1and1 Incompetence, Day 123

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11

I changed up my post numbering.  “Part” was just not reflecting the extent of this situation.

April 10, Day 123 of my 1and1 Nightmare:

7:47 AM

David Rubel, 1and1 Billing :

Please call me at 877-300-8316 Extension 2525 or please provide me with a numebr and time I can call you at so i can assist you in resolving this issue.

10:51 AM  My Reply:

No.

We tried that on January 13, and you lied to me.  I will only deal with you in writing, and very publicly.

I want your boss.

You told me you did not have the authority to fix this, and that “upper management” was looking into it.  You specifically told me Damion Son was working on it.

Well, Damion is the one who had me sign and fax documents TO YOU to cancel these domains, and is now acting like these are brand new issues unrelated to that.

I think you are both liars and thieves, and nothing you have done has proven me wrong yet.

You have had every opportunity to fix this.  You have proven that you are either incapable of or unwilling to correct your errors.

Besides, there is nothing I can add that you have not already received dozens of times and chosen to ignore.

I have submitted plenty of documentation that would allow you to fix this, and you ignored it.

I have explained it every way possible.

I have sent signed faxes and dozens of emails.

Every email, fax and explanation is now available to the public at http://RippedOffConsumers.org. And from the response I am receiving, they are on my side.

I keep getting messages from people who had similar billing problems with 1and1, and just gave up and paid the bill.

I don’t give up.

I don’t shut up.

For a very quick summary visit OPEN LETTER TO ANYONE AT 1AND1 WITH COMMON SENSE at http://rippedoffconsumers.org/1and1-complaints/open-letter-to-anyone-at-1and1-with-common-sense/

I sent you your own personal copy, but I guess you ignored that, too.

Just in case you “lose” this email and need easy access to the entire history, I am currently ranking number 1 on Google for “David Rubel 1and1″.

11:10 AM  David Rubel:

We are attempting to process refunds for any double charges and other incorrect domains but we will not be able to fully help and figure out what is going on without being able to speak to you and resolve this once and for all.

Please provide me with a number or call me at the number I previously provided so we can resolve this.

12:04 PM  My Reply:

You had your chance(s), and lied to me.

I do not trust you.

If it is necessary to deal with you to fix this, I will only do so in writing so there is absolutely no confusion.  No more runaround.

I want your boss.

Attached is the fax I sent on March 10 at Damion Son’s request, fully two months after I began sending YOU the same information.

The necessary corrections to the April invoice are available in the email I sent TO YOU and everyone else at 1and1 last night, and at http://rippedoffconsumers.org/1and1-complaints/open-letter-to-anyone-at-1and1-with-common-sense/

If you want to go straight to the spreadsheet, just click here.  http://rippedoffconsumers.org/wp-content/uploads/2009/04/summary_of_1and1_fraudulent_charges.htm

The explanations just don’t get any simpler.

Those documents are publicly available, and have already been spidered by Google, Yahoo, Live, and several other engines, so I don’t think you will have any trouble finding them.

No one has yet provided me with the answers to the questions raised in that document.

The only thing you could do by phone that you cannot do with those documents is antagonize me further.

Either fix it according to the provided information, or submit to me IN WRITING why you refuse to do so on a domain by domain basis.

If you are incapable of understanding those simple documents, have your boss take a look at them.

And I want an apology for the way I have been treated.

A REAL one, not just “we are sorry you don’t know how to use our broken and shoddy systems”.

12:18 PM David Rubel:

Dear Brian Gothard, (Cust: XXXXXXXXX)

Thank you for contacting us.

We are issuing a refund for the following domains totaling 179.80. Also your transfer will be activated and processed per your request. If you have any questions comments or concerns please respond to this email.

4gclick.com
broadcastyoursite.com
businesspressroom.com
obamalies.org
christiannewsreleases.com
christianpressreleases.com
churchnewsrelease.com
churchpressreleases.com
lifesavingjobs.com
myformattedresume.com
myprbuddy.com
myreputationgenie.com
petdailynews.com
prnewsagency.com
prnewssource.com
publicitygenie.com
reputationgenie.com
restaurantmojo.com
resumecircle.com
zipmojo.com

If you have any further questions do not hesitate to contact us.

–
Sincerely
David Rubel
Billing Department
1&1 Internet Inc.

2:26 PM My Reply:

That only fixes a portion of the problems, and creates another opportunity for 1and1 to get “confused” about the situation.

