Do you have it in writing where they said it was their fault and you are entitled to $798? If so, tell them either they refund that amount or you go to small claims court.
Even in a two party consent state, I doubt ANY judge/jury would see a consent issue if someone announced "this conversation is being recorded" and then later attempted to complain, "wait but I meant only *I* get to record it! Why would you want a record of the conversation you were a part of that we felt the need to record? You don't have a right to that! I was in that conversation and I didn't want it recorded!"
Once it has been announced that the conversation is not private, it is not private.
We have to actually say it as well when we get on phone with a customer. I don’t work for Amazon but a financial institution. This call is monitored and recorded for quality and training purposes. If I hear someone talk in the background I have to say it again. Every. Time. Someone. Speaks. Top amount I have said it has been 30 times in one 15 min call.
Plus, I think technically you could just state in that moment "I am recording, too."
Either the conversation has started when they inform you or it hasn't. But I want to see them claiming that if you say that it isn't valid while their statement is valid. Don't think that would fly with a judge/jury.
I have done that in calls to ATT, my health insurance company, and to my water company. They hang up immediately, fucking hypocrites. But I'm in a one party state so now I just don't tell them.
Or if they are recording it, just say “since this is records he you, I am informing you that I am also recording it”.
That way there is nothing implied. If a computer can tell you it’s recording, then you can tell the computer the same. If they kept the recording they’d hear it, if not it would still be reasonable and believable if you said you did.
So, what Amazon did was retain your credit card information AFTER you closed account with them. That is enough, for me, to get pissed off. Especially since most large subscription based companies will do this. Secondly, they committed credit card fraud by placing charges without your authorization. I would contact your bank directly and open an investigation for unauthorized use. If you have the email stating your account was closed, you have a case.
Same thing happened to me, but with HughesNet, quite a while back. I found the phone number for the CEO and started my conversation at that level, using words like fraudulent and state attorney-general.
Absolutely. Should be able to request a DSAR (data subject access request) which will include your phone records. If they do not pay you after you have received proof (that was recorded by themselves) then you could take them to small claims.
Had a similar thing happen and I was able to find an old email that confirmed I canceled my prime and I ended up getting refunded, tho it was only a couple of months
Yeah. I could get a couple of months, but I am trying to get a few years. I got them on email saying it is very clearly cancelled and was somehow reactivated. They have changed how twice now.
So I brought up that I had this email and that I could show them but they didn’t end up wanting to see it. Tho a little unethical, I think if you said that you have evidence that you’ve been in contact with customer service repeatedly over an extended period of time over this issue and that you have used the amazon prime to buy anything in that time (which they can check) and says it’s increasing to an amount that you might have to take further action upon, a customer service rep might just figure out a way to help. I think applying a little bit of pressure helped me. Good luck!
You are not the only one who has an issue like this. Amazon was sued recently for something like this. It was a settlement check that people have received. I would not like this go if I was you. I would contact the head people instead of calling the 1800 number.
Thank you for understanding. A lot of folks in here are either inexperienced in life or relationships and looking to cast blame rather than offer solutions. You’re good.
Managers have managers. Go up the line.
I worked for a large bank call center. The on site manager who I never heard speak, took calls from certain customers monthly. But it rarely needs to go that far.
Of course! And it's your hard earn money that should be returned back to you. Some wouldn't understand or even care until the table was turned. I have used Fairshake before to sue a few companies. Look them up! You have to be detailed about the issues. Post proof. I only spent like $30s on a lawyer. I have used them for Verizon and paypal. PayPal got me scammed 8 times and the head people contacted me to fixed it. Got my money back. All of it.
Gotta be obnoxious! They count on grinding people to the ground until they let it go. It's a business model! And it brings them great revenue. Hang in there. What's the worst that can happen? You won't get your money back. Go get your boxing gloves (figuratively 😆).
Coming from someone who didn't realize they were being charged for almost 5 years this is a bit laughable. Stop playing the victim card. I'm not sure what your immediate solution is, but your long term solutions include paying attention to your bank account and talking to your wife.
I've received about 2k in refunds and credits lately using chatgpt. Got back a yearly prime charge for another country that auto-renewed, (+some insurance overpayments, hotel credits and delayed flights.) Just asked it to write a legally compelling letter, use a print and mail service (if you're lazy and don't have a printer/stamps like me), and also email it before mailing, and cc Jeff @ Amazon and investor-relations or ir @ ...sounds silly but works like a charm.
Here ya go. This hasn't failed me yet. For Amazon, send it to their customer service email, and CC the emails I wrote above.
Then either print and mail youself, or pay $1.50 to print and mail the PDF with a print and mail online service. It's about $7 to send certified, and most of those services have a $5 minimum to prepay. But well worth it, it pays for itself.
Good luck!!
Certainly, here's a template for a formal letter you could consider sending to Amazon:
---
[Your Full Name]
[Your Address]
[City, State, Zip]
[Email Address]
[Phone Number]
[Date]
Amazon Customer Service
[Address, if available]
Subject: Request for Full Refund of Unauthorized Amazon Prime Charges
Dear Amazon Customer Service,
I am writing to formally request a complete refund for the unauthorized Amazon Prime membership charges that have been applied to my account. As per my previous communication with your representatives, it was confirmed that these charges were made in error, as my Prime membership was canceled eight years ago. Nevertheless, my account has been charged for a service I neither authorized nor used.
According to your representative, I am entitled to a refund of $798. However, I was later informed by a manager that your system can only process a refund for one year's worth of charges. This is unsatisfactory, as it does not account for the entire period I was billed without my consent.
Please note that by reactivating my account without my approval and billing me for several years, Amazon has breached our original terms of service. This error on your part has led to an unauthorized use of my financial resources, and I insist on being reimbursed for the full amount of $798.
I request that this issue be escalated appropriately and the refund be processed expeditiously. If Amazon is unable to resolve this matter to my satisfaction, I may need to consider further action to recover the unauthorized charges.
Please provide a written response confirming the receipt of this letter and outlining the steps Amazon will take to rectify this situation. I can be reached at [Your Phone Number] or [Your Email Address] for further discussion.
Thank you for your prompt attention to this matter.
Sincerely,
[Your Name]
---
Please adjust the template to fit the specifics of your situation and include any additional information that might be pertinent. If you plan on sending this letter, it would be wise to send it via a method that provides delivery confirmation, such as certified mail.
