I am writing about a company called 1&1 which has a web site at 1and1.com and about their preposterous cancellation policies. I cancelled service with them back in October after subscribing for a short period of time to use their hosted exchange service. I used the online cancellation system, followed all of the procedures to a T including sending in a signed cancellation fax.
Today I call up to ask why I was still being charged and immediately the person on the other end gets all defensive and claims I didn’t send the fax (which I did). But he had record of my original cancellation request.
The fact that they never processed my fax doesn’t make a difference. Now they want me to prove to them that I sent my fax. Audacious!
I called back to speak with another person and received even worse treatment. I am angry at 1&1.
Update: It looks as though others have reported this same issue…
95 responses to “1&1 Internet – file this under complaints about 1and1.com”
I was a U.K user of 1 and 1 and had similar problems, here in the U.K they passed charges on too debt-collectors who sent threatening letters, before even contacting me about charges. Thankfully I have nothing to do with them anymore.
Wow! I have only heard good things in the past about 1and1…now my opinion has changed. I use VizaWeb and I have heard excellent things about Media Temple.
Chris – That’s a complete bummer to hear about your issues with 1&1. I ran into some issues early on when I lost some files after a server went down. I haven’t had any issues since, yet I do wonder about their customer service – they didn’t necessarily leave me with a warm and fuzzy feeling after my first incident.
Chris, it’s funny you should post this because I’m dealing with the EXACT same thing with 1&1 right now. It’s weird enough that they require a fax in the first place (is this the Middle Ages?), but downright upsetting that even once you jump through all their hoops, they keep hitting your credit card.
James – well, it doesn’t surprise me. Since when did you ever hear of a company that has a whole department just for cancellations? Either way let me know if you figure a way out of the rat hole.
What a company. I have been fighting with them every renewal date for 3 years. How can they get away with this???? I cancel, follow their rules, think I’m done and the next year, they start all over again.
I cancelled 1 and 1 internet service in January and they are still billing me.
Customer Complaint Data
Number of complaints processed by the BBB since the firm’s BBB file was opened in December 2003: 130
Number of complaints processed by the BBB in the last 12 months: 95
Source:
http://www.dc.bbb.org/report.html?national=Y&compid=1040770
The right to publish the truth has been blocked by 1&1.com
HealthWatcher.net has been forced to move its web site in a few days. For temporary access to our main URLs just click on the links on my web site.
Our previous ISP was 1and1.com in Pennsylvania. They and their lawyer in Philadelphia have both failed to provide the necessary services in a manner that would protect the right to free speech and fair comment. It seems that they knuckled under to a frivolous and vexatious attack on my right to criticize an advertisement that appeared in a weekly newspaper in Canada. If your ISP has treated you as poorly as I have been treated, we are all in for a big wakeup call.
Please send all e-mail to drpolevoy@yahoo.com for further information.
Please put this in the Subject line: Update on healthwatcher
We will send you complete details about what this company has done, and would like to see the right to fair comment protected on the internet.
Terry Polevoy, MD
938 King Street West
Kitchener, ON N2G 1G4
Three of my web sites have been hijacked by the idiots over at 1and1.com
I am unable to transfer them out of thier registry.
Complaints go nowhere.
http://www.acnedocs.com
http://www.acnecareclinics.com
pigpills.com
This has disabled communications on the internet from my patients and future patients.
I am going to seek redress through the legal system.
Has this ever happened to anyone?
Terry
Unfortunately what 1&1.com forgot to do was put a bullet in Terry Polevoy’s head. With Polevoy’s “piece du merde” down for over 10 days, we all enjoyed the exeprience of fresh air.
Polevoy thinks he’s now safe with Bluehost.com in UT. Wait and see…
And Terry, if your mommy’s reading this to you, 1&1.com didn’t hijack your websites…
I considered 1&1 Internet for my (itty bitty personal) site hosting and happened to take a look at their Terms & Conditions document. I have some excerpts on my site with my views here: http://www.onesmallvoice.net/osv/2006/05/11-internet-inc-web-hosting-tc.html
My brief overview of the document is:
1) 1&1 is always right
2) If 1&1 is ever found to be wrong (even in a court of law!) see #1
Their response to my views of their T&C is also on my site.
