Seriously Fed Up With Double-Charge Stories

[RaDian FlGith]

I guess it's been a long time coming, but now I get to play the, "I got double-charged by EA" game too!

Yippee me.

And since email customer support is my favorite way of interacting with EA, since it takes them two bloody weeks to respond to issues and correct them, and then they don't even have the decency to provide any recompense for the long, ridiculous wait times, much less apologize in most instances, I yet again have to wonder why I continue to pay EA to rob me.

Here.
We.
Go.
Again.

 

[RaDian FlGith]

I completely forgot to post this gem that helped "brighten" my day... the irony that this is all part of "the future of EAHelp" is not lost on me.

 

[MalagAste]

*giggles* OMG that's so typical...

Love ya Ra!

 

[Uriah Heep]

Ya gotta love em...

 

[Emil Ispep]

Ugh had this happen to me awhile back. Sat on the phone with customer service for about a half hour to no avail. Had to call my CC company and tell them I was charged twice to sort out the problem... prolly your best bet to call your card company and not waste time with EA cs.

 

[The Zog historian]

Ugh had this happen to me awhile back. Sat on the phone with customer service for about a half hour to no avail. Had to call my CC company and tell them I was charged twice to sort out the problem... prolly your best bet to call your card company and not waste time with EA cs.

Just be really careful about getting charges reversed. Kayhynn had more than a little trouble a few months back, after her accounts (including her account management login!) were closed by some EA numbskull.

 

[G.v.P]

I have been thinking about building a computer, so I used Google search with the search, "can you just (replace a cpu)." The number one autofill result was "can you just eat weed." SMH. lol. Reminds me of the Lynyrd Skynyrd song "Things Goin On." I don't mean to be square, but yikes.

I can't wait to see if I get double-billed in January. I had this problem awhile back with my hosting company, in which company policy was to auto-bill a full 15 days prior to the due date. Nowhere near as bad as this EA situation, but boy did that throw me off. I guess moral of the story was never leave things to auto-bill, especially if you're lazy like me and expect to change credit card information two days prior. Some companies will do whatever they want to you once they have you on auto-bill.

 

[Mike of Ameraust]

The accounts dept. seems to be expanding, I have been charged for six months game time on my credit card, the only trouble is that accounts was closed and will they give me a refund ..... not on your life.

 

[a slave girl]

I started buying game time codes from the Origin store, which usually costs me a few cents less, as they tend to not charge taxes, which when I pay with plastic I always have to pay (except for a few months after the switch to Mythic log in). I assume it's two different services taking our money. Good thing about game time code purchases you see immediately what you have spent, you also get the code immediately on the same page.

 

[Kayhynn]

Just be really careful about getting charges reversed. Kayhynn had more than a little trouble a few months back, after her accounts (including her account management login!) were closed by some EA numbskull.

Oh yeah. That was a lot of fun - not.

For those that don't know the story, my CC got charged, EA said there wasn't enough money on the card, no gametime, the CC company said it billed and went through just fine. EA and I went back and forth for two weeks before the email support person told me to contact my card company because on their end, they show card was declined and will not give gametime despite me showing proof of charges billed and cleared on my account.

I copied and pasted the entire email conversation to my CC company who reversed the charges immediately.

Origin, not EA or Ultima Online, then bans my master account (tied to four UO accounts) for reversing charges. Meanwhile, one of the four accounts is still billing just fine, but I can't access it from account management, can't cancel it, can't do anything - nor did I ever receive any contact from Origin stating my master account was banned or why. And for more fun - EA/Mythic help support can't see Origin bans and vice versa. EA/Mythic said I wasn't banned on their side as far as they could tell. It went round in circles till I sorted it out with Origin.

Left hand does not know what right hand is doing and right hand doesnt know what left is doing. It's currently straightened out, but I was warned reversing charges again could result in a permanent ban.

 

[RaDian FlGith]

Wow, Kayhynn,

Sorry you've gone through so much. It's not like they even left you any other choice THAN to reverse the charges. So they overcharge you, won't do anything about it, and then make it clear that if you correct their mistake for them in the future, they no longer want you as a customer.

I've said it before, and I'll say it again: EA used to be a good game company... then someone fed it after midnight, and there's been nothing but gun-toting and tossing old women out of windows on lift chairs ever since.

 

[DJAd]

So this is now the second time I've seen EA/Mythic/Origin whoever it is, take money for accounts when they shouldn't.

First case being here: http://stratics.com/community/threa...rgin-to-make-money-off-of-us-larg-pic.308117/

After reading this first case I cancelled my subscription and went down to using game time codes each month. This is alot of hassle as I can't access the Origin store where I am. This means I have to get a friend to buy me a code each month then I send them payment via PayPal.

