Summary of post
This article is for you if you have been billed by Verizon, Alltel (or any mobile phone provider) for $9.99 subscription to Ringaza (or any ringtone provider) that you did not authorize or knowingly signed up for. I managed to get my money refunded by Verizon for these charges.
How I Fell For This Scam
(You can skip this and scroll right down to 'How I Got My Refund')
I do surveys online to try out new products and get paid doing so, and had positive experience with an online survey site Pandaresearch.com. Last month I clicked on a link on their website promising a free ringtone that brought me to a page requesting me to enter my mobile phone number so that the free ringtone could be delivered to me. I am extremely cautious about these 'free' deals, but have also successfully tried many new products via free trial periods that allow cancellation before the end of the free trial.
Since I didn't have to enter any credit card details, I thought it was safe, and I entered
my phone number. I received a text message on my phone that contained a PIN to be entered on the webpage to get my 'free' ringtone. What came up next on my screen was a Ringaza.com website that let me choose my 'free' ringtone. I also received a second text message on my phone stating "...Sub $9.99 Autorenew 3-1-09. Info=HELP Quit=Stop...". I realized then that I had somehow signed up for Ringaza by giving them my number. I managed to find Ringaza's Terms & Conditions (it wasn't very prominently displayed) and discovered (too late) that $9.99 had been charged.
How I Dealt With This Fiasco
I quickly sms'ed 75714 to Quit, and received a message confirming that I had unsubscribed. Then I waited for my Verizon bill... Sure enough, the next bill stated $9.99 for 'Premium Text Messaging'. I called Verizon to ask about it, and was given the standard 'We can't do anything about this because it is a 3rd party charge, but we can help you cancel that subscription and block further 3rd party charges such as this'. No refund was offered.
I then went online and educated myself about this scam. I found thousands of people had been duped too! Several options for getting your money back are out there that have been used successfully. You can file a complaint with the Better Business Bureau, the Public Utility Commission for your state, or the Federal Trade Commission.
Some people were also successful in getting a refund from the mobile phone providers themselves. I was one of them.
How I Got My Refund!
The article that helped me most in negotiating my refund with Verizon (I called them back after reading it), was "Free ringtone offer comes with a pricey lesson" by Laura Gunderson, The Oregonian Complaint Desk, which you can read HERE.
When I called Verizon, I brought up Verizon's customer service policy and practice to remove such charges the first time a customer asks. I also mentioned what was reportedly stated by Verizon's spokesperson in that article "We want to be good stewards of our customers' bills. We make sure that it is as easy for our customers to do business with these third parties as it is to do business with us." I said I was a long-time Verizon customer and requested a refund for these charges.
I got my refund! The customer service representative informed me that he had refunded the amount charged by that third party, and it would be credited to my next month's bill. And that this was a 'one time courtesy' seeing as I was a long time Verizon customer.
To avoid the risk of yourself or your children accidentally signing up for these downloadable ringtone scams, I suggest calling up your mobile phone company and request that all 3rd party charges be barred.
Thanks for reading!
By the way, I've also compiled in one handy location, links with discounts and coupons to all the places where I shop online. Check out Where Gracie Shops!
xo Gracie
P.S. It would be AWESOME if you could click on any ad here - my sponsors give me a few cents per click. Thanks for supporting my blog!
Let me start over. I think my last post was sent before I completed.
ReplyDeleteAs I was saying. Thank you! I got Verizon to refund one of two $9.99 charges from Ringaza. I've clicked a couple ads for you.
Colorado-based Ringaza is a scam, I think. They make it nearly impossible to contact. I've sent them a letter by regular post to get the second $9.99 fee refunded.
I've notified the BBB as well as the Colorado and Wa state attorneys general offices to alert them about this company. I've also written Verizon to urge them to stop doing business with Ringaza.
Thanks again,
Marc
Yup this happened to me today. I got ATT to put a 'purchase lock' on my phone AND had them refund these fradulent charges by Ringaza.
ReplyDeleteIf you have ATT ask the rep to put a 'purchase lock' on your phone. Its easy,free and you wont get scammed.
You must test "STOP" to the # that is texting you. I'm on my way to Verizon for my refund. This was very, very helpful!!
ReplyDeleteNice information, I really appreciate the way you presented.
ReplyDeleteHey everyone, thanks for stopping by and thanks for your kind words. I'm glad that my putting my experience down helped some of you. Also, a huge thank you for clicking on the ads too - I can't can't quit my day job but the small monies received is very encouraging! Oh wait, I don't have a job... :)
ReplyDelete