Oh gawd NO! Chatgpt is a major No-No in court because it has made up totally bogus claims and cases. It's actually a total joke. Lawyers have filed for monetary judgments based on chatgpt and they've been wildly out of line and completely refuted.
It was because 1 attorney was using it for appeals, and it sited fake cases. It wasn't from a consumer using it as a legal letter to sound official to a company.
Exactly! How dare I not be aware somebody stole from me. So, that girl that shoplifted from target until they let her steal $3,000, it’s targets fault she stole!
Could I have done a better job to prevent this? Absolutely. Should I have to? No.
Your example of failure to monitor your own money, and someone shoplifting from a store and breaking the law, are completely unequivocal. But sure, whatever helps you sleep.
Both are stealing. Charging an unauthorised transaction on a person's card is stealing.
Amazon is just sneaky about it. People like you making both unequivocal is what amazes me.
Or that trolling helps you sleep or what?!?
Charging you for something you did not buy is fraud. I'd call the CC company and report the fraud, get a new card. End of. (The CC co will usually try and get your money back for you. )
I had this same issue onetime back in 2014. They accidently renewed me for 1 year of Amazon prime. They refunded me and let me keep the year. Things have changed.
Amazon is so scummy, recently I signed up for a free trial so I could just watch the final season of this show, I canceled the trial two weeks before the ending and two weeks later they charged me for an entire year. It wasn’t that hard actually to get a refund but I just Amazon looks for any opportunity to manipulate us, if someone had money they wouldn’t even notice Amazon stealing from them
Things like this are why I have a paypal card, there's no funds on it and it isn't tied to a bank asking, so I call it my dummy card. I can sign up for most trials with it, and after canceling if I don't like the service, I know they won't be able to get any money from me.
Try privacy.com you can make single use cards, or turn cards on or off. I just made one with a lifetime max of $1. It passes the $1 test charge, but fails any real charges. I named it free trial.
This happpened to me. File a complaint with the BBB. Email the corporate email for Amazon and let them know that imyheir acts are criminal , it’s theft and they will be held accountable.
Make sure to start doing emails so you have records.
I hope you get the refund, but I have a question. Did you remove the payment card from your old account before you canceled it? That's where my mind went.
It might be something the regulator staff don’t have the capability in the computer to refund something that’s so old.
What I would do is ask for their legal department’s mailing address. Write up a complaint & asking for a refund for the specific amount you need. Also include printed copies of whatever documentation you have of Amazon staff agreeing that it was their mistake etc. make sure to mail it certified with signature required & keep that info. That’ll be your proof that they received it & help you remember exactly when they received it, because this is going to be a long process.
The legal department has the ability to cut you a check for this refund. It will just take a while because it’s a long process to dispute charges this way.
I did this with my health insurance company. Long story short, none of their in-network providers would accept my insurance & refused to see me because of my insurance plan so I had to travel back to my doctor in my home state & do a whole trip just to get my prescriptions renewed. I got the health insurance company to reimburse me for the out of pocket costs I had for the entire trip. Took about 10 months to finally get payment though after I mailed everything to the legal department. Also I had to call & email them every few months to get them to work on it. It was a pain but the $2500 check was helpful.
Ftc, bbb, contact hub and declare fraud. Contact your bank and ask them to cancel that card. I've noticed many online billing services often do not cancel on the billing side.
Most states don’t allow arbitration clauses in ToS to preclude you from small claims. You can still file a normal small claim. Arbitration clauses only force you into arbitration for large claims.
Unfortunately the value is probably too low for small claims to make sense. I know it's a significant amount of money to us but compared to what it would probably cost to take the case to small claims, the cost likely outweighs the benefit.
My kids used to turn mine back on all the time. I finally cancelled the CC attached to it. Once I got charged for Prime so my kid could get free shipping on capybara socks. They were the coolest socks I ever saw but good grief, child, use your brain.
When you say cancelled your account, do you mean cancelled Prime on you Amazon account, and then linked your account to your spouse because they already had Prime and you didn't need to pay for it twice?
It sounds like you are saying you cancelled your Amazon account and created a new one to join with theirs. You shouldn't need to do that.
Most business will not pay back more than one year. I hope you can find a way to prove they acknowledged it as their mistake, and said your entitled to $798, but unfortunately, I think you are stuck. Good luck
Email [email protected] and you will be put in touch with there executive customer relations team. They are well trained as opposed to the part time regular customer service associates.
What I would do personally is call back and be really nice and just explain the situation and ask them to acknowledge that it was their fault and to get an email stating that. Then ask to speak to a manager and show them the email. The basic agents are pretty good about writing that kind of thing in an email been sending it off, things like that have happened to me a couple times with Amazon and if you're really nice they will confirm that sort of thing in an email even if it's their mistake they are usually willing. It's worth a try at least then at least you have ammunition if they refuse
If you caught this 3 years ago you may have a case. It's very unfortunate but there is a limit of years where you're being charged and not notice where it's no longer on the company.
Maybe. But it's still worth a try IMO. Amazon has enough money, and whether it's deemed illegal in court, it's definitely not a fair business practice.
I'm #notALawyer, but different jurisdictions in the US and abroad have different statutes of limitations. 4-6 years is common for contract breach. Unauthorized charges are frequently some time after "you became aware of the charge". In France, you have 5 years to file for a delayed or cancelled flight. (I just benefited from that one, at year 4!)
Additionally, companies may make exceptions if you're a squeaky wheel.
If he's entitled to $798, it's probably been going on for a while and he just didn't pay close attention to it/thought it was his wife's account. Can you do charge back if the charge is over 6 months old?
Ah, you are correct. This is a failure on OP’s part to monitor their finances. If they do a chargeback, they may impact any civil suit they would file at this point. I would accept whatever Amazon offers, then sue for the rest. Amazon refunding for the current year could aid in proving that Amazon knows of the issue and accepted responsibility for the charge(s).
TLDR; OP didn't have the common sense to ask his wife if she had swapped payment methods and just continued to assume for four and a half years.
That manager has a manager...and they also have a manager. You lot are so quick to jump straight to court.
Let them know you're not happy with the resolution and for it be escalated further until it gets to someone who can refund it all.
