites, ANYONE could have set this site up and ANYONE could be buying/seeing your details &/or about to send you spam to the email you used! Learn about Alias emails!
• Good news: Photos on their Facebook page indicate they buy the above watches on the cheap in bulk, then redistribute them (for a profit) in the UK. Note: The Royal Mail postage mark below.
  
• The photos they use of people wearing the watches are not taken by themselves, they’re copied photos that have had the other brands info removed.

UPDATE: The latest sites offering these sort of ‘free’ watches are:

• Antonio Watches

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