Credit card charged without notification.

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Michaelfjs

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#210287 21-Mar-2017 05:58

I signed up with Bigpipe back in July last year. As part of the promotion they offered a 6 month voucher for Lightbox. I activated my account and applied the voucher at the time.

Apart from logging in once or twice, I never ended up using Lightbox. And naturally by the end of the 6 months, I had completely forgotten I had signed up.

Yesterday I check my credit card statement and noticed 3 charges to Lightbox for the last 3 months. After the voucher expired they continued to charge my card. I understand that with their trial period, they say they will start charging after 30 days unless you unsubscribe. And I suppose they consider the voucher as an extended trial period.

However I have received zero email communication from Lightbox regarding my account over the last 9 months since I applied the voucher, no indication that my voucher was about to expire and that I would start to get charged. I found this pretty misleading, since 6 months is a long time, it's reasonable that one would forget they signed up, and only remember after they start seeing the charges show up on their credit card.

I sent an email to Lightbox requesting a refund for the last 3 months but they are refusing.

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#1744959 21-Mar-2017 06:46

Not sure how you think it's misleading?? I usually set myself a calendar invite for things like this to remind me.

Linux

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#1744960 21-Mar-2017 06:49

I don't blame them for not refunding, You could of checked your credit card earlier and cancelled or above set a cal reminder

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Michaelfjs

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#1744962 21-Mar-2017 07:18

lxsw20:

Not sure how you think it's misleading?? I usually set myself a calendar invite for things like this to remind me.

It's misleading because I never received an email saying they were going to charge my card.

I wouldn't have set a calendar reminder because at the time I was not aware that I would be charged after the voucher expired. Their website did not indicate that would be the case when I applied the voucher code.

PaulBags

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#1744969 21-Mar-2017 07:31

Generally if someone's asking for you CC details they intend to charge you, I'm thinking you didn't read the terms when you signed up.

I agree that not making it clear is misleading, I'd go as far as to say dishonest if charges after 6 months weren't mentioned on the voucher.

Just, don't give your credit card details to anyone you don't intend to pay. Learn from this, it certainly isn't a new technique. Me, I won't use any provider that insists on APs or credit charge authority; if it's not a bill or prepay I don't want it.

andrewNZ

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#1744970 21-Mar-2017 07:34

The terms are clear, and the money involved is stuff all.

You stuffed up. Take the lesson for what it is, and be glad it wasn't something a lot more expensive.

robjg63

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#1744972 21-Mar-2017 07:43

andrewNZ: The terms are clear, and the money involved is stuff all.

You stuffed up. Take the lesson for what it is, and be glad it wasn't something a lot more expensive.

Exactly this.

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nathan

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#1744974 21-Mar-2017 07:49

that's the way subscription services work, you should've have cancelled the account. Some providers like this let you cancel immediately and continue using the service for the duration, some don't.

NzBeagle

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#1744975 21-Mar-2017 07:51

I still think it would've been polite to advise of an upcoming payment. I don't know if it's straightforward. Bigpipe at least emails to acknowledge payment made, so perhaps each time LB charges your CC they could email acknowledgement.

andrew027

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#1745007 21-Mar-2017 08:05

Michaelfjs: It's misleading because I never received an email saying they were going to charge my card.

I wouldn't have set a calendar reminder because at the time I was not aware that I would be charged after the voucher expired. Their website did not indicate that would be the case when I applied the voucher code.

So you're saying there was no indication via email or on on a web page, from Bigpipe when the offer was first made, or from Lightbox when you went to their website, or from either company after the voucher was activated, that you would be charged if you didn't cancel the service after the six month free period expired?

If that's true then I do feel some sympathy, and you have a case.

Personally though, I find it hard to believe. When I signed up for 12 months free Lightbox with Spark (before they started giving it away to unlimited broadband customers) it was made very clear that I would be charged for the service at the end of the free period if I didn't cancel. I put a reminder in my phone for 11 months out to make a decision about keeping or cancelling, depending on how much the family was using it.

coffeebaron

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#1745011 21-Mar-2017 08:17

The lightbox service was charging from day 1 (or at least from after month 1 free trial). During the first six months it would have been debiting the voucher. Once that ran out, it would debit your default payment, i.e. credit card.

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Michaelfjs

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#1745013 21-Mar-2017 08:24

NzBeagle:

I still think it would've been polite to advise of an upcoming payment. I don't know if it's straightforward. Bigpipe at least emails to acknowledge payment made, so perhaps each time LB charges your CC they could email acknowledgement.

Exactly

I don't have a problem with the subscription model LB uses. Other streaming services use it too. It was the lack of communication which annoyed me. Bigpipe, and most other services I'm signed up too, sent out an email when my card is charged.

It's only a small amount of money sure. But then it's only a small amount to LB as well, which is why I find it odd that they refused to give a refund.

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1101

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#1745063 21-Mar-2017 09:39

This is why I never give my CC details on so called free trials.

If truely free , they simply do not require any CC details .
Asking for CC for trials is a scam. Simple as that. Why the need for a payment method on a free trial.
Because they bet that many will forget & let it rollover into autopayments

2 very large AV Software companies were actually prosecuted in the US for the sneaky way they did autopayments on CC's

At the end of the day, you gave them your CC when signing up to Lightbox

Michaelfjs

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#1745129 21-Mar-2017 11:07

1101:

This is why I never give my CC details on so called free trials.

If truely free , they simply do not require any CC details .
Asking for CC for trials is a scam. Simple as that. Why the need for a payment method on a free trial.
Because they bet that many will forget & let it rollover into autopayments

2 very large AV Software companies were actually prosecuted in the US for the sneaky way they did autopayments on CC's

At the end of the day, you gave them your CC when signing up to Lightbox

Agreed. What concerns me is how often this happens to other people. I've seen lots of promotions from LB offering 6/12 months free subscriptions. They must make a lot of money from people simply forgetting to cancel. And that is dishonest in my opinion.

allio

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#1745155 21-Mar-2017 11:50

Geekzone engages in some serious victim blaming when it involves local businesses behaving shadily.

I fully agree with you. I got caught out too, also following a six month trial with Bigpipe. I knew the six months was coming up and was fully intending to cancel before it rolled over, but I was certain that I'd receive an email reminder beforehand. When I didn't I figured I might have got my dates wrong and must have had an extra month. A few days later I saw the charge on my credit card statement.

I don't think Lightbox is doing anything illegal, because I'm sure it was in the terms and conditions I agreed to when I activated my account. I do however think it's a bit crummy. Certainly the experience left me without any goodwill towards the service and I definitely won't sign up for it again, no matter what improvements they make.

It wouldn't be hard for them to send that email. They choose not to because they figure some people won't notice and will unintentionally slide into a paying subscription. They're allowed to do that, but I'm allowed to not like it.

sonyxperiageek

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#1745170 21-Mar-2017 12:32

That is why I immediately cancel my sub after signing up to the "free trial". 99% of the time your sub should continue until the end of how many months the "free trial" was.

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