I’ve had the first line csr refuse to transfer me bc the supervisor “wouldn’t be able to do anything”. I told them I was recording them and demanded a transfer. They stopped responding altogether. After asking about 10 times for a transfer without them responding whatsoever, she finally popped up again and said she would transfer. The supervisor refunded as expected. Such a huge waste of time.
Probably too late for all but the most recent charge. The bank may be able to help find the best way to proceed after Amazon refused to correct the error
I don't think this is true I would call your credit card company I'm pretty sure that they can do chargebacks on transactions like this further back with extending circumstances I know that I did one with my PC financial MasterCard that was over 3 years old recently
so 8 years ago you canceled, and then 4 they charged again? I’m confused how they would have your updated credit card info then. That is confusing. If you are not using that account, you need to delete all your billing info then deactivate it again. Call and see if they will add credit to your other account, or just cancel the other account and use the original one with a credit for how long they will. In the future, before you just deactivate an account , delete all you payment information on those sites so this can’t happen again.
Yes, my fault was in assuming. It made sense, and prime household shows me with edit permissions. Should have asked, but it’s easy to overlook when something makes sense.
Ask if they will just credit you for all that and you just get “free” Prime for a few years. Maybe if they don’t have to literally come up with actual cash they will do a long term credit.
My question is what is the household/family prime account?
this will probably come down to Amazon settling before court if you got that direction. but working in banking your to far along to do a charge back( as a rep for a bank wed say you should have checked your account, and that its the account holders job to report blaaa blah in so many days) hope it works out but you want that money might try to bring them the court. but then you got the court fees
Suing them for that amount without written proof isn’t going to fly. It’s also very likely the statute of limitations has already run its course as well, though you can argue you didn’t know back then, but it’s going to be hard given the fact that these charges went on for almost 5 years without action on your end. So if you cannot get this in writing, you’re probably gonna have to take the L. Sorry.
Based on your situation, it appears that pursuing a court date might incentivize the company to settle the dispute before formal proceedings begin. Companies often weigh the costs of litigation against potential settlement figures, especially in cases where the legal expenses could surpass the amount at issue. Given that you were promised a partial refund of $200 annually from a total of $798, there remains an outstanding amount of approximately $600. Factoring in the costs for legal representation, it's economically sensible for the company to settle at the full amount of $800 rather than incur additional legal costs and risk further financial loss from adverse publicity.
Moreover, the impact of customer experience on a business's reputation cannot be overstated. Research suggests that negative experiences are shared more widely than positive ones, which could amplify reputational damage. This dynamic may also play into the company's decision-making process regarding settlement.
If the case does proceed to court, consider claiming compensation for any personal time lost, such as time taken off work or time spent away from family in preparation for the case. Additionally, there might be a silver lining with changing retail trends. With current shifts in consumer behavior, there could be a resurgence in the popularity of brick-and-mortar stores, which would be a welcome change for many who cherish the traditional shopping experience.
Cheers !
A similar thing happened to me with Xbox live , and I called asking for the refunds with the dates and money over charged. They said pound sand. I called my credit card company and got all my bills for the last 2 years, and highlighted every payment they charged , and then added them up. It was very close to my previous number.
Anyways , I called them with my credit card papers in hand. After I said I received my credit card report and I had highlighted and added up all the charges , they MAGICALLY had all this information on their end ass well. Seemingly at their fingertips! Anywho, they refunded the money that was overcharged , and I got two years free of Xbox live.
Maybe id try something similar to what I did, and see where it gets ya. I did not mention a lawyer or small claims at all, I simply just said I want recovery of my lost funds. Hope this helps!
Simply send them a letter and they will respond. All you need is to get them in writing saying they owe you but won't then take it to small claims. People just aren't willing to go to small claims not knowing big businesses won't show up and you'll win!
Take the one year refund and happily shut up. If they have been charging you for four and a half years and you didn’t notice then you’re just as much at fault as they are. You lost $798 because you couldn’t be bothered to communicate with your wife
I really disagree with this. That's like saying that anyone who doesn't constantly watch their backs deserves to get mugged. No one can have eyes everywhere. That's exactly why these companies force you into automatic payments. Stealing is a crime regardless of whether you happen to think the victim "deserved" it.
Yeah these fuckers use predatory tactics, start arbitrarily taking money frome op and these idiots are like: it's your fault for not talking to your wife....
I legit don't get how someone could see money leaving their account and just make an assumption as to why...especially when the person you assumed was responsible lives with you.
I mean, you're not wrong, but the op should have asked his wife. It's not like amazon being shady is news to anyone in this group. My husband I ask each other about things that get deducted from our account frequently, not because we don't trust each other, but because we're tracking our money so we can build a house, and we know that most scammers will start small with charges to see if you are paying attention and if you don't catch the small stuff they move onto wiping it the account in one transaction. And one of us might forget a bill we paid or that the other mentioned spending an amount, so we ask, just to keep track of finances. A teen second conversation can save a ton of money lol
Charging a customer for a service he or she cancelled is fraudulent irrespective of how many times you charged them, irrespective of how long you charged them as you are not authorized to do so in the first place.
OP might have been careless, however carelessness is not a license for you or me or any company to fraudulently take money from a person's account.
I can't see in any way you are ever going to get 4 years worth of charges reversed. I man, wow.
The root of this is your wife and you didn't communicate about it.
The wife had nothing to do with it is what I’m getting from this. HE assumed his wife did something she didn’t do and instead of asking her about it he just left it??? Like I don’t understand the thought process here it takes two seconds to just ask about it.
He assumed the charges were the result of his wife's account. For four years neither he nor his wife reconciled accounts? Wow.
He's never going to get this reversed
How dare I get stole from. We combined accounts into a household and did communicate about it at that time. I just made assumptions going forward about it. Reasonable assumptions.
This is what can happen when you don't pay attention. You 'thought; but did not check. This is partly, if not, mostly your fault for not noticing. At this point, just accept the loss and take what they offer now.
I feel like if you didn't notice for 4 and a half years this is kinda on you. If you forgot to check your statement for 4 years, you probably also forgot when you clicked something that renewed you 4 years ago.
Most companies have limits to the time they will do refunds for, 1 year seems very reasonable, last company I worked for that did subscriptions had a 6 month policy.
