Im not familiar with the laws in the states since I dont live there, so I thought id ask here before I messed things up.

When a business is registered, does it have to be listed with the Better Business Bureau also? And if its not, how do I file a complaint about a company?

My friends and I have had a lot of bad luck with paradise-designs.net and the owner claims that the hosting company is registered. BUT when i typed the company name at http://bbb.org (in all sorts of ways), nothing came up. The most that I got was a Paradise Designs in florida which did interior design. Is he lying?

What alternatives do my friends and I have when it comes to complainning, since we dont live in the USA?

When you registar a company by no means do you have to join the BBB, you can join by giving them lots of info and such. So he is registared but never joined the BBB, when you complain just tell them their site

as in fill out a complain form at the BBB? but theres no way in complainning there without the company being listed.

I really dont want to deal with the guy at paradise designs anymore. He has been holding my domain hostage for about a month now and after repeated requests from my friends and I, he hasnt done anything at all. Finally, when my friends decided to move hosts, he claimed that they had to pay $35 before their domain can be transfered. I can get a new domain at NetworkSol with that amount of money! He has done anything to keep customers from leaving. Are their any alternative places I can file a complaint?

BBB has nothing to do with local, state, or federal governments. It's an independant organization, supported by its member companies. It is useful in determining whether a company is a legitimate company, and does a lot of fraud prevention type work. However, not being listed in the BBB isn't necessarily an indicator that the company is fraudulent. It takes a while for a new company to show up in the BBB database. If a new company isn't a member, the BBB isn't really motivated to list them unless they receive complaints or suspect some type of fraud. IOW, a new company that's not listed is probably okay, but you need to realize it's a new, or very small company.

Thats really odd, I know Tim from personal experiences and hes a great guy and very knowledgeable about servers and hosting

Whoelse can I go to then, if not the BBB? Its not easy for me to search since I'm not physically in the states and it would be too expensive for me to make phone calls also.

vibehosts, i really dont want to start talking about him again, Ive had enough of the kid- you dont know half of the troubles hes caused besides fraud. Can we please stay on topic?

Originally posted by Alexandra
Whoelse can I go to then, if not the BBB?It would really depend on the situation, and what you want to accomplish. A complaint to the the Better Business Bureau is often futile anyway, they have no enforcement powers or anything... all they do is notify a company that there's been a complaint, and then keep track of complaints and responses. They aren't any kind of ombudsman; they don't really get involved.

So you might want to talk to a state attorney general's office, you might want to talk to the FBI about internet fraud, you might want to talk to his father (sorry, that's a joke -- I know nothing about the company or individual involved other than that you referred to "him" as a "kid" earlier). Hard to say without really knowing the issue.

It also seems from your first post that you might just want to find out specific information about the company, including whether it's "registered." Generally, the first place to start for that kind of information is with the Secretary of State's office in the state where the company is located.

Is there a way to check the US government for company information?

In the UK you can go to http://www.companies-house.gov.uk/ and search for any registered company, is there a similar service in the US?

Originally posted by ChillyBob
In the UK you can go to http://www.companies-house.gov.uk/ and search for any registered company, is there a similar service in the US? In the US, companies don't register with the federal government. In general if they're incorporated, they'll be registered with their state's Secretary of State, as I mentioned. Many of those have online searchable databases. A "dba" or "assumed name" is usually registered at the county level, and is unlikely to be available online.

I was serious about him being a kid- which is what makes it harder. I only know that his uncle oversees things, but he keeps on stopping me from talking to his uncle. Plus, as I said before, it would be too expensive for me to try to call his uncle.

As for the state attorney general's office and FBI, do you have any urls for me? I did a search on a law website and came up with nothing, except for ways for people actually living in the US to file complaints.

He claims that the company is registered in Kentucky and that they have their own offices.

Also, another question that occurred to me. If a child who is below 21 lies about his/her age- says that he/she is above 21 (I hope thats the legal age in KY), is it considered a crime? And are emails and AIM conversations sufficient proof?

I would start by looking up the whois....where you would find for example MPC Internetworks Inc. with a California address. Then I would go to the state's secretary of state, in this case California.

http://www.ss.ca.gov/business/business.htm

Then I would do a business search and you would find the corporation. You would also find out in this case that it has been in existence for nearly four years, is properly incorporated and is active.

The whois address of paradise designs isnt a real one. He told me from previous conversations that they filled that in to prevent spam or something- im not entirely sure.

Originally posted by Incognito
You would also find out in this case that it has been in existence for nearly four years, is properly incorporated and is active. And you would find the name and address of the registered "Agent for Service of Process," which is almost certainly an accurate address.

Well, I just hope hes put in a right address because he told me he was kentucky based. It wouldnt exactly be nice if I got the wrong person.

yeah.. be really really careful! I bet you there are tons of businesses named paradise designs... I can think of at least one (no longer in business) that was a boat painting / customization firm in the FL keys..

In the US, it is possible (and quite common) to reside and do business in one state yet register your company in another state. Delaware and Nevada are popular choices for this for several reasons. Often it's best to track them down through the company's "registered agent", who as JayC said is the individual responsible for receiving legal communications. This person must, by law, reside in the state in which the company is registered. This person could be an attorney, or simply a legal adult resident of the state in question.

Most states have an Office of Consumer Affairs, whose job is to log consumer complaints against a company and take any appropriate action. Contact information for these agencies should be available online.

Ok, I'll try those urls then.

But as I said before, will they take lying about age seriously? Especially when its someone below legal age claiming to be above legal age. Or will they just ignore it? Because I wouldnt want to waste my time mentioning it otherwise.