Your $179.80 credit would still leave $423.50 worth of bogus charges on my account.

Invoice XXXXXXXXX is the original problem. It should have been $35.96 instead of $188.79, per the fax I just forwarded.

You refunded the entire amount on XXXXXXXXX. I still owe you $17.98 for that one.

Invoice XXXXXXXXX is a complete fiasco. It includes double billing for the same domains from Invoice XXXXXXXXX, plus all of the domains I canceled during March. That invoice should be credited in full.

Plus there is a Late Fee in my account that I expect to be removed.

I owe you a grand total of $53.94, and have been trying to pay it for months.

I have been running multimillion dollar companies for 15 years, and it is obvious that this mess will continue to get worse unless drastic action is taken. This is not a problem that can be fixed within normal procedures. You let it get way too far out of hand.

Here are my suggestions:

To keep from creating more confusion and screwing up the account even further, CREDIT EVERYTHING. Get the account to $0 and start over.

1. You already credited XXXXXXXXX via XXXXXXXXX. Let it ride.

2. Issue a credit for $188.79 to offset XXXXXXXXX.

3. Issue a credit for $341.62 to offset XXXXXXXXX.

4. Remove or offset the Late Fee for $18.95. I would prefer it be removed completely, because it offends me to be accused of late payments when I have tried every way I know how to resolve this.

5. Issue a brand new invoice. I have created an identical format to your invoice, so it should be easy to understand.

Continued…

OPEN LETTER TO ANYONE AT 1AND1 WITH COMMON SENSE

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I contend that 1and1 as a company consists of incompetent thieves and liars, and you continue to provide me with evidence of those facts?

The response below is typical of your “customer service”. Blame the customer and play stupid. I will try to make this as simple as possible.

This is a copy of the domains on the invoice you claim you will not be issuing a refund for.

Please address each individual line item with the exact reason the referenced Cancellation ID was not completed as your system confirmed it would be. I will be happy to provide each individual confirmation email sent by your system if you cannot find them. I kept copies.

Also explain why, if the cancellations were not completed as your system confirmed, the domains are no longer in my account, and are currently in “Redemption Period” status? I unlocked them, but all transfer requests are being denied.

Does ICANN need to look into that?

Also please explain how you were able to renew domains that were transferred to a competent registrar prior to the dates you claim to have renewed them. The transfers of 4gclick.com, broadcastyoursite.com, businesspressroom.com, and obamalies.org to GoDaddy all completed on March 15. How exactly were you able to renew the domains AFTER they were transferred?

Please also note that that is 7 days from the date the transfers were requested, when ICANN requires you to accept it within 5 days. I will be issuing individual complaints on those.

As for the domains with no Cancellation ID listed, please explain why over twenty requests by email and fax beginning on January 10 have not been sufficient to result in the cancellation of those domains. I received responses from Damion Son, David Rubel, and Brett Neally confirming that the signed faxes were received, and I have dozens of emails proving the same.

Those domains were fraudulently charged to my account in January for expirations in December, during a period of time when 1and1 denied me any means of canceling those domains, again in contravention of ICANN policy. I had absolutely no access to nor control of my domains for 7 ½ weeks. If I keep getting the runaround I will issue individual complaints to ICANN about each of those, also. That would be 277 complaints, but I am almost willing to do it already after the way I have been treated.

Do you truly want to continue providing more proof of your incompetence? Do you want me to continue to issue complaints to the Federal Trade Commission, Better Business Bureau, and ICANN?

Do you want me to join the growing number of people calling for a class action lawsuit regarding your unethical business practices?

Or would someone with at least a little bit of common sense like to take over and get to the bottom of this? I have done nothing wrong. I have made every attempt to explain your errors and get them fixed, and you keep blaming me for your incompetence.

Here it is as simply as I can present it:

(Spreadsheet moved to external page.  Click to view Summary of Fraudulent 1and1 Charges.)

I do not want to hear from Damion Son, David Rubel or Brett Neally. I want to hear from their boss, whoever that may be. Or are you afraid you will get fired for creating this mess in the first place?

I Hate 1and1

Brian Gothard

http://RippedOffConsumers.org

—–Original Message—–
From: complaints@1and1.com [mailto:complaints@1and1.com]
Sent: Thursday, April 09, 2009 1:56 PM
To: Brian Gothard
Subject: C127942769 Re: Public Challenge Issued – Prove Me Wrong

Dear Brian Gothard, (Customer ID: XXXXXXXXX)

Thank you for contacting us.