Until they change these onerous conditions, I can’t imagine the problems that you detail here will go away.
I still use 1 and 1 but I am not happy with them at all. I have been cheaped out of my money twice by them. One of them was I ordered a domain like 2 years ago and I only ordered it for 1 year and I was still getting charged, When asked about this they say that “they send out an email asking if you would like to renew it, if we get no answer we assume its a yes.” I had never gotten a email. The other issue was 60 days money back guaruntee. I never got back my money. No matter how hard one fights it, arocding to them their always right. Sorry to hear about your problem.
Ya, i had a very inconvenient experiece with them. I orderd their service after finding it in a nice big 7 or 8 page advetisement of a popular computer magazine. I easily signed up ONLINE and everything was great.
Until I decided that i don’t want the service any longer and whammie…I have to send them a fax! A FAX????? Are you kidding me….can you count the number of people who have a fax machine…..as a matter of fact, i’m just NOW getting around to actually getting a fax machine. Getting a bar of soap shaped like Elvis’ guitar was higher on my priority list than having a fax machine. No, I never got the soap. Anyway…this is my gripe. I hope Kinkos is getting lots of business thanks to 1and1. Then I hope 1and1 drops off the face of the earth!
I have used 1&1 for 2 years with no complaints, until out of the blue a letter arrived demanding I update my credit card details on their web console as my card had expired and they had automatically renewed the account anyway. I was given a 20 day ultimatum but the letter arrived a few days before the ultimatum date. I tried to do as the letter said, although rather reluctantly as I did not really need the 2 domains and felt cheated as I had no opportunity to cancel, and the account had been automatically renewed in my ignorance. I am still in despute as to why I have not had any communications before the letter, oh and because I could not log onto my console, I now have BFS Finance chasing me for 30 pounds as 15 pounds was added to the ammount they say I owe them for being naughty!. Each time I have spoken to their staff, I am passed from department to department and none of the managers will speak to me because ‘it is not company policy for managers to speak to customers on the telephone’. They also resite thier questionable terms and conditions at every opportunity, so to prevent anyone from falling into the same trap as I did, I have compiled thier Terms & Conditions with my own ‘plain english’ interpretations. http://homepage.ntlworld.com/jason.haywood/1and1/
Read first and then make an informed decision.
I have had the same issue with 1and1. Their customer service is horrible. I canceled all my accounts with them and went with someone else. I will never use them again.
Whoa. I have never had any problems with 1&1! I hope people will try 1&1 for themselves before getting scared off by horror stories. After all 90 days (guarantee) is a long time to decide if they are right for you. Any company with over 5 million customers is bound to have a few detractors. Why does it seem so many blogs are dedicated to tearing companies down these days? I guess negative content is easy to produce than positive content. Sigh.
1and1? Not good.
1and1.com – The good, the bad and the ugly.
http://drupal.org/node/66327
Wow – I wish I’d read this lot two years ago when I signed up for a 1&1 domain registration. My current tale of woe involves them sending my details to a debt collection agency without any prior warning, all for the sum of £4.68. Apparently they “autorenew” even if they can’t take the money from you on a valid card. The scarey thing is I wouldn’t even have noticed them stealing my money had not the card (an expired one) been declined. My tale of woe is here:
http://www.peartrees.net/blog/archives/460-NEVER-EVER-Use-11-Internet-Limited.html
I have had several sites with 1&1 (meaning over 10) and have cancelled with no problems more than once.
I can not say enough good things about their customer service and think that these complaints are fairly isolated seeing as 1&1 is one of the largest domain companies in the world and this is the worst people can come up with!