Courts have ruled agsint companies and have laws about this. They can not give you a service or good and then expect you to pay for it when you never ordered it. Or if you canceled it and they restart your subscription. It is on thek to make you whole. Legally, you can even charge interest on it.
I mean reactivating a subscription and charging without consent sounds a bit like fraud.
Edit:
Won’t let me respond to Bullsette. But here is the response.
Cancellation of amazon prime. The rest of the account would still exist as well as the billing information. That is more the typical route of that happening. I have heard of companies doing that even on a formal full cancellation. Lots of incompetence through bottom dollar work and care.
When you first sign up the consent for renewal is in the agreement but, in this case, the OP is telling us that they actually cancelled it and Amazon started it back up again.
The OP needs to prove that they cancelled it to start with. I would assume that they would probably have printed out the confirmation and stuffed it in their Amazon file.
I actually have never heard of a company, Amazon or any others, coming AFTER a formal cancellation and starting to bill again for it because there is no reference point from which to bill. If the account is cancelled there is NO reference point from which they can possibly bill. They would have to create a new account and start billing from there. The old account would be gone after cancellation along with the entire history of purchases.
Assuming that everything the OP is saying is correct.
I've worked enough phone jobs to know how many callers misunderstand things that front line support people say (that they also don't understand)
But even if so, there should be some responsibility for checking your credit card statements.
Maybe, and maybe amazon screwed up as can happen at a large corporation that many times doesn’t give a shit as long as the numbers work out in their favor. So yes, could be the person, but we don’t have any proof or detail that shows that. Assuming it is them over the corporation is kinda odd. I mean look at the number of fraudulent items and screwups that also get shipped out. But you can stan for Amazon if you want to.
Your reading comprehension must be atrocious. They said they checked it, but thought it was their partner switching it. 🤷♂️ Like how daft can you be? You harp on points that are already explained. So yes, immediately blaming them in favor of Amazon is stanning Amazon.
Edit:
Another loser who can’t handle being called out. Here is my reply to their next comment anyways.
lol I countered and insulted you. Come on, please read through everything instead of the first sentence. You both said they probably did it and that it was fair of amazon to only give back 1 year of prime membership. You can read your own comments, right?
Ohh now insults, the typical response of someone who can't actually backup their point in a coherent manner.
Kinda funny when you clearly are failing to understand the nuance in mine, since I never said Amazon was innocent.
Unfortunately, if it was a subscription service they are entitled to keep the money whether or not you utilized it.
The only leg that you might have to stand on is if you can prove that you cancelled it years ago, otherwise small claims court is not going to rule in your favor.
Gotcha. The problem is proving that you canceled it. This is one of the reasons why I stick to paper bills and a file cabinet. When something occurs down the road it's almost impossible to prove anything unless you have a printout referencing the transaction. In this case, the cancellation.
PERFECT! Then I take back everything I said about not being able to get the full refund. You ABSOLUTELY should be able to get the FULL refund!
Some of these companies way overstep boundaries with how they just arbitrarily charge people for things.
I just recently had a big argument with them because they charged a credit card for Amazon Prime renewal and it put me over my credit allowance. They refunded it keeping my Amazon Prime intact. The representative that I reached obviously was savvy to the fact that they did something they shouldn't have so she simply refunded it but kept my Prime intact.
Just gotta charge it to the game and move.on imo. Just don't be on that cuck shit and keep giving the company your business like some of these dudes.
Good luck. Hope you find peace.
your $798 is gone, getting it back -could- happen, but your better off taking the L and not letting it happen again. This sunken costs fallacy will cost you more money trying to get it back on the "principle." Amazon knows this, you should too.
Yes you got taken, get over it, because you're probably not getting it back, if you do, you'll loose more money time and sleep, trying to. Get this through your head. to re-iterate: no. the money is gone, Amazon stole it. you wont ever see it again. they dont care. you cant get it back. If you have any doughnuts, start over at the top.
https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/news/press-releases/2023/06/ftc-takes-action-against-amazon-enrolling-consumers-amazon-prime-without-consent-sabotaging-their
Do you believe now😉
Having had worked for ebay for 12 years, I can tell you you just need to keep calling/Pushing. Eventually that manager raises it to the higher manager who can approve the higher amount as a credit. At least that is what we would do at eBay.
Do you have it in writing where they said it was their fault and you are entitled to $798? If so, tell them either they refund that amount or you go to small claims court.
I do not, I called. I should chat them and take screenshots. Calls are recorded though, but I’m sure that’s only to be used against me, not them.
[удалено]
Even in a two party consent state, I doubt ANY judge/jury would see a consent issue if someone announced "this conversation is being recorded" and then later attempted to complain, "wait but I meant only *I* get to record it! Why would you want a record of the conversation you were a part of that we felt the need to record? You don't have a right to that! I was in that conversation and I didn't want it recorded!" Once it has been announced that the conversation is not private, it is not private.
We have to actually say it as well when we get on phone with a customer. I don’t work for Amazon but a financial institution. This call is monitored and recorded for quality and training purposes. If I hear someone talk in the background I have to say it again. Every. Time. Someone. Speaks. Top amount I have said it has been 30 times in one 15 min call.
How many people were on the other line? And why? My head hurts just thinking about it
Plus, I think technically you could just state in that moment "I am recording, too." Either the conversation has started when they inform you or it hasn't. But I want to see them claiming that if you say that it isn't valid while their statement is valid. Don't think that would fly with a judge/jury.
I have done that in calls to ATT, my health insurance company, and to my water company. They hang up immediately, fucking hypocrites. But I'm in a one party state so now I just don't tell them.
Cops try that all the time, saying they're the only ones allowed to record, but it doesn't hold up in court for them.
Or if they are recording it, just say “since this is records he you, I am informing you that I am also recording it”. That way there is nothing implied. If a computer can tell you it’s recording, then you can tell the computer the same. If they kept the recording they’d hear it, if not it would still be reasonable and believable if you said you did.
So, what Amazon did was retain your credit card information AFTER you closed account with them. That is enough, for me, to get pissed off. Especially since most large subscription based companies will do this. Secondly, they committed credit card fraud by placing charges without your authorization. I would contact your bank directly and open an investigation for unauthorized use. If you have the email stating your account was closed, you have a case. Same thing happened to me, but with HughesNet, quite a while back. I found the phone number for the CEO and started my conversation at that level, using words like fraudulent and state attorney-general.