What is going on??!! Has anyone got there money back, who was at fault? I asked what the outcome was but no reply to the thread yet. It was about $977!!

 

[Aurelius]

So this is now the second time I've seen EA/Mythic/Origin whoever it is, take money for accounts when they shouldn't.

Only the second one you have noticed?

It's been going on for YEARS with EA/Mythic, first one I remember was this for Warhammer Online and DAOC but I suspect even that was not their first foulup...

http://massively.joystiq.com/2010/04/13/the-daily-grind-warhammer-onlines-billing-woes/

If you search about a bit, they are also known to overbill or repeat charge people for one-off products, or subscriptions, on many different titles - plus many, many cases of them being unable to sort out payment issues, blocking cards for no reason, claiming payments were 'refused' by CC companies when they were not and EA got (and try damn hard to keep!) the money. Their own support forums are full of posts about such issues, most of which seem to remain unsolved - or maybe people just gave up in disgust. Meanwhile the Origin store remains clunky and erratic, what you can buy depends on where their system thinks your PC is, codes go out in wrong formats or 'accidentally' get missed out of emails, so you go back through the treadmill of 'support' to find anyone who has a clue how to solves these issues..

Truly an abysmal record, yet their last chief exec (before he 'surprisingly' bailed out) was adamant the future of EA was in online sales and transactions. Maybe he realised that future would need a company to have working systems, competent staff, and active management who actually make customer support work - and so he jumped before it all fell apart.....

 

[Emil Ispep]

Just for $hits, I went over to the Better Business Bureau to see what was on EA. Couple thousand complaints, and from the few I read, it looks like EA gives out canned responses every time.

What I don't understand is how can EA maintain an A+ rating with all of this going on.

Going for worst company in America 3 years in a row I guess...

 

[MalagAste]

Just for $hits, I went over to the Better Business Bureau to see what was on EA. Couple thousand complaints, and from the few I read, it looks like EA gives out canned responses every time.

What I don't understand is how can EA maintain an A+ rating with all of this going on.

Going for worst company in America 3 years in a row I guess...

That'd be my guess. They don't seem to care like my daughter they have an excuse for everything because there is NO WAY they might actually "Deserve" the rating given... Certainly they have some really trendy, expensive rosey colored glasses that they must issue to each and EVERY employee upon hire. Along with some subliminal tapes and such they listen to over the speakers which tell them they are the best game company out there.

However companies they swallow whole like Origin/Mythic etc. are not issued those glasses or subjected to the brainwashing tapes so they are stuck with the fallout and left saying over and over I'm sorry but I can't help you....

 

[Dot_Warner]

And yet we continue to pay them month after month, year after year. Many of us now nearing the end of a SECOND DECADE of mistreatment. What does that say about us?

"Thank you, EA. May I have another?" :whip:

 

[Kayhynn]

Wow, Kayhynn,

Sorry you've gone through so much. It's not like they even left you any other choice THAN to reverse the charges. So they overcharge you, won't do anything about it, and then make it clear that if you correct their mistake for them in the future, they no longer want you as a customer.

I've said it before, and I'll say it again: EA used to be a good game company... then someone fed it after midnight, and there's been nothing but gun-toting and tossing old women out of windows on lift chairs ever since.

Oh yeah. I went through a week or two emailing back and forth. Even sent Mesanna 3 emails after I couldn't login into my master account, couldn't change password, couldn't do anything with it (didn't know then I was banned) and got no response from her on it. I was being very patient because I was in and out of town in August and September, but finally figured I'd start making calls. Finally tracked down the 800 number, got another 800 number to use, went back and forth between EA/Mythic support and Origin support till they figured out I was banned.

As I pointed out to them "If I was banned, why did you continue BILLING my account that was active? Then prevent me from cancelling it if I chose to do so?" I got no response to that.

I've had a number of times where my account charges early, then cancels due to there not being funds on the card (hello? I pay my cards off each month at a specific date so I have funds available, which is why i set my billing dates accordingly). But it doesn't just say "oh we'll rebill on the correct date" no, it closes the account even though it has days left.

EA: FIX YOUR BILLING SYSTEM.

 

[LiquidSolidity]

Although I would love to play UO, again, I just can't bring myself to pay EA more money when I read posts like this. Do yourself a favour and support Garriott's new game: Shroud of the Avatar. Have just played the first pre-alpha and it is already looking amazing!

 

[Matthias O'Hare]

Although I would love to play UO, again, I just can't bring myself to pay EA more money when I read posts like this. Do yourself a favour and support Garriott's new game: Shroud of the Avatar. Have just played the first pre-alpha and it is already looking amazing!

