OK, so now I'm on the phone with Network Solutions giving what-for to some
wide-eyed customer support agent about a "FINAL NOTICE" that was received
for a domain that was transferred away from NetSol 8 days before the final
notice was issued.
The conversation:
Me: So, what if I paid this invoice now. Would your accounts receivable
department accept the check?
Freaked Out Agent (FOA): I don't know. I think that they will check to see
if an invoice was issued and, if so, they will accept the payment.
Me: But the domain isn't yours. It was transferred 8 days before the
invoice was issued. Will they check to see if the domain name is really on
your systems and, if not, return the check?
FOA: I don't think so.
Me: Why did you issue the invoice in the first place?
FOA: Well, the domain is still in our system. It will be deleted in about a
month.
Me: Check your system. You tell me if the domain is really there.
FOA: It's registered with TUCOWS.
Me: Right. So why did you issue the invoice?
FOA: I don't know why the billing department does that. You shouldn't pay
the invoice.
Me: What if I do? Will you issue a refund?
FOA: We don't issue refunds.
Me: But you're not entitled to the money. How many people pay these
invoices because they're scared of what you might do to their domain? Are
you honestly telling me that if one like this was paid, and the customer
later brought it to your attention that you WOULDN'T issue a refund?!
FOA: Just don't pay the invoice.
Me: That's not the point. I'm an ISP. I have lots of customers in this
situation. What if one of them DOES pay such an invoice. Will you refund
their money?
FOA: Well, I can't say what the billing department might do.
Me: Is it Network Solutions' policy to never issue refunds.
(Here our good friend gets even more uncomfortable and puts me on hold.
Eventually he returns)
FOA: I think that if that happened, then we would probably issue a refund.
Me: OK, so Network Solutions WILL issue a refund if I can demonstrate that
the payment was made in error. Right?
FOA: I don't know for sure, but we can initiate a refund request.
...it goes on and on like this for another 10 minutes, during which time I'm
referred to the "Technical Department" and even walked through submitting a
"Delete Registration" request from the "Make Changes>Advanced>Service
Agreement" area of Network Solutions' website. It fails, by the way: "No
match for <domain name> in the WHOIS database. Can not modify <domain
name>". Ultimately, the best he can offer is that he "thinks" that they
"might" issue a refund if someone complained that they had made payment on
an erroneous invoice.
Thought some of you might get a kick out of that. Is there someone at
OpenSRS who is still collecting these erroneous invoices?
Regards,
Eric Longman
Atl-Connect Internet Services
+-------------------------------------------------------+
| Atl-Connect Internet Services http://www.atlcon.net |
| 3600 Dallas Hwy Ste 230-288 770 590-0888 |
| Marietta, GA 30064-1685 [EMAIL PROTECTED] |
+-------------------------------------------------------+
