dear webhostingtalk members,

i have a big problem with one datacenter i will explain it all now.
sorry if it turn to be long but the money involved is around 100,000 us dollars.

5 years back i started with a COMPANY1 as co-location which i sign a contract for 1/2 mbit and 1/2 cabinet and was paying 2,000 us dollars per month for it.

2 years later new company has bought them and everything is switched to COMPANY2 i was paying them normally for the same services same people was working in both companies so i had no problems at all.

later on COMPANY2 emailed me saying that new company bought them and we have to move our servers and sign new contract and everything with this COMPANY3 and we got a call from the new company saying we have to sign this contract to start fresh start with them, and so we did, but COMPANY2 said we have to pay whatever left before leaving them and s owe did paid them 4,000 for the 2 remaining months because the new buying there was some delay to pay them.

COMPANY2 did not allow to release the servers untill we paid them ofcourse and after paying i hired someone in USA to go to the datacenter and move my servers (both COMPANY2 & COMPANY3 are located in the same state so moving the servers is by car normally.

COMPANY3 is charing us 1000 us dollars for 1/2 cabinet and 1 mbit bandwidth (which is cheaper than the old company) but as they told me they use new bandwidth calculation called 95th percent which we did not understand what does this mean since we used to be at the COMPANY1 & COMPANY2 fixed monthly payment because our bandwidth is capped and we never paid more than the $2,000 per month.

we started with the COMPANY3 and our monthly bill was 1080 for the first month then 1072 for the second month and so on until the 5th month it was 12,000$ !! we were shocked, during the first 5 months there were a discussion that we need to pay the $4,000 we used to own for COMPANY2 and we showed them the bank transfers and the name of people we used to contact at COMPANY2 so we did not pay them anything during the first 5 months.

As soon as i got this $12,000 bill i emailed them immediatly asking what the hell is this why i need to pay $12,000 per month ?! they never replied to me for 2-4 months, then i got an email from the same person who was working with us regarding the $4,000 not paod for COMPANY2 i had to re-explain to him that if we did not pay the 2 old months to COMPANY2 they wouldn't let us move to you guys COMPANY3 and he said he will check and get back to me, i kept emailing him every 2 - 3 weeks but no answer at all.

anyhow 2 years later with COMPANY3 they email us and want us to pay this 100,000$ in 1 week because we used to get some months $12,000 $20,000 and some are $1,000 because there was no peakout hours as they say, i told them i will never pay this because i kept asking you guys for explination 2 years back why this huge amount is coming and no one explained to me.

the reason they contacted me because COMPANY4 is going to buy COMPANY3 and they want to finalize pending payment issues before the handout to the new owners.

the contract i signed mentions that it coveres may - june 2 years back and and for 1 year only and i need to renew it for yearly basis.
and it also says if the customer doesn't pay for 3 months or overdue for 3 months they shall disconnect the service immidiatly.

ofcourse 1 month ago they shutdown my servers and denied giving me access to my data untill iapy everything in full, i refused to pay anything for them and they told me they will auction the servers and get little money in return to cover something.

3 days ago i got a call from their lawyer as he claim and saying they raised the issue to court of law and they want me to pay the 100,000

i'm not in the USA so i want to know your advice on this kind of issue and what is the best option to do in such situation?


Thank you for reading my long post.

Get legal help.

What you're entitled to, what they're entitled to, and the limitations and liabilities of each party would depend greatly on the wording of the various contracts. You need someone who can navigate the U.S.' and possibly your home country's business & consumer laws.

Sorry, but I can't tell anything from your post above. I don't know the details of the contract(s) you signed at each step of the way.

Also, just my own advice: in the future, don't sign a contract or agree to purchase and pay for a service without understanding it. Ask as many questions as you need to to understand.

i totally agree o what living_media said.

but for foreigners would the US law apply to them?

D4C where are you from?

Originally posted by Bashar
but for foreigners would the US law apply to them?

Yes. They are doing business in the US. Although it does get more complex because they aren't in the US.

But D4C, you will need to seek legal help for that matter. As was already stated what's in the contracts is going to dictate what your next actions will need to be. I see several questionable issues with your story above, but we only know a small portion of the overall picture.

Some of US laws may apply to D4C. Some may apply to the company(s) in question. But D4C, you'll want to get a lawyer who's familiar with US legal systems, or is in communication with someone who *is*. In essence, they will need to know what US laws will apply to this situation, and how; what protections you may have under US laws, if any; and what each of the various parties may be liable for.

Sorry to sound like I'm trying to pass the buck, but as BigGorilla said, we don't have the full picture here. You've *got* to get some competent professsional legal assistance. (Either that or just pay the monies requested - which doesn't sound like what you want to do.)

From the sound of it, seems like the customer is getting the short end of the stick because of the companies buying/selling and trying to get away with things.

As suggested, find a lawyer that can and knows how to deal with US laws.

How much are the servers they have of yours valued at, just out of interest?

i have 3 servers with them.

is there any special lawyers that are specialized in internet related problems? because in my country they don't really take internet problems seriously yet.

but in worse cases i will be paying for 1 year or 3 months only ?

because their contract says if i dont pay for 3 months they will disconnect me and it is for 1 year only.

Definitely talk to an attorney - Company 2 jumped back in there for some reason - not too sure why. I thought you paid them before they would release the servers?

Anyway - what city / state is the DC in? That would be your best bet in contacting an attorney in that area

Hey all I can say under US laws if a suit isn't filed within 3 yearsof the complaint it won't go to court, and it won't hold up in court.






Matt

corey its in LA

matt what if they did not complaint yet? and they just did few days ago?

Well that is where I am :) I do know a few people actually here that specialize in those matters. Let me see if I can find a few names later this morning & post them for you.

Some companies that we have used in the past: http://www.troygould.com/ and http://www.fulbright.com/

I am not too sure of your budget. Who knows - maybe just a letter from an attorney will sooth the matters since I bet they really do not want to go to court

Also, check the contract / TOS, what country / state / city has venue?

Act fast and get a US lawyer to handle this case immediately. Do not waste time trying to negotiate or reason with the company. They will take it as a sign of weakness. Tell the company lawyer to not bother you about this issue in the future and to contact your attorney.

You are not being sued because you owe money, the company knows you owe nothing. To make their receivables numbers look better to the potential purchaser, they have picked you (and maybe others?) as an easy target because you are located outside of he US and they feel they can bully you. And to show due diligence, they are suing you.

Get an injunction to prevent them from disconnecting your servers until the case is heard and countersue them seeking damages in the $millions. It may not lead to anything, but companies that are about to be purchased must reveal any pending legal issues and potential future liabilities to the prospective buyer.

If you create for them a potential liability far greater than the benefit they may reap by suing you, they will most likely be inclined to settle fast.

Mind posting the DC name so I and others can stay away? If not post in public post in a PM to me?

Thanks

Originally posted by Torith
Mind posting the DC name so I and others can stay away? If not post in public post in a PM to me?

Thanks
:) I have been trying to guess that one myself!