The latest invoice that was generated on the account was for the domain

name renewal in the month of March. The previous issue was regards to

the invoice that was generated in the month of January due to the during

the transfer process.

Unfortunately we will not be refunding the account for the domain names

on the latest invoice on the account.

If you have any further questions please do not hesitate to contact us.

–

Sincerely,

Damion Son

Customer Service

1&1 Internet

1and1 Incompetence, Part 13

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1

Well, yesterday I complained that 1and1 had created a brand new invoice that included all of the domains I have been trying to cancel for over three months now, and were also trying to charge me for domains that I have very clear documentation of cancellation on.

I issued a public challenge to anyone at 1and1 to prove me wrong.

I received this reply from joy in Transfers this morning:

Brian,

I went through some of your invoices and you are correct as some should be refunded. The billing manager currently has someone looking into this and you should receive a response shortly regarding this issue. I apologize that this has been such an inconvenience for you.

Joy

Knowing better than to get my hopes up, I awaited the followup.
This afternoon, Damion Son sent me this:

Dear Brian Gothard, (Customer ID: XXXXXXXXX)

Thank you for contacting us.

The latest invoice that was generated on the account was for the domain name renewal in the month of March.  The previous issue was regards to the invoice that was generated in the month of January due to the during the transfer process.

Unfortunately we will not be refunding the account for the domain names on the latest invoice on the account.

If you have any further questions please do not hesitate to contact us.

–
Sincerely,
Damion Son
Customer Service
1&1 Internet

So, it is Mr. Son’s contention that this is a new issue.  How can it be a new issue when it involves the same domains?

Also, these domains are no longer in my account, so for what exactly am I being charged?

Several were already transferred to a competent registrar, prior to the dates 1and1 claims they renewed them.  How did they renew domains no longer under their control?

This is the most blatant attempt to perpetrate fraud I have ever encountered.

Here is my reply:

Once again, you are proving my point that 1and1 is completely incompetent, unethical, immoral and does not care about their customers.

16 of these are the same domains I have been trying to cancel since January.  They are the same domains I have been complaining about since January, and for which I have submitted over twenty cancellation requests by email and fax.  This is NOT a new issue.

The rest were cancelled prior to their expiration dates, and I have all of the documentation to prove it.  I have every email 1and1 sent me confirming the cancellations.  I was very careful to keep records correlating the cancellation IDs to the domains, because I knew 1and1 would try to pull some unethical garbage.

Four of these were actually transferred and renewed with GoDaddy prior to the dates you claim to have renewed them.  Again, I have full documentation.

And to top it all off, all but four of these (not the same four referenced above) are no longer in my account.

I am sick of being treated like I did something wrong.  I have done my utmost to follow your procedures, even submitting additional documentation that is NOT required by either ICANN or your posted Terms and Conditions, yet you still cannot get your act straight.

Your antagonistic and ignorant reply will be posted as the latest proof of 1and1′s attempt to defraud me at http://Ripped OffConsumers.com.

Anyone else interested in a class action lawsuit?  This antagonism and mistreatment is actually causing me health problems!

1and1 Incompetence, Part 12

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Earlier today, I sent the following message to the entire list of 1and1 email addresses that i have been able to accumulate.

I am issuing a public challenge to anyone at 1and1 to refute your company’s incompetence.

http://rippedoffconsumers.org/1and1-complaints/1and1-incompetence-part-10/

I will be submitting ANOTHER set of proof that what you have now invoiced me for TWICE is fraudulent.

1and1 proves at every opportunity that you are incapable of even the most basic customer service, and I will continue to advertise it publicly until someone resolves your mistakes.

Sincerely,

Brian Gothard


1and1 Incompetence, Part 11

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Just received this:

Dear Brian Gothard, (Cust: XXXXXXXXX)

Thank you for contacting us.

The invoice in question #356714991 was for domains that were renewed in March and later. The previous issue that had complicated your ability to submit cancellation request was resolve well in advance of these renewal dates. As such nothing would have prevented you turning off the renewal for the domains in question. You will need to resolve this balance in full in order to prevent billing issues. This matter and the previous issue you had are separate matters entirely.

If you have any further questions do not hesitate to contact us.

–
Sincerely
Brett Neally
Billing Department
1&1 Internet Inc.