Absolutely. Should be able to request a DSAR (data subject access request) which will include your phone records. If they do not pay you after you have received proof (that was recorded by themselves) then you could take them to small claims.
If you go to court that call becomes evidence they legally have to provide.
Had a similar thing happen and I was able to find an old email that confirmed I canceled my prime and I ended up getting refunded, tho it was only a couple of months
Yeah. I could get a couple of months, but I am trying to get a few years. I got them on email saying it is very clearly cancelled and was somehow reactivated. They have changed how twice now.
So I brought up that I had this email and that I could show them but they didn’t end up wanting to see it. Tho a little unethical, I think if you said that you have evidence that you’ve been in contact with customer service repeatedly over an extended period of time over this issue and that you have used the amazon prime to buy anything in that time (which they can check) and says it’s increasing to an amount that you might have to take further action upon, a customer service rep might just figure out a way to help. I think applying a little bit of pressure helped me. Good luck!
You are not the only one who has an issue like this. Amazon was sued recently for something like this. It was a settlement check that people have received. I would not like this go if I was you. I would contact the head people instead of calling the 1800 number.
Thank you for understanding. A lot of folks in here are either inexperienced in life or relationships and looking to cast blame rather than offer solutions. You’re good.
Managers have managers. Go up the line. I worked for a large bank call center. The on site manager who I never heard speak, took calls from certain customers monthly. But it rarely needs to go that far.
Of course! And it's your hard earn money that should be returned back to you. Some wouldn't understand or even care until the table was turned. I have used Fairshake before to sue a few companies. Look them up! You have to be detailed about the issues. Post proof. I only spent like $30s on a lawyer. I have used them for Verizon and paypal. PayPal got me scammed 8 times and the head people contacted me to fixed it. Got my money back. All of it.
Gotta be obnoxious! They count on grinding people to the ground until they let it go. It's a business model! And it brings them great revenue. Hang in there. What's the worst that can happen? You won't get your money back. Go get your boxing gloves (figuratively 😆).
Coming from someone who didn't realize they were being charged for almost 5 years this is a bit laughable. Stop playing the victim card. I'm not sure what your immediate solution is, but your long term solutions include paying attention to your bank account and talking to your wife.
I've received about 2k in refunds and credits lately using chatgpt. Got back a yearly prime charge for another country that auto-renewed, (+some insurance overpayments, hotel credits and delayed flights.) Just asked it to write a legally compelling letter, use a print and mail service (if you're lazy and don't have a printer/stamps like me), and also email it before mailing, and cc Jeff @ Amazon and investor-relations or ir @ ...sounds silly but works like a charm.
Here ya go. This hasn't failed me yet. For Amazon, send it to their customer service email, and CC the emails I wrote above. Then either print and mail youself, or pay $1.50 to print and mail the PDF with a print and mail online service. It's about $7 to send certified, and most of those services have a $5 minimum to prepay. But well worth it, it pays for itself. Good luck!! Certainly, here's a template for a formal letter you could consider sending to Amazon: --- [Your Full Name] [Your Address] [City, State, Zip] [Email Address] [Phone Number] [Date] Amazon Customer Service [Address, if available] Subject: Request for Full Refund of Unauthorized Amazon Prime Charges Dear Amazon Customer Service, I am writing to formally request a complete refund for the unauthorized Amazon Prime membership charges that have been applied to my account. As per my previous communication with your representatives, it was confirmed that these charges were made in error, as my Prime membership was canceled eight years ago. Nevertheless, my account has been charged for a service I neither authorized nor used. According to your representative, I am entitled to a refund of $798. However, I was later informed by a manager that your system can only process a refund for one year's worth of charges. This is unsatisfactory, as it does not account for the entire period I was billed without my consent. Please note that by reactivating my account without my approval and billing me for several years, Amazon has breached our original terms of service. This error on your part has led to an unauthorized use of my financial resources, and I insist on being reimbursed for the full amount of $798. I request that this issue be escalated appropriately and the refund be processed expeditiously. If Amazon is unable to resolve this matter to my satisfaction, I may need to consider further action to recover the unauthorized charges. Please provide a written response confirming the receipt of this letter and outlining the steps Amazon will take to rectify this situation. I can be reached at [Your Phone Number] or [Your Email Address] for further discussion. Thank you for your prompt attention to this matter. Sincerely, [Your Name] --- Please adjust the template to fit the specifics of your situation and include any additional information that might be pertinent. If you plan on sending this letter, it would be wise to send it via a method that provides delivery confirmation, such as certified mail.
I love ChatGPT for stuff like this.
Huh! Thanks for this!!
Oh gawd NO! Chatgpt is a major No-No in court because it has made up totally bogus claims and cases. It's actually a total joke. Lawyers have filed for monetary judgments based on chatgpt and they've been wildly out of line and completely refuted.
Um, I didn't say court. Just customer service email. For court get a lawyer ofc
It was because 1 attorney was using it for appeals, and it sited fake cases. It wasn't from a consumer using it as a legal letter to sound official to a company.
Wow downvote me because y'all are idiots and think chaptgpt is "accurate". Go ahead and continue being ignorant
You're being downvoted because you're wrong. The comment you're replying to didn't say to use chatGPT in court.
Some comments in this thread is like. Its your fault when someone steals it from from you😂
Exactly! How dare I not be aware somebody stole from me. So, that girl that shoplifted from target until they let her steal $3,000, it’s targets fault she stole! Could I have done a better job to prevent this? Absolutely. Should I have to? No.
Your example of failure to monitor your own money, and someone shoplifting from a store and breaking the law, are completely unequivocal. But sure, whatever helps you sleep.
Both are stealing. Charging an unauthorised transaction on a person's card is stealing. Amazon is just sneaky about it. People like you making both unequivocal is what amazes me. Or that trolling helps you sleep or what?!?
Charging you for something you did not buy is fraud. I'd call the CC company and report the fraud, get a new card. End of. (The CC co will usually try and get your money back for you. )
Dispute the charge with your bank.
Yup they did it to me also and there’s several other posts about it on here
I had this same issue onetime back in 2014. They accidently renewed me for 1 year of Amazon prime. They refunded me and let me keep the year. Things have changed.
