XBOX Live member ForceTrainer says that after he forgot to update his credit card information, Microsoft shut down his XBOX Live account. He was fine with this, but when he tried to update his info, pay his balance, and convert his account to silver, Microsoft demanded he pay an entire year’s fee to settle the two months he was delinquent.
I’ve been a faithful Xbox Live Gold member since I first bought my Xbox 360 a few years ago. When I first signed up for my account I chose the annual option, so for the past two years I’ve paid my $49.99 like a good little gamer.
This year was probably going to be no different, but my billing ran into a little snag when my credit card on file was replaced. I started receiving emails from Microsoft telling me that I needed to update my card info so that I could be charged for the next year, but I kept forgetting. I finally received a final email saying that my account had been closed and at that point I could no longer sign onto Xbox Live. Honestly I couldn’t care less about having a Live account, but I have a good amount of DLC, so I immediately gave Xbox Support a call so I could at least get switched to a free silver account so I wouldn’t bork what I had already bought.
After a minute or two on hold (I called 1-800-4MY-XBOX) I got through to a very nice woman. I explained to her that my account had lapsed and that I just wanted to convert my Gold account to a Silver one. She said no problem, but informed me that I would need to speak with billing. “Not a problem,” I thought, and I got forwarded immediately.
After another minute on hold I was through to the billing department. I was pretty impressed at the lack of hold time, considering it was a Sunday night, and I even made a comment to my brother over IM saying, “Wow, Xbox support is pretty good.” Needless to say my comment was a bit premature.
I again explained my situation to the billing rep, and he asked me to sign on to http://billing.microsoft.com so I could update my billing information there. That seemed like a pretty simple request, and he said he would stay on the line with me to make sure that everything got updated properly. Again, I was impressed because most reps would just tell you where to go and hang up. He verified that my billing information was updated, and he told me that I would be charged $49.99 because I had an owing balance on my account. While all I wanted to do was convert to a Silver account (hopefully for no charges), I was half expecting this since my account had technically lapsed in June. I asked if it was possible to just pro-rate the two months that I was given service after my account lapsed, and I was told because I’m an annual member that wouldn’t happen. Alright, fine, no big deal – it’s just $50. The charge was put through and I figured all was set. Here’s how the rest of the conversation went:
Me: Alright, so my account is settled. Since my account lapsed in June I’m assuming I should have about 10 months left of Xbox Live Gold service, right?
Rep: No.
Me: Ummm… what do you mean no? When I paid the $50 I was paying for service from June 2008 to June 2009. I understand that I won’t get a full year of service from today, but how come you’re telling me I’m not going to get Gold service at all?
Rep: By paying the $50 you settled your account. Your account has been reactivated as a Silver account.
Me: Okay, I understand that my account is now settled, but I just paid for 12 months of service. If you date that from June 2008 I should have a Gold account until June 2009.
Rep: No. When you paid the $50 that was just to settle the account and bring it current. Your account was almost sent to collections, so your payment stopped the process.
Me (Getting very pissed off right now): Okay, so what you’re telling me is that I just paid $50 so you wouldn’t send me to collections? With Xbox Live service you PRE-PAY for the service! If I’m paying you $50 I just PRE-PAID for services that you owe me. Now you’re telling me all I did was stop you from sending me to collections?
Rep: Yes. However, now that your account is settled you can go ahead and purchase a Gold account if you want.
Me (To the point of ripping my hair out): So what you’re telling me is that I just paid you $50, and if I want to get a Gold level account I will need to pay again for it even though I just paid you $50?!?
Rep: That would be correct sir.
Me (Trying not to yell at the guy so I can ask pertinent questions): Okay, that makes no sense, but let’s continue. Can you tell me exactly what I was charged for? Was the $50 I just spent for Xbox Live Gold service, collections fees, account reactivation… what?
Rep: The charge will be for Xbox Live Gold service.
Me (Ready to rip his throat out through the phone): You just said that I was being charged for Xbox Live Gold service. If that’s the case then how come I am not getting the balance of the months?