Plowing all of your money into RG's new game is hardly doing yourself a favor. I like RG and hope his game is a success, but it is not guaranteed to be anything like UO. The pre-alpha was hardly playable, it was mostly just running around town. They've already started to hedge on issues, such as lacking the ability for you to drop items onto the ground like most current MMOs (which is wrong here cause SotA is not really a MMO).

My suggestion would be to switch to game cards. I made this switch during the summer when I had what was I thought a double billing, just turned out I forgot to turn off the renewal on a throwaway account

It is more time consuming because you have to go through the Origin store, but I don't worry about the double billing issue anymore.

 

[LiquidSolidity]

Plowing all of your money into RG's new game is hardly doing yourself a favor. I like RG and hope his game is a success, but it is not guaranteed to be anything like UO. The pre-alpha was hardly playable, it was mostly just running around town. They've already started to hedge on issues, such as lacking the ability for you to drop items onto the ground like most current MMOs (which is wrong here cause SotA is not really a MMO).

My suggestion would be to switch to game cards. I made this switch during the summer when I had what was I thought a double billing, just turned out I forgot to turn off the renewal on a throwaway account

It is more time consuming because you have to go through the Origin store, but I don't worry about the double billing issue anymore.

There is no need to plow any money into Richard's new game - not sure where you got that from. The game already has the feel of an old school Ultima game and has a few UO nostalgic touches but is not supposed to be like UO. It seems that you didn't actually play the pre-alpha or you would also know that it was just a test and not meant to be a "playable" game. There has also been no final decision on whether or not you can drop items on the ground - you obviously are a little mixed up there. Also, in most current MMO's you can't drop things on the ground. Shroud is going to be a very different game from UO and I hope both games will do well over the next few years and help keep the Ultima world alive.

 

[MalagAste]

There is no need to plow any money into Richard's new game - not sure where you got that from. The game already has the feel of an old school Ultima game and has a few UO nostalgic touches but is not supposed to be like UO. It seems that you didn't actually play the pre-alpha or you would also know that it was just a test and not meant to be a "playable" game. There has also been no final decision on whether or not you can drop items on the ground - you obviously are a little mixed up there. Also, in most current MMO's you can't drop things on the ground. Shroud is going to be a very different game from UO and I hope both games will do well over the next few years and help keep the Ultima world alive.

It's not an MMO therefore I wouldn't waste one red cent on it. And Garriott sold us out and for that he don't deserve any more money...

 

[Matthias O'Hare]

There is no need to plow any money into Richard's new game - not sure where you got that from. The game already has the feel of an old school Ultima game and has a few UO nostalgic touches but is not supposed to be like UO. It seems that you didn't actually play the pre-alpha or you would also know that it was just a test and not meant to be a "playable" game. There has also been no final decision on whether or not you can drop items on the ground - you obviously are a little mixed up there. Also, in most current MMO's you can't drop things on the ground. Shroud is going to be a very different game from UO and I hope both games will do well over the next few years and help keep the Ultima world alive.

I really don't know what Shrouds of the Avatar has to do with Ra'Dian's billing issue, but I'll take part. First, his game is based on acquiring funds from other people to support it. So yes, when RG asks for support for SotA, he is really asking for your money. Sorry, I like RG too, but he is a businessman, and he knows that there are more than enough people gullible enough out there to reduce his financial risk. He's thinking for himself, with some of the flops he has flippantly attached his name to him in years gone by, can you really blame him?

I didn't use the word play. You used the word play. Having tested the game, I thought it was funny that anyone used the word play when talking about the pre-alpha. You use the phrase "up for debate", I merely term it for what they are really doing, they are hedging. It's a smart move, but also unfortunate as I would have hoped from the miserable initial rollout for UO, that RG would have learned not to oversell what they can do in the game.

 

[LiquidSolidity]

I really don't know what Shrouds of the Avatar has to do with Ra'Dian's billing issue, but I'll take part. First, his game is based on acquiring funds from other people to support it. So yes, when RG asks for support for SotA, he is really asking for your money. Sorry, I like RG too, but he is a businessman, and he knows that there are more than enough people gullible enough out there to reduce his financial risk. He's thinking for himself, with some of the flops he has flippantly attached his name to him in years gone by, can you really blame him?

I didn't use the word play. You used the word play. Having tested the game, I thought it was funny that anyone used the word play when talking about the pre-alpha. You use the phrase "up for debate", I merely term it for what they are really doing, they are hedging. It's a smart move, but also unfortunate as I would have hoped from the miserable initial rollout for UO, that RG would have learned not to oversell what they can do in the game.

Ok then . You are not making a lot of sense now and have taken the topic way off track. I'll say no more