Domain name One.com

Bennzy_2

Hi guys,

This is my first thread on here so I apologise if it's in the wrong place/not written correclty etc.

Last year I bought a domain with one dot com worth around £10. It was up for auto renewal in December but my card details had expired. I receive several emails a day so the 'reminder' emails got lost with my other emails. I have since had an email a month reminding me about my outstanding domain name payment and each month the fee has increased by around £10.

This morning I went to get my post and found that there was a letter from Intrum Justitia on behalf of one dot com for £40. In all the emails I have received from one.com they have not once mentioned they would pass this on to a debt collection agency.

Furthermore, when my domain was up with GoDaddy and I didn't pay for my next year they simply sold my domain name.

I wonder if anyone can help me?

Below is the last email I received from them on 1 Feb:

On Dec 3, 2012 we sent you an invoice regarding your subscription on the web space with the domain ******8 We also sent you a payment reminder on Jan 4, 2013.
We sent the invoice via email to the address **************.
We sent the payment reminder via email to the address *******************.
We had on Jan 25, 2013 not received a payment of the outstanding amount on your order.
In order not to burden you with further costs, we ask that you pay the amount as soon as possible. We draw your attention to the fact that you may incur further costs if the amount is not paid by Feb 11, 2013.
Item description: Amount in GBP:

Balance due for order 20.16
Reminder charge (invoice number *******) 10.00
New total balance due 30.16
Payment of outstanding amounts should be settled via the Internet on the following link:
[LINK]
You can see all invoices on your order and pay the outstanding amount in the control panel of the web space.
Remember to keep your email address with us up to date, in the control panel on our website.
If you are unable to pay by credit card for some reason, it is possible pay by Home Banking.
Danske Bank London
Sort code: 30-12-81
Account number: 22004638
Instructions:
When making a bank transfer you must supply your order number:
2253545
And if you wish to include your name:
***********
One.com renews your subscription automatically to maintain safety for your data and for your domain. Automatic renewal ensures that an oversight of payment due to a vacation or missing update of address will not cause loss of data and lost domain.
For further information, please refer to our terms of business.
Best regards

I'm not sure about the legal ins and outs of these types of thing but doesn't a company have to tell you that you will be contacted by a debt collection agency before they do so? If I had received the big bold writing stating that this debt would be passed on I might have acted sooner.

I understand I have not helped the situation by failing to pay sooner.

Any help would be appreciated

Regards

Figment

when my domain was up with GoDaddy and I didn't pay for my next year they simply sold my domain name.

According to that email, the invoice was for a subscription for web space associated with your domain name, not for renewal of the domain itself.

On Dec 3, 2012 we sent you an invoice regarding your subscription on the web space with the domain.....

I'm not aware of a legal requirement for a company to warn a customer about impending recovery proceedings. Did you read their Terms of Business at any point before or after signing up? Undoubtedly there will be clauses in there relating to debt recovery processes.

bod1467

Do their T&Cs mention anything about auto-renewal?

If they do and they have auto-renewed (because you didn't cancel) then they have provided a service which you haven't paid for. So you'll owe them the money. Whether you owe the penalty amounts is a separate question - companies are not allowed to apply penalty charges/fines ... only a court can do this; they can only claim reasonable expenses.

victor2

That's why I always decline the kind offers for auto-renewal of anything.
When I did omit to pay some web hosting renewal, because the invoice and reminders went to a dead email address, I realised when the web site stopped working, paid the overdue bill, and it started up again.
With auto-renewal, you are agreeing to take the service indefinitely at your cost, so I would guess they are entitled to chase you for the money (plus charges for not paying on time).
Without it, you get what you've paid for and no more. The onus is on you to negotiate the next period of service.

Figment

bod1467 wrote: »

Do their T&Cs mention anything about auto-renewal?

If they do and they have auto-renewed (because you didn't cancel) then they have provided a service which you haven't paid for. So you'll owe them the money. Whether you owe the penalty amounts is a separate question - companies are not allowed to apply penalty charges/fines ... only a court can do this; they can only claim reasonable expenses.