Rep: Because that charge was to bring your account current.
This ordeal continued for another 10 minutes. He told me that my payment was solely to bring my account “current.” His rationale for not giving me the balance of the months on my account was that my account was almost sent to collections. Well, first off, my account was never sent to collections, so that’s the biggest BS story I’ve ever heard. Second, how can you send me to collections on a debt for services that I was never given? Microsoft cut off my account when it went delinquent, and at the very least I got a free month out of them. I absolutely understand them wanting me to pay for that, but how can you send me to collections for an entire year of service that I haven’t even used yet? I also asked him that if I had called last month to settle my account would I have been given the balance of the months. His answer? Yes. Rationale? Because my account wasn’t being sent to collections last month.
After all of this I informed the rep that I would dispute the charge with my credit card company. He told me, “Fine, we get that all the time. However, we always win because we will show that it’s a legitimate charge.” I tried to argue with him saying that yes, while the charge itself is legitimate (I did authorize it), Microsoft is refusing to give me the services that I paid for, and that is grounds for a dispute resolution in my favor. He didn’t really seem to care and I knew I was getting nowhere, so I just hung up at that point.
So where do I stand? Yesterday I was charged $50 for 12-months of Microsoft Xbox Live Gold service which should have been dated from June 2008. However, my account is currently at a Silver level, and the only way to upgrade the account is to pay again for Gold service.
There are several problems that come up with this entire phone call. First, I only had the choice to pay $49.99 to bring my account current even though there are monthly and quarterly payment options available. If I had been a month-to-month member I probably would’ve just paid for a single month and lost a month of service, not 10. If I had been paying via Xbox Live Cards that you buy at retailers nothing would’ve happened because there are no recurring payments. So for the most part, a dedicated customer who makes an annual commitment to the service gets screwed the hardest. Thanks Microsoft!
Yuck. You should probably call your credit card company and talk the issue over with them. We wouldn’t be surprised if you were able to do a chargeback.
(Photo: Tengaport )
UPDATE: This complaint has been resolved.
More From Consumerist
-
Microsoft Store Can’t Exchange A Defective Computer Properly, Sends Me Wrong Refund
-
Xbox Live Won’t Let Me Register Child Accounts Until I Verify Credit Card I Never Gave Them
-
The Xbox One Is Intended To Be An All-In-One Home Entertainment Solution
-
Worst Company In America Round 1: Apple Vs. Microsoft
-
My Quest For A Defect-Free Microsoft Surface Goes Surprisingly Poorly
Aside from the story sounding a bit iffy, quite frankly this seems more like case of a somewhat uninformed and poorly planned consumer ploy running up against a huge megalopoly’s billing machine, with entirely predictable results. While most of the stories here describe ridiculously mismanaged customer service opportunities with company at fault, in this case I’m quite honestly finding it difficult to find any logic for this customer’s course of action, or sympathy for the resulting condition.
I’ve been an Xbox Live customer for two years, and their billing system is odd and unwieldy, but makes sense if you look at the payment options and different plans. In this fella’s case, I hope he knows that once a Gold account expires, it AUTOMATICALLY reverts to a Silver one (unless you’re delinquent with a payment, like it seems he was…)
Yeah this is just plain dumb, I don’t think the rep knew what he was doing. Its hard to believe that a company as large as MS can be so incompetent. Then again I guess is not.
I had something with XBox Live happen to me two years ago. I never signed up for autobill and they autobilled me anyway after I had sold my xbox. Called up when i noticed on my statement about 25 days later, they said there was only a 15 day grace period and I had to eat the $50. I told them to cancel my account and don’t charge me again, but they refused to refund a cent to me even though I technically had a years service for 25 days. They were also unapologetic.
Fortunately $50 isn’t a big deal, but it’s the principal really. Thank goodness with PS3 I don’t have to deal with any of this.
@Rojma:
He wasn’t asking to be compensated for his screwup, he was asking for the additional 10 months he paid for.