Why do I have the feeling that this is just another TacidHost.

Originally posted by Alexandra
Also, another question that occurred to me. If a child who is below 21 lies about his/her age- says that he/she is above 21 (I hope thats the legal age in KY), is it considered a crime? And are emails and AIM conversations sufficient proof?

In the US, you can enter into a legally binding contract once you are 18 and for all intensive purposes you are an adult - I believe the only legal implication of turning 21 is that you can legally buy and consume alcohol.

Also, I highly doubt that filling out a BBB complaint will do anything productive and filing a lawsuit over $35 seems a little ridiculous. You might just want to cut your losses and move on.

Hello,
The domain is in process of transferring . I can't control RegisterClub. We're going to be making a call to them again when they return in the office and we will be speaking with the President to push this thing though a little faster. It is taking to long and it is pretty bad. A friend of mine has talked to the President and they say it takes 3 hours max but yet it has been over 20 days.

Originally posted by MadSkilage


In the US, you can enter into a legally binding contract once you are 18 and for all intensive purposes you are an adult - I believe the only legal implication of turning 21 is that you can legally buy and consume alcohol.

Also, I highly doubt that filling out a BBB complaint will do anything productive and filing a lawsuit over $35 seems a little ridiculous. You might just want to cut your losses and move on.

maybe yes, maybe no, but its is worth a try.

As for the domain money- thats just a little part of it. Besdies, there are about 8 of us, which means that this guy gets to con 280 out of us. Ok, thats not much either- but thats just 8 that I know of.

Originally posted by TimPD
Hello,
The domain is in process of transferring . I can't control RegisterClub. We're going to be making a call to them again when they return in the office and we will be speaking with the President to push this thing though a little faster. It is taking to long and it is pretty bad. A friend of mine has talked to the President and they say it takes 3 hours max but yet it has been over 20 days.

Youve been saying that the transfer is in progress since mid April.

Originally posted by Alexandra
I really dont want to deal with the guy at paradise designs anymore. He has been holding my domain hostage for about a month now and after repeated requests from my friends and I, he hasnt done anything at all. Finally, when my friends decided to move hosts, he claimed that they had to pay $35 before their domain can be transfered. I can get a new domain at NetworkSol with that amount of money!

Excuse me but when I give a domain with a hosting package, I ask for those 35$ too cause THAT is the actual price. Nothing wrong in that...

Originally posted by ShareFile


Excuse me but when I give a domain with a hosting package, I ask for those 35$ too cause THAT is the actual price. Nothing wrong in that...

Actually, it isnt the actual price. Its $35 extra just for keeping our domains when it was supposed to be under our names in the first place.

Originally posted by Alexandra


Actually, it isnt the actual price. Its $35 extra just for keeping our domains when it was supposed to be under our names in the first place.


Whose name is your domain registered under now? Is it in the host's name, Paradise-Designs? Did he make it clear he would be doing that when you purchased the domain name? (I'll gather he didn't.)

Why don't you PM me. I'd be willing to help you sort this out.

http://www.internic.net/cgi/registrars/problem-report.cgi

:D
Might or might not speed them up....

Ok
First, Tim is a nice guy who knows what he is doing.
Second, you can easily find out if his business is registered through this URL. I didnt bother to search but here it is. http://www.sos.state.ky.us/corporate2/entityname.asp

If he isnt listed its probably because he isnt updated in their directory, if he is not there that doesnt mean he isnt incorporated.

Paradise Designs paradise-designs@paradise-designs.net
Paradise Designs
PO BOX 5782
San Bernardino, CA 92412
US
Phone: 1-888-210-7654

This business is not registered in KY nor in CA

Hey,

I hope you guys have sorted things out.
We are with paradise-designs and I have to say that Tim is a great guy.
He always help us out and we got really good deal from him.
I have experience with few hosting companies but PD is one of the best I've been with.

Tim keep doing great job!

regards,
Thomas

First of all all you guys who are commenting on his business practices with you, is off topic, he could be a saint, but this threads not about that, keep it on track.

Secondly unless Tim said 100% in no uncertain terms that the domain was to be registered in your name when you signed up, tim has done nothing wrong, if hes giving away a domain with a hosting account, i myself would put it in our companys name too. If you didnt get a direct answer when you signed up that it would be signed in your name Tim hasnt done one thing wrong. Furthermore $35.00 is cheap to transfer your domain over to your name. It prob took him 30 minutes to set up your account, 15 minutes to register the name, and prob hours onend dealing with his register to get it moved over in your name, that service in my eyes is worth several hundred, and that on top of the fact that HE DOESNT EVEN HAVE TO switch the domain to your name, ITS A FREE DOMAIN.

Just my 2cents, im not taking anyones side, just presenting the facts.

If indeed he never promissed to put it in your name, then id be very careful what you go around saying, in todays sue happy age, you could be charged with slander or libal.

For those of you who've done business with him and have found him "highly professional and a person who knows what he is doing", then you probably haven't known him for long enough. I've known him since before he started paradise-designs, before he started lying about his age, taking credit for other people's designs and conning people out of their money. That was one of the reasons I made the mistake of going with him and convincing my friends to go with his "company" as well before I realised that he was just another greedy child and saw his true colours.

And in regards to my earlier question: Are AIM conversations enough to prove that he lies about his age to get people to sign contracts? Because I have a whole folderfull. I had a picture of him, but I deleted it- probably one of the biggest mistakes of my life. Heh.