Gene See’s “prize notification” guaranteed he won at least three from a list offered through a local auto dealer promotion. He figured it wouldn’t be $10,000 in cash, but went in and received a nonwinning scratch card, three commemorative coins and a vacation certificate for a three-night Bahamas cruise from Miami or Port Canaveral.

That “VIP Passport to Travel” certificate for an entry-level inside cabin required him to complete a registration validation form and mail it to the Tampa company along with a nonrefundable $10.95 “processing fee.”