I bet if you ask the OP, he would have been more than happy to pay the 2 months at the monthly rate.
Blaming the OP is one thing, but blaming him for the extra charge and accusing him of trying to be compensated is yet another.
I’ve never signed up for DRM anything, and I don’t see doing so anytime in the future. So I admittedly do not understand most of the nuances of what’s going on here. I’m gonna hang my hat on a couple of stated points — Consumerist says:
Is it contractually stated, anywhere, that allowing your account to go “delinquent” (which doesn’t exactly seem to be a correct stating of the facts here) entitles Microsoft to a “late fee” of approximately $41.00?
Also, I’m not following the OP (though it sounds like he was having equal trouble following the CSR) — when the CSR says, “The charge will be for Xbox Live Gold service,” it sounds like this is the CSR saying that this is how the charge will be reflected on the OP’s credit card — because the CSR seems to be responding that the extra charge is specifically not for “collection fees” or “account reactivation.” If this is the case, I would hope that the credit card company would support a chargeback if the stated service was not received.
Again, repeating, I know nothing about how these newfangled things work — but I’d second NikonGal in suggesting you just call back, hope for a different rep, play dumb and hope they just fix it. Worth a shot before you escalate.
And ANOTHER thing — I’m understanding that this is a pre-paid service, and it does seem that Microsoft should have shut off service once the pre-paid hours were completed — but perhaps they extended the service as a “courtesy.” If the OP continued to use the service after the pre-paid period, I could see Microsoft having a “quantum meruit,” pro-rated claim for the services used — and that they may have a valid reason for a collection agency to go after that amount.
Trying to collect anything more than that “quantum meruit” amount would need to be supported by the terms of a contract that the OP agreed to. (Yes, I watch a lot of People’s Court — IDNTBAL (“I don’t need to be a lawyer”).
That said, I would expect that, before using any Microsoft product, a person clicks on a box that says “I Agree” — agreeing to 85 paragraphs of text that most people don’t bother to read through. Microsoft’s claim may be supported, which might explain the CSR’s Lily Tomlin-esque “We’re the phone company, we don’t have to care” comment.
I think this really boils down to what contractual terms did the OP agree to here. Again, IDNTBAL. (I’m hoping that this will catch on, like “bitchcakes.”
@punkrawka: unfortunately if you were an original member of Live on the XBox 1, you had to have a card on your account even if you used the store cards. Also, back in spring/summer 2006, the cards were in scarce supply and it was rumored that they would be discontinued, which obviously they weren’t, but many people who bought XBox 360′s during that time had to put a card on their account.
My actual Live service is thankfully paid by cards, but I have had to buy MS points before through the XBox so my card is on my account, but not on any renewable status.
The even worse thing is once any type of credit/debit card is attached to your account, there must always be a card on your account. There is no way to completely remove all cards from your account, there must always be one listed there, even if it’s an expired one. Of course, that’s where many problems like the OP’s start.
I meant my XBox Live service is paid through the in-store cards you enter with the 25 digit code on the back of the card. My credit card does not renew my Live account. It’s only available to be used if I want to buy MS points on the system (which I always get the cards now) or if I want to put my Live up for auto-renewal on a cc (which I wouldn’t do in a million years.)
Fun fact you can’t even cancel online.Ohhh yeah so I have to call you, and listen to attempts to get me to continue paying, ridiculous.
He should just tell them that the time he owes is making up for the major outage back in dec/jan at the begining of the year.
I’m always weird about putting my credit card info in online subscriptions. If I can buy a game card or prepaid anything I’m more comfortable with that. I always have this paranoia of “What if something goes wrong and they keep charging after I cancel it”
We had that kind of problem with Gamefly a while ago.
I had a similar problem with my Xbox Live Gold subscription, although I was paying monthly. My experience differed slightly, however (possibly because I’m in the UK).
On the positive side, MS did let me have the subscription that I’d paid for (once I brought my account up to date, I still had 3 weeks’ Gold membership left). This may have been blind luck, or there may be something in UK consumer law that prevented them from screwing me that way.