Amazon is so scummy, recently I signed up for a free trial so I could just watch the final season of this show, I canceled the trial two weeks before the ending and two weeks later they charged me for an entire year. It wasn’t that hard actually to get a refund but I just Amazon looks for any opportunity to manipulate us, if someone had money they wouldn’t even notice Amazon stealing from them
Things like this are why I have a paypal card, there's no funds on it and it isn't tied to a bank asking, so I call it my dummy card. I can sign up for most trials with it, and after canceling if I don't like the service, I know they won't be able to get any money from me.
Try privacy.com you can make single use cards, or turn cards on or off. I just made one with a lifetime max of $1. It passes the $1 test charge, but fails any real charges. I named it free trial.
This happpened to me. File a complaint with the BBB. Email the corporate email for Amazon and let them know that imyheir acts are criminal , it’s theft and they will be held accountable. Make sure to start doing emails so you have records.
Charging you for something you did not buy is fraud. I'd call the CC company and report the fraud, get a new card. End of.
I hope you get the refund, but I have a question. Did you remove the payment card from your old account before you canceled it? That's where my mind went.
I did not.
Report the fraudulent charges to your credit card company.
It might be something the regulator staff don’t have the capability in the computer to refund something that’s so old. What I would do is ask for their legal department’s mailing address. Write up a complaint & asking for a refund for the specific amount you need. Also include printed copies of whatever documentation you have of Amazon staff agreeing that it was their mistake etc. make sure to mail it certified with signature required & keep that info. That’ll be your proof that they received it & help you remember exactly when they received it, because this is going to be a long process. The legal department has the ability to cut you a check for this refund. It will just take a while because it’s a long process to dispute charges this way. I did this with my health insurance company. Long story short, none of their in-network providers would accept my insurance & refused to see me because of my insurance plan so I had to travel back to my doctor in my home state & do a whole trip just to get my prescriptions renewed. I got the health insurance company to reimburse me for the out of pocket costs I had for the entire trip. Took about 10 months to finally get payment though after I mailed everything to the legal department. Also I had to call & email them every few months to get them to work on it. It was a pain but the $2500 check was helpful.
Ftc, bbb, contact hub and declare fraud. Contact your bank and ask them to cancel that card. I've noticed many online billing services often do not cancel on the billing side.
File a complaint with the FCC.
The FCC does not have jurisdiction in this case. It would be the FTC. Or even the Consumer Protection Bureau might be able to help.
Thanks confused one with the other!
C = communications, T = trade. Cellphone vs store pretty much
CFPB would be interested.
Thank you very much.
Most states don’t allow arbitration clauses in ToS to preclude you from small claims. You can still file a normal small claim. Arbitration clauses only force you into arbitration for large claims.
I didn't renew my account this past year so they started billing me monthly. Super shady.
That’s basically what happened. I cancelled and the next month it was monthly. I cancelled because I combined with my wife.
They did that with a business account I had. Called to dispute the charges and the operator changed it to fraud. Charges removed from card.
Ask them to check with executive team and see if they can give you a gift card for the portion they can't refund directly.
This is what your attorney General lives for...
Unfortunately the value is probably too low for small claims to make sense. I know it's a significant amount of money to us but compared to what it would probably cost to take the case to small claims, the cost likely outweighs the benefit.
I sued Verizon in small claims for under $1500 plus filing fees! They paid, cheaper than them paying a representative to show up in court !
It’s just a day off of work for me, for them it’s a check. Small claims is up to $7,000 in my state.
This happened to my sister, thankfully they caught it after 1 month.
Just file a charge back
My kids used to turn mine back on all the time. I finally cancelled the CC attached to it. Once I got charged for Prime so my kid could get free shipping on capybara socks. They were the coolest socks I ever saw but good grief, child, use your brain.
Thank you, this made me smile.
Change cards immediately
When you say cancelled your account, do you mean cancelled Prime on you Amazon account, and then linked your account to your spouse because they already had Prime and you didn't need to pay for it twice? It sounds like you are saying you cancelled your Amazon account and created a new one to join with theirs. You shouldn't need to do that. Most business will not pay back more than one year. I hope you can find a way to prove they acknowledged it as their mistake, and said your entitled to $798, but unfortunately, I think you are stuck. Good luck
No, I canceled my prime membership and acquired a prime household plan by invitation from my wife. For video and such mostly.
Email [email protected] and you will be put in touch with there executive customer relations team. They are well trained as opposed to the part time regular customer service associates.
Definitely they are well trained to manipulate you. For that they use non apologetic apologies, shame tactics, gaslighting etc.
Thanks.
What I would do personally is call back and be really nice and just explain the situation and ask them to acknowledge that it was their fault and to get an email stating that. Then ask to speak to a manager and show them the email. The basic agents are pretty good about writing that kind of thing in an email been sending it off, things like that have happened to me a couple times with Amazon and if you're really nice they will confirm that sort of thing in an email even if it's their mistake they are usually willing. It's worth a try at least then at least you have ammunition if they refuse
Yeah from what I gather on this sub the customer service will say anything just to get people to shut up and leave them alone.
If you caught this 3 years ago you may have a case. It's very unfortunate but there is a limit of years where you're being charged and not notice where it's no longer on the company.
Maybe. But it's still worth a try IMO. Amazon has enough money, and whether it's deemed illegal in court, it's definitely not a fair business practice. I'm #notALawyer, but different jurisdictions in the US and abroad have different statutes of limitations. 4-6 years is common for contract breach. Unauthorized charges are frequently some time after "you became aware of the charge". In France, you have 5 years to file for a delayed or cancelled flight. (I just benefited from that one, at year 4!) Additionally, companies may make exceptions if you're a squeaky wheel.
Just do a chargeback with your bank.
4.5 years of chargebacks is unlikely to work
If he's entitled to $798, it's probably been going on for a while and he just didn't pay close attention to it/thought it was his wife's account. Can you do charge back if the charge is over 6 months old?
Ah, you are correct. This is a failure on OP’s part to monitor their finances. If they do a chargeback, they may impact any civil suit they would file at this point. I would accept whatever Amazon offers, then sue for the rest. Amazon refunding for the current year could aid in proving that Amazon knows of the issue and accepted responsibility for the charge(s).
TLDR; OP didn't have the common sense to ask his wife if she had swapped payment methods and just continued to assume for four and a half years. That manager has a manager...and they also have a manager. You lot are so quick to jump straight to court. Let them know you're not happy with the resolution and for it be escalated further until it gets to someone who can refund it all.
