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My preferred way to cancel these types of services is to close or pause the card they're charging. If you use a virtual card service like Privacy.com, this is e
by LoganDark 2y ago
My preferred way to cancel these types of services is to close or pause the card they're charging. If you use a virtual card service like Privacy.com, this is easy, if you don't, then maybe not so much. But using virtual cards for everything you can is typically a good idea anyway, imo.
- breadwinner 2y agoBut then that becomes unpaid bills and they send you to collections.
- sudoshred 2y agoYou can dispute debt in collections by requesting proof of the debt. The consumer protections in that area (debt collections) are quite a bit more developed than any consumer protections about intentional procedural inefficiency when cancelling service.
- nodamage 2y agoIf you never actually took the steps to cancel your contract won't they be able to prove your debt via the existence of a non-cancelled contract?
- mrguyorama 2y agoThe purpose is to take advantage of the sloppiness of the debt collection industry. They are designed around tricking financially illiterate people, harassing poor people, and lying. When they buy a debt, they rarely get comprehensive documentation.
- naijaboiler 2y agoyou will end up with damaged credit. The only negative on my credit report is from a verizon phone I bought from a verizon store (actually ended up not being Verizon owned store,) which i returned within the 7 days return fee, even paid re-stocking fee. But which the store credits me for having returned it later than I did, which allowed Verizon charged me 1 month service fee, which I never got a bill or email even though verizon had both, until it showed up on credit as collection. Nothing I did could get it off.
- xenospn 2y agoSimple anecdote, but when I paid a medical bill and they still came after me and sent it to collections, I contested the bill and told the collection agency that this is not my debt. Never heard from them again.
- danaris 2y agoYou can probably avoid this—or, rather, cover your ass legally—by doing something like sending them a letter registered mail informing them that you are cancelling and will be blocking further payments. It's far from a good solution, but it should at least put you in a better position vis-a-vis the courts if it comes to that.
- spiderice 2y agoSuddenly waiting on the phone for 45 minutes doesn't sound so bad, unless proving a point is your main goal.
- breadwinner 2y agoActually there is another option. Make a complaint to your state's Attorney General's Office. They usually have a website for filing consumer complaints, and AGO will contact the business, and the business is usually responsive when contacted by AGO.
- eric-hu 2y agoHow does this work? Do you provide the AGO with your name, phone and address? Subscription details?
- breadwinner 2y agoYes. Here's the Texas AGO's web site, as an example: https://www.texasattorneygeneral.gov/consumer-protection/file-consumer-complaint https://www.texasattorneygeneral.gov/consumer-protection/fil...
- hiatus 2y agoIt certainly takes less that 45 minutes to send registered mail. There are even online services to which you can upload a PDF or document of your message. I have done this on numerous occasions.
- danaris 2y ago
- LoganDark 2y agoSince when? I've never used a subscription before that doesn't just cancel when my card fails to debit.
- dboreham 2y agoOnly in America
- lern_too_spel 2y agoEven simpler, file a dispute with your card issuer. Dish will pay the chargeback fee and block you as a customer, but I'm sure you don't want to be their customer again, so that's not a problem.
- lxgr 2y agoWhat dispute reason would you give? Usually card issuers will ask you if you've made any attempt to settle the situation with the merchant. If you misrepresent that you have and they are just ignoring you, you might practically get away with it, but do know that that kind of misrepresentation might get you into trouble some day. If however the merchant is actually unreachable for a bona fide cancellation request, that's totally on them.
- lern_too_spel 2y agoThe reason you would give is exactly the reason the OP gave, that Dish was deliberately not reachable for cancellation.
- lxgr 2y agoYeah, the solution to that is to mandate accepting cancellations via a single click (or preferably even email, since it shouldn't be my problem if I don't remember my account details when I want to cancel). Disputes should have been the backstop to incentivizing the market to making cancellations easier, but things apparently didn't pan out that way. So arguably, the free market has had its chance, and it's time for regulations.
- 15155 2y ago> Usually card issuers will ask you if you've made any attempt to settle the situation with the merchant. "I attempted to reach them via phone on or about _____, ___. No remedy was achieved."
- lxgr 2y agoThis might practically achieve the desired outcome, but do note that just not paying does not extinguish your debt to anyone you have a valid contract with. I've seen Americans living in Europe get bitten by this quite frequently in some countries, where sending something to collections is both commonly done and the collection agency will successfully take you to court and win in almost all cases even for pennies. On the other hand, the EU has had "two-click cancellation" regulations for a while now, so there is a better alternative available for both sides (customer and company).