I don’t usually reply to these kinds of posts. Nor do I usually sing the praises of a company (most need considerable work IMO) but, 1&1 is unbelievable, especially when you figure that they are also among the most affordable!
I refer people to them all the time and get nothing but thanks.
1and1 is okay. There are no more fax confirmations for cancellations. The process involves two parts, one is to initiate the cancellation. Second, is to confirm it (by e-mail). So far, so good.
That’s really good to hear that they got rid of the fax issue.
I am having a ridiculous problem with 1&1 right now.
They sent bills (for $30) to the wrong address and when I didn’t pay, they began a collection. I saw it on my credit report when I got one TWO YEARS LATER and paid that day. Then, without telling me, 1&1 reactivated my account and began sending bills to the same wrong address. Now, in order to cancel, they want me to fax them a paper in order to officially change my email and address, so that I can email them a cancellation from my current address. If I just pay the bill, the rep told me, they will do it all over again…reactivate the account and start billing me at the wrong address, then go to collections. In other words, if I pay the measly $30 again, I screw myself for a third time and get yet another collection against me.
And I’m trying to get a mortgage. This isn’t helping.
This all seems terribly complicated to remove the only black-mark on my credit report (now TWO blackmarks) for an item I already paid. The heck with 1 & 1 and their predatory practices. I have filed a complaint with the BBB and will post my story on any site that will listen.
I’ve read all your stories of similar issues. 1&1 Internet Inc. has got to be stopped.
Like many of your correspondents I am also having problems with 1&1.
I am not an expert when it comes to IT and at 61 the only experiences that I have gained are those that I have learnt the hard way, and of course, this is another experience that whilst I would rather forget, I cannot because they keep taking money from my bank account.
Some 2 years ago I signed up for a Web Hosting Package and in March this year I received, out of the blue, a letter from a debt collection agency stating that they had tried to collect monies fronm my bank account but could not do so. This was because the bank had issued me with a new Debit Card with a different issue number – I updated the details on the Control Panel but was informed that I must pay a £25.45 fee. I argued that this was unfair but received no satisfaction – as I felt that this was very poor service I wrote to the Chief Executive, enclosing the £25.45, to cancel my Web Hosting Package. I received a reply indicating that it had been cancelled and thought that was the end of the matter – how could I have been so stupid.
The following month they took £35.18 from my account which unfortunately I did not notice and again in November they took a further £35.18 which I did notice. I emailed 1&1 and was informed that I still owed them a further £103.83 which I knew nothing about.I did try to use their online cancellation procedure but this just kept reactivating the account.
Obviously, I wish that I knew then, what I know now, as their selling practices are very questionable, their customer services are non existant and I would not reccomend them to my worst enemy.
I will shortly be issuing a Summons to try and recover my monies but I hope this will serve as a warning to anyone who is considering taking out a Web Hosting Package with 1&1.
They suck big time. Their email is the lousiest!! Spam filter is a joke.
Support is farce. They have a set of monkeys sittingin Philippines who just know how to say 2 things – Sorry and our admin is looking – you are better off breaking your head agains a stone. And even to do that you wait MINIMUM 30 minutes. Technical problems happen, but what makes difference is response and fixing them to a clients satisfaction. In this – 1and1.com are the worst….I mean the worst possible one can be. I am a web developer – referred them so many clients – but no consideration. I deal with other hosting companies – they have decency to call back and inform or resolve issues – with 1and1 – forget it!!
Sites go down for 24 – 48 hours – Nothing is done.
They DO NOT CARE!!
RUN AWAY FROM THEM – WHILE YOU CAN!!
My pixlesinc.com vanished it no longer configures . It was a cherished gift from 1and1 Internet. They giveth and taketh away. I am claiming my prize because factually Pixles Inc.
is the name of my Florida registered company and I gave it birth. I will be hosting my domain groups at 1and1group.blogspot.com until further notice.
Just because I did not pay them for anything , it does not mean they can block me from my intelectual property rights to ownership.They may have the key but I own the domain
and I am determined to open its portals.