Subscription periods last for 12 months at a time. 30 days before a 12-month subscription period, the subscription is automatically prolonged, unless the subscription is cancelled as stated below in pt 1.6

1.6. Cancellation of subscriptions
A subscription can be cancelled at any time by the customer. Since the subscription period lasts for 12 months and is automatically prolonged 30 days before the end of each 12-month period, a cancellation must be received by One.com 30 days before the 12-month subscription period, at the latest. The unused portion of any advance payment will not be refunded. If the cancellation is not sent to One.com in time, the customer is obliged to pay the subscription fee for the following 12-month period

Figment

Bennzy wrote: »

I'm not sure about the legal ins and outs of these types of thing but doesn't a company have to tell you that you will be contacted by a debt collection agency before they do so? If I had received the big bold writing stating that this debt would be passed on I might have acted sooner.

I

4.5. Terms of payment
All payments made online by the customer using Dankort, Eurocard, MasterCard, VISA, VISA Electron or JCB are free of any charges levied by One.com. When sending an invoice by mail, One.com reserves the right to charge a fee covering the costs. One.com's products/services are specially adapted to the customer's requirements, who in return does not have the right to annul the contract. Terms of payment are without exception eight days in cash, unless special agreement has been reached. If the customer has not paid the amount due within ten days of the date of payment, interest will be payable (without prior notice) from the date of payment, in pursuance of current valid interest legislation.
A GBP10.00 reminder fee will also be charged per interest invoice. One.com reserves the right to transfer claims to a third party, and One.com can also annul the contract and delete the customer's domain/close the customer's web space with immediate effect on late payment should it so choose


Full Terms of Business

zee_2

SCAM ..ignore..variation of age old scam.

gb12345

zee wrote: »

SCAM ..ignore..variation of age old scam.

On what basis do you offer this pearl of wisdom?

The OP purchased a domain and hosting from a company whose T&Cs state that the hosting auto-renews.

The hosting has auto-renewed, but the card has expired so the company couldn't collect the money that they were owed. They have then sent the OP reminders, for which they have charged £10 a time (again stipulated in their T&C).

Finally they have referred the matter to a DCA - again their T&Cs state that they may do this.

Looks to me like they have a watertight case and if the OP follows your advice he'll likely end up with a court date.

tombruton87

whats the domain name

steve1980

tombruton87 wrote: »

whats the domain name

Why does that matter? The OP hasn't furnished one.com with his up to date payment details therefore as they auto renew unless cancelled the OP owes them the outstanding money.

OP, I assume what Tom is trying to do is look at http://who.is and see who owns your domain name.

Munch

I have a similar issue, this is the email that I had this morning.
7 Day Payment Notice

For the Attention of:

Outstanding Balance: 47.36 GBP

Client Name: ONECOM

Our Reference: 6936237



Dear ,

As per our previous communication by letter to you at the above address, I am contacting you from Intrum Justitia, a Credit Management company that has been instructed on behalf of our client: ONECOM. We wish to communicate our intentions to collect the full outstanding balance of 47.36 GBP, as per our instruction.

Please see below a list of payment options:

By Credit Card:quoting Reference Number : 6936237

Please call our Debt Recovery Team on 0808 2340695, quoting the above reference number and with your card details ready.

By Cheque quoting Reference Number : 6936237

Please make cheque payable to Intrum Justitia and forward your cheque to Intrum Justitia, PO BOX 1090, St Albans , AL1 0SF, quoting your reference number on the back.

By Bank Transfer quoting Reference Number : 6936237

Beneficiary: Intrum Justitia Ireland Ltd
Bank Name: Santander
Sort-Code: 09-07-20
Account Number: 06958931
IBAN Number: GB36ABBY09072006958931
Should you wish to discuss this account further please contact us on 0808 234 0695 or via return email ie.customerqueries@ie.intrum.com

Kind Regards

Gillian Whelan

The issue was that I moved address and believed (after I remembered) that if no payment was taken, it would just expire as I had never logged on the use the site, or populated it with data.

Does anyone know their policies for accepting a compromise payment? I'm trying hard to live within a strict budget and will land me back in the cycle of charges on charges, which I'm JUST about clear of.

I no longer live at the address they have on file, it's just my poorly mother. Will then actually go round to her house and pester her for £50? I read the comments above so know I can't win, but I can try to not lose either right? Thanks guys!