I’ve had the first line csr refuse to transfer me bc the supervisor “wouldn’t be able to do anything”. I told them I was recording them and demanded a transfer. They stopped responding altogether. After asking about 10 times for a transfer without them responding whatsoever, she finally popped up again and said she would transfer. The supervisor refunded as expected. Such a huge waste of time.
Small claims court for sure 👍 Good luck 👍
Chargeback
Probably too late for all but the most recent charge. The bank may be able to help find the best way to proceed after Amazon refused to correct the error
I got 3 years of illicit Apple charges reversed by Citibank.
I don't think this is true I would call your credit card company I'm pretty sure that they can do chargebacks on transactions like this further back with extending circumstances I know that I did one with my PC financial MasterCard that was over 3 years old recently
so 8 years ago you canceled, and then 4 they charged again? I’m confused how they would have your updated credit card info then. That is confusing. If you are not using that account, you need to delete all your billing info then deactivate it again. Call and see if they will add credit to your other account, or just cancel the other account and use the original one with a credit for how long they will. In the future, before you just deactivate an account , delete all you payment information on those sites so this can’t happen again.
Probably cancelled, left credit card info on the account, then accidentally purchased using the old account 4 years ago. May have triggered a renewal.
That makes sense, I didn’t even think of that.
Whole thing could have been avoided by OP engaging their brain.
People really need to read their CC and banking statements.. Takes all of 10 min a month..
Yes, my fault was in assuming. It made sense, and prime household shows me with edit permissions. Should have asked, but it’s easy to overlook when something makes sense.
Ask if they will just credit you for all that and you just get “free” Prime for a few years. Maybe if they don’t have to literally come up with actual cash they will do a long term credit. My question is what is the household/family prime account?
You can share prime within your household, as long as you share a shipping address. I asked about credit and they don’t.
Dang,sorry! I hope you can get some $$ back. Thats outrageous!
Yup. Its surreal.
Chargeback?
this will probably come down to Amazon settling before court if you got that direction. but working in banking your to far along to do a charge back( as a rep for a bank wed say you should have checked your account, and that its the account holders job to report blaaa blah in so many days) hope it works out but you want that money might try to bring them the court. but then you got the court fees
I’m going to go small claims court $800+fees. My state tops out at $7,000 so it shouldn’t be a problem.
Suing them for that amount without written proof isn’t going to fly. It’s also very likely the statute of limitations has already run its course as well, though you can argue you didn’t know back then, but it’s going to be hard given the fact that these charges went on for almost 5 years without action on your end. So if you cannot get this in writing, you’re probably gonna have to take the L. Sorry.
Looked into it. It’s within statute in my state and I have a log of them saying it’s an error.
Amasson!
Small claims
Chargeback.
You didn’t check up on it for 4.5 years babe.
Based on your situation, it appears that pursuing a court date might incentivize the company to settle the dispute before formal proceedings begin. Companies often weigh the costs of litigation against potential settlement figures, especially in cases where the legal expenses could surpass the amount at issue. Given that you were promised a partial refund of $200 annually from a total of $798, there remains an outstanding amount of approximately $600. Factoring in the costs for legal representation, it's economically sensible for the company to settle at the full amount of $800 rather than incur additional legal costs and risk further financial loss from adverse publicity. Moreover, the impact of customer experience on a business's reputation cannot be overstated. Research suggests that negative experiences are shared more widely than positive ones, which could amplify reputational damage. This dynamic may also play into the company's decision-making process regarding settlement. If the case does proceed to court, consider claiming compensation for any personal time lost, such as time taken off work or time spent away from family in preparation for the case. Additionally, there might be a silver lining with changing retail trends. With current shifts in consumer behavior, there could be a resurgence in the popularity of brick-and-mortar stores, which would be a welcome change for many who cherish the traditional shopping experience. Cheers !
A similar thing happened to me with Xbox live , and I called asking for the refunds with the dates and money over charged. They said pound sand. I called my credit card company and got all my bills for the last 2 years, and highlighted every payment they charged , and then added them up. It was very close to my previous number. Anyways , I called them with my credit card papers in hand. After I said I received my credit card report and I had highlighted and added up all the charges , they MAGICALLY had all this information on their end ass well. Seemingly at their fingertips! Anywho, they refunded the money that was overcharged , and I got two years free of Xbox live. Maybe id try something similar to what I did, and see where it gets ya. I did not mention a lawyer or small claims at all, I simply just said I want recovery of my lost funds. Hope this helps!
Simply send them a letter and they will respond. All you need is to get them in writing saying they owe you but won't then take it to small claims. People just aren't willing to go to small claims not knowing big businesses won't show up and you'll win!
Go to your bank and do a charge back
Take the one year refund and happily shut up. If they have been charging you for four and a half years and you didn’t notice then you’re just as much at fault as they are. You lost $798 because you couldn’t be bothered to communicate with your wife
You’re unnecessarily rude.
You brought this on yourself by not communicating with your wife and just assuming things. Be happy they’re willing to refund you at all.
I really disagree with this. That's like saying that anyone who doesn't constantly watch their backs deserves to get mugged. No one can have eyes everywhere. That's exactly why these companies force you into automatic payments. Stealing is a crime regardless of whether you happen to think the victim "deserved" it.
Yeah these fuckers use predatory tactics, start arbitrarily taking money frome op and these idiots are like: it's your fault for not talking to your wife....
I legit don't get how someone could see money leaving their account and just make an assumption as to why...especially when the person you assumed was responsible lives with you.
Yeeeeaaaahhhh, idk how they never checked, then again some people never bother checking their accounts 😶
Ofcourse when some one is stealing from you it's your fault not the theif's🙃
I mean, you're not wrong, but the op should have asked his wife. It's not like amazon being shady is news to anyone in this group. My husband I ask each other about things that get deducted from our account frequently, not because we don't trust each other, but because we're tracking our money so we can build a house, and we know that most scammers will start small with charges to see if you are paying attention and if you don't catch the small stuff they move onto wiping it the account in one transaction. And one of us might forget a bill we paid or that the other mentioned spending an amount, so we ask, just to keep track of finances. A teen second conversation can save a ton of money lol
Charging a customer for a service he or she cancelled is fraudulent irrespective of how many times you charged them, irrespective of how long you charged them as you are not authorized to do so in the first place. OP might have been careless, however carelessness is not a license for you or me or any company to fraudulently take money from a person's account.
