ok..
it has come to my attention that a lot of peoples' problem is getting charged even after they terminate an account!

What's with this?? You mean they (them companies) keep records of your card information?? Or do you allow them to automatically charge you everymonth?

Online transactions are getting pretty shady.

That's why I use my DEBIT CARD.. I only deposit the amount that I need, when i need to make a purchase. That way, no one can ever get money from me.

just some thoughts

Some companies may use third parties for billing. Customers may not go through the correct channels for cancelling their accounts and miscommunication happens.

With the autobilling that alot of companies use, they are out of the loop and just see your money every month.. Maybe you cancelled as it was charging you for the next month..

Because of autobilling and mistakes, its bound to happen, has always happened.. And ALOT of companies hope you dont notice or forget to cancel your "free" subscription so that they can autobill you for months before you notice..

How often do you review each and every charge on you bill? Alot of people just pay their bill religiously each month and overlook this.. Well it seems so do companies when they are billing.

I once used AOL for 10 mins.. Called them up and cancelled. Said I did not like the service.. A month later I closed my checking (closed for otther reasons) account that was to sign up with AOL. 3 months later my bank calls me and says a company is forcing charges against my closed account. And it was possible that i could be responsible for those charges.. They gave me the number, and here it was AOL.. I called AOL. and basically said WTF.. Told them i used them for 10 mins and called and cancelled.. The REP had in their system that I was only online for a few minutes and even has the call logged of me cancelling. I then asked, "So why are you still charging me".. And I got the wonderful answer of "I dont know"..

However, this is where it really matters.. When these mistakes are found and brought to the attention of the company, they should refund the money. In my case all the monthes were refunded. As any upstanding company should do.

Pkspawn

"i dont know" ... well, atleast that guys was honest.. A lot of people refuse to admit they dont know sh*t. instead they come up with excuses and delays..

Hmm... I NEVER CHOOSE AUTOBILLING..
it's way to scary for me.. letting them keep my card information...
I always pay manually..

We use 3rd parties for everything. We use paypal, and 2checkout. That was we never get info, and makes us a lot less liable. And, if they dont pay manually (via perlbill) we just cancel there account, and never worry about haveing there info.

hmm... I wish to use something like paypall to pay.. however, paypal doesnt support my country... any other alternative?

2Checkout is a similar function, and although i havent looked into it yet, perhaps world pay. Its a paypal like service i believe, in which case i'll be looking into soon, because paypal is great but the service makes me :eek:

AOL is notorious for this. Unless you spend alot of time to cancel serveral times with them, you are going to get charged, and alot.

For what it's worth, I never use a debit card with online transactions. Most debit cards have very few consumer protections (no charge backs, if someone steals your number and charges a bunch of money they bank doesn't care, etc).

With a credit card, you have the right to dispute a charge. And in most cases, the credit card company sides with the consumer, especially if there isn't a signed sales draft authorizing the charge.

I also only use PayPal to send payments to people who I have an existing long term relationship with because PayPal also provides you with much less protection than a credit card.

Paypal does automatic billing for recurring payments. Maybe you used them?

well, my case is, I DONT PUT MONEY in my debit card. I deposit money when I need it. Therefore, people can charge/rob what they want. They'll get nothing because my card wont have money. Only when I make a purchase. Thus, there's no need to go thru such chargeback cases and all that mambo jambo. :P

My girlfriend works in a bank call-centre. She gets daily call from people complaining about AOL continuing to charge them. When she wakes up i'll see if she can provide any useful tips for what to do if a company keeps charging you.

Tea_J, it's lucky we invoice clients each month and not put them on a recurring basis :D

Originally posted by Tea_J
well, my case is, I DONT PUT MONEY in my debit card. I deposit money when I need it. Therefore, people can charge/rob what they want. They'll get nothing because my card wont have money. Only when I make a purchase.

I've been doing the same thing for about a year and a half now with my ecount debit card. Works wonders with avoiding mystery charges all across the spectrum of purchasing. I actually posted this suggestion about a year ago or so somewhere around here.