OK, so after faxing signed documentation, then submitting list after list, now I am supposed to cancel the domains AGAIN?

What part of CANCEL THE DOMAINS do these people not understand?

1and1 Incompetence, Part 10

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The saga of 1nd1′s incompetence continues unabated.

I was actually excited yesterday to find that my account had been unlocked, allowing me access for the first time in several weeks to my DNS settings.

I should be more careful about those optimistic tendencies when it comes to 1and1.

Today I received my latest  invoice.  Not only are they charging me for domains that I canceled and I have all of the confirmations proving it, but they added all of the domains I have been complaining about for four months now.

That means there are TWO invoices in my account for the exact same identical fraudulent charges.  Not only have they not fixed the one I have submitted complaints about over twenty times, but they have now created a brand new fraudulent invoice with the same domains!

Just how many times does a customer have to complain and submit iron clad proof of their mistakes to get someone at 1and1 to actually fix a problem?

I cannot answer that question.  I have sent them lists, signed faxes, corrected invoices, complaints and I am posting it here for the world to see, and they still cannot get their act together.

Just how much incompetence can one company exhibit?

If I were anyone in management at 1and1, I would be absolutely embarassed that a situation this cut and dried could go on this long, and generate this much negative publicity.

1and1 is incompetent.

1and1 is dishonest.

1and1 is the worst company I have ever dealt with.

I challenge anyone at 1and1 to answer my claims that they are completely incompetent.

I have to go now and generate ANOTHER correction request for this latest invoice, but when i get that done, I am going to post about even more problems with their cancellation system.  They will deny transfers to another registrar even on domains that you cancel!  Then they still bill you for them!

1and1 Incompetence, Part 9

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Well, I let a week go by after Brett Neally promised to fix my account.  I should not be surprised that absolutely nothing has changed.

My account is still locked.

There is still a late fee showing in my account for a fraudulent invoice.

That invoice still has not been corrected to reflect the changes that I have submitted beginning on January 10 to dozens of 1and1 employees by fax and email.

One more instance of deception, incompetence, and atrocious customer service from 1and1.

1and1 Incompetence, Part 8

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My continuing battle with 1and1′s fraudulent activities…

After creating all of those posts yesterday, I sent a notice to all of those 1and1 email addresses inviting them to visit this blog and read all about it.  It appears that struck a nerve with at least one 1and1 employee.  Here is what I received today:

Dear Brian Gothard, (Cust: XXXXXXXX)

Thank you for contacting us.

The balance that was released to collections was for the January invoice and not for the invoice that was refunded.

If you have any further questions do not hesitate to contact us.

–
Sincerely
Brett Neally
Billing Department
1&1 Internet Inc.

Of course, since he was responding to an email I sent that said exactly that, I replied:

Yeah, that’s what I SAID!

The January invoice IS FRAUD!

FIX IT!

His response:

Dear Brian Gothard, (Cust: XXXXXXXX)

Thank you for contacting us.

I’ve looked extensively through your case history and this is what we are willing to do. You previously sent an email with a PDF attachment for domains you wanted to cancel. Please reply back to this email with that list as plain text. We will then forward a case to have those domains removed from your account. We will then pull the balance from NCO financial and wipe it from our systems. I apologize for any inconvenience this has caused and we will work to try to resolve this issue.

If you have any further questions do not hesitate to contact us.

–
Sincerely
Brett Neally
Billing Department
1&1 Internet Inc.

And my retort:

This is the 17th time I have submitted this exact same list.  By fax, by email, as an attachment, with and without signatures, to David Rubel, Damien Son, John Keefer, Complaints, Support, Billing, the BBB, the FTC, and whoever else I could find.  It is even posted several times at http://RippedOffConsumers.org.

But I will jump through yet another hoop.

And by the way, the way you phrased your response offends me.  I should hope you would be willing to correct your own errors.  I did not create this problem, 1and1 did, by screwing up the transfer for over a month in the first place and not granting me the ability to cancel these domains until almost a month later, then refusing to fix it in a reasonable time frame.  As you see below, I have been trying to get this fixed since January 10.  Your fellow employees have lied to me and given me the runaround for 2 1/2 months.  So thank you for being willing to do what should have been done in January.  I hope you mean it.

Then I pasted the January 10 email that I sent trying to fix this that included exactly the text list he is now requesting.  Remember, I have sent that same list over twenty times, in half a dozen formats.  Damion Son even made me print, sign, and fax it several weeks ago.  But now they need ANOTHER copy of it, even after he “looked extensively through your case history”.