However, the rep I spoke to put considerable effort into scaring/confusing me into keeping the Gold membership. He made comments such as “so you don’t mind losing your Friends list/Gamerscore/Achievements then”, and at one point told me that the only way they could stop charging my card would be to “blacklist” it so I’d never be able to use it to purchase anything on Xbox Live again.
As other commenters have said: if I upgrade to a Gold membership again, I’m using the prepaid cards. Once MS has your payment details they’ll lie, cheat and squeeze you for every penny they can get.
I have the same issue RIGHT NOW. My account is in limbo, as it is currently suspended until I provide Microsoft with a new credit card number. My old one expired, and I really do not want to renew, I simply want a Silver Membership. I was told, after hours on the phone, that I need to provide them with a new credit card number, pay the entire Gold Membership fee, then have it refunded. I explained that I do not want to give hem any credit card number, especially for a service I am not using. Well, after hours on the phone, and even being hung up on my the ‘billing’ department, I am no further ahead. I cannot download demos, use any DLC, or simply show off my Gamerscore. It looks like there is no end in sight to this either. What to do?
Sounds kinda like my situation. I am currently overdrawn for 70 dollars on my bank account because I bought a year card on XBL, and just today it still charged me the monthly fee despite me being on the year card now-says it on the site and everything-and that 8 dollar charge hit me while the bank was still holding 70 of my dollars, and so when that overdrafted, it took 35 bucks, and a 5 dollar charge came through as well from a trip to the gas station which, after M$ fucking me into overdraft territory, caused me another fine, so now instead of having 70 dollars I have -$5. Fucking Microsoft.
@Bladefist: Um, sight math fail there. More like 4 bucks a month ($4.00 x 12 mo. = $48.00).
Just so everyone knows, I am the person that submitted this post to the Consumerist
@foondar: In a nutshell, your problem is the same one as mine.
There are several comments saying that I was at fault to a degree, and I will admit to that. Yes, if I had answered the emails sooner this would’ve never happened. However, when I got the final email that said my account was closed I followed the directions, called support, and that’s when the ridiculousness ensued. If I had called earlier this would’ve been handled differently. However, that doesn’t excuse the end result. I’m not trying to get anything over on MS… I just want what I paid for.
On a good note, I received a phone call from MS last night about 6 hours after the post went up. I can only assume that this was because of the site. I’ll keep you guys updated and let you know the resolution.
BTW… that is the purpose of this site, right? I’m very confused as to why people wanted to slam me for complaining, whining, etc., when I was just reporting what occurred. This was bad customer service and incorrect billing, plaing and simple. The downside is that there are other people experiencing my problem, but the upside is that maybe I’ll find a resolution for everything.
@forcetrainer2: Bah… delete the first line, I didn’t realize that my first post with the longer explanations had made it on.
Sorry for the redundancy folks.
@wiggatron: If you pay the retail. I got mine somewhere else, and it ended up being near $3. Thx though.
Long story short, the situation was resolved thanks to the Consumerist! I spoke with support today and got a lot of great information. I forwarded everything off to Meg and the staff, so hopefully they’ll post it for everyone to see.
Thanks to everyone that understood the situation!
@ortegar:
Nah, not a fanboy, I just know a good value when I see it.
The PS3 didn’t suck the last time I checked.
This just happened to me. i just got a refurb back from repair after the original one i bought got rrod. My cc expired called microshaft and was told my account had a billing violation and unless i gave them 50.00 bucks i couldnt access my DLC gamertag etc. the dam “membership”lapsed for two weeks whatever didnt want to pay again just to play online. was one the phone two hours. no resolution. I was hung up on repeatedly. the next day i sold the 360 on craigslist. They just lost a customer.
You’re at fault here. It sounds like if you never wanted to change your account to Silver you’d be good. But you did. So when they reinstated it it was at Silver. That’s a separate process than the payment for Gold service that you missed.