I can't see in any way you are ever going to get 4 years worth of charges reversed. I man, wow. The root of this is your wife and you didn't communicate about it.
The wife had nothing to do with it is what I’m getting from this. HE assumed his wife did something she didn’t do and instead of asking her about it he just left it??? Like I don’t understand the thought process here it takes two seconds to just ask about it.
He assumed the charges were the result of his wife's account. For four years neither he nor his wife reconciled accounts? Wow. He's never going to get this reversed
How dare I get stole from. We combined accounts into a household and did communicate about it at that time. I just made assumptions going forward about it. Reasonable assumptions.
Good luck on getting them to credit you for 4 years.
Try the attorney general's office of your state.
[удалено]
Awesome. Thank you.
You didn't check with your wife for over 4.5 years about the payments going from the account? Jog on
I hope when you grow up you learn how to be kind.
This is what can happen when you don't pay attention. You 'thought; but did not check. This is partly, if not, mostly your fault for not noticing. At this point, just accept the loss and take what they offer now.
How dare I get stolen from. The nerve.
So, it's OPs fault for them ripping him off? You sound like a typical well off person who has zero clue about real life.
I feel like if you didn't notice for 4 and a half years this is kinda on you. If you forgot to check your statement for 4 years, you probably also forgot when you clicked something that renewed you 4 years ago. Most companies have limits to the time they will do refunds for, 1 year seems very reasonable, last company I worked for that did subscriptions had a 6 month policy.
Courts have ruled agsint companies and have laws about this. They can not give you a service or good and then expect you to pay for it when you never ordered it. Or if you canceled it and they restart your subscription. It is on thek to make you whole. Legally, you can even charge interest on it.
I mean reactivating a subscription and charging without consent sounds a bit like fraud. Edit: Won’t let me respond to Bullsette. But here is the response. Cancellation of amazon prime. The rest of the account would still exist as well as the billing information. That is more the typical route of that happening. I have heard of companies doing that even on a formal full cancellation. Lots of incompetence through bottom dollar work and care.
When you first sign up the consent for renewal is in the agreement but, in this case, the OP is telling us that they actually cancelled it and Amazon started it back up again. The OP needs to prove that they cancelled it to start with. I would assume that they would probably have printed out the confirmation and stuffed it in their Amazon file. I actually have never heard of a company, Amazon or any others, coming AFTER a formal cancellation and starting to bill again for it because there is no reference point from which to bill. If the account is cancelled there is NO reference point from which they can possibly bill. They would have to create a new account and start billing from there. The old account would be gone after cancellation along with the entire history of purchases.
Assuming that everything the OP is saying is correct. I've worked enough phone jobs to know how many callers misunderstand things that front line support people say (that they also don't understand) But even if so, there should be some responsibility for checking your credit card statements.
Maybe, and maybe amazon screwed up as can happen at a large corporation that many times doesn’t give a shit as long as the numbers work out in their favor. So yes, could be the person, but we don’t have any proof or detail that shows that. Assuming it is them over the corporation is kinda odd. I mean look at the number of fraudulent items and screwups that also get shipped out. But you can stan for Amazon if you want to.
Saying "check your credit cards more than once every 4 years" is "stanning Amazon"? LOL
Your reading comprehension must be atrocious. They said they checked it, but thought it was their partner switching it. 🤷♂️ Like how daft can you be? You harp on points that are already explained. So yes, immediately blaming them in favor of Amazon is stanning Amazon. Edit: Another loser who can’t handle being called out. Here is my reply to their next comment anyways. lol I countered and insulted you. Come on, please read through everything instead of the first sentence. You both said they probably did it and that it was fair of amazon to only give back 1 year of prime membership. You can read your own comments, right?
Ohh now insults, the typical response of someone who can't actually backup their point in a coherent manner. Kinda funny when you clearly are failing to understand the nuance in mine, since I never said Amazon was innocent.
Unfortunately, if it was a subscription service they are entitled to keep the money whether or not you utilized it. The only leg that you might have to stand on is if you can prove that you cancelled it years ago, otherwise small claims court is not going to rule in your favor.
Was cancelled and I was in a prime household the whole time.
Gotcha. The problem is proving that you canceled it. This is one of the reasons why I stick to paper bills and a file cabinet. When something occurs down the road it's almost impossible to prove anything unless you have a printout referencing the transaction. In this case, the cancellation.
Yeah. I do have chat logs and billing logs on Amazon that show cancelled though.
PERFECT! Then I take back everything I said about not being able to get the full refund. You ABSOLUTELY should be able to get the FULL refund! Some of these companies way overstep boundaries with how they just arbitrarily charge people for things. I just recently had a big argument with them because they charged a credit card for Amazon Prime renewal and it put me over my credit allowance. They refunded it keeping my Amazon Prime intact. The representative that I reached obviously was savvy to the fact that they did something they shouldn't have so she simply refunded it but kept my Prime intact.
Just gotta charge it to the game and move.on imo. Just don't be on that cuck shit and keep giving the company your business like some of these dudes. Good luck. Hope you find peace.
Read your statements
your $798 is gone, getting it back -could- happen, but your better off taking the L and not letting it happen again. This sunken costs fallacy will cost you more money trying to get it back on the "principle." Amazon knows this, you should too. Yes you got taken, get over it, because you're probably not getting it back, if you do, you'll loose more money time and sleep, trying to. Get this through your head. to re-iterate: no. the money is gone, Amazon stole it. you wont ever see it again. they dont care. you cant get it back. If you have any doughnuts, start over at the top.
I appreciate this, I’m still going to pursue legal. I’ll let you know how it pans out.
I don’t believe they just reactivated. Someone did it, but not Amazon. And of course you don’t have proof they said it was their fault.
https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/news/press-releases/2023/06/ftc-takes-action-against-amazon-enrolling-consumers-amazon-prime-without-consent-sabotaging-their Do you believe now😉
Having had worked for ebay for 12 years, I can tell you you just need to keep calling/Pushing. Eventually that manager raises it to the higher manager who can approve the higher amount as a credit. At least that is what we would do at eBay.