I am not slamming Mr. Neally, yet.  He seems to genuinely want to make me go away.  I don’t get the impression he is actually sorry it happened, or even surprised, just that he wants me to shut up and go away.

And finally, at 2:18 PM CST today, I received this:

Dear Brian Gothard, (Cust: XXXXXXXX)

Thank you for contacting us.

Thank you for replying with this information. A case has been escalated to remove the account and balance from NCO financial. Please allow a few business days for this balance to be removed. I apologize it has take so long to resolve this issue.

If you have any further questions do not hesitate to contact us.

–
Sincerely
Brett Neally
Billing Department
1&1 Internet Inc.

Now, that appears promising.  It is ironic that as I was reading this email message my phone rang.  Caller ID said NCO Financial.  I let the machine get it.

Mr. Neally has made promises that I only half expect to happen, just based on history.  I will have to wait and see.

But, as of right now:

1) My account is still locked, denying me access to the 235 domains I still have registered there that were never in question. (I now make sure to move them to a competent registrar before they expire.)

His message does not address when my account will once again be made available to me.

2) The January invoice has still not been credited, revised, or removed.  It still shows as “Payment declined”.

When I faxed the signed invoice corrections at Damion Son’s request the credit was issued within hours.  I will let you know.

3) There is still a Late Fee of $18.95 showing on my account.

Although every email message I get has some form of apology in it, I do not feel apologized to, if you know what I mean.  I feel more like they are apologizing for getting caught than out of any real concern for the hours I have spent trying to get them to correct their own errors.  Please excuse my language, but I do not feel like anyone at 1and1 gives a damn about me or the problems they have caused.

I understand that companies make mistakes.  It cannot be helped.  But when they first of all refuse to acknowledge the error, then try to blame it on the customer, then continue to antagonize that customer at every turn, that company does not deserve to be in business.

1and1 is just not reliable, ethical, or competent.

1and1 Incompetence, Part 7

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Reply

I received a message today that my account had been turned over to a collection agency.

I have still not received a reply to my repeated emails and faxes asking why they did not follow up as Damion Son promised when I faxed the signed documentation over two weeks ago.

Once again, 1and1 is proving that they care absolutely nothing about their customers, and do not have the ability to provide even marginally competent service.

Please, please spread this around.

Do not let those you care about get robbed and violated by 1and1.

Stand up now and fight back!

1and1 Incompetence, Part 6

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From my last post, Damion Son, supposedly “upper management” according to david Rubel, asked for the list of domains to refund, although i had sent it a dozen times already.  I sent it again.

Here is his reply:

From: complaints@1and1.com
Sent: Monday, March 09, 2009 2:01 PM
To: Brian Gothard
Subject: C122680964

Dear Brian Gothard, (Customer ID: XXXXXXXXX)

Thank you for contacting us.

I have spoken with our billing department regarding this matter.  They have informed me that you would need to fax a list of domain name that you wish to cancel with your signature.  And we can set those domain names to cancel and refund the account regarding the domain names.

If you have any further questions please do not hesitate to contact us.

–
Sincerely,
Damion Son
Customer Service
1&1 Internet

OK, this time they want it faxed.  This is completely outside their normal procedures and is listed nowhere in their terms and conditions, but I am willing to do what it takes.  So, I made a nice spreadsheet identical to their invoice, and identified each line item as “Keep” or “Cancel”.  I signed it and faxed it to both Damion Son and David Rubel.

One thing I have not mentioned:  the February invoice was wrong, too.  So, I did the exact same thing, and faxed them both together on March 10.  Then I emailed a PDF of the fax to Damion.

They issued a credit for the entire February invoice the same day.  They were not supposed to.  They credited domains that were not supposed to be cancelled as well as those that were.  They did not touch the January invoice which is causing all the problems, and the February invoice was not enough to cover the discrepancy.

I notified Damion Son of this fact by email and fax the same day.

On March 18, I once again sent Damion Son and David Rubel a request for the status of this issue by both email and fax.  No response.

I sent it again on March 23.  No response.

That gets us to the present.  I will post updates here as they occur.

If you waded through all of this, thank you.  It is a whole bunch of information, and i really don’t expect anyone to read all of it, but I hope the deluge makes enough of an impact that people are warned about just how bad 1and1 is.