123-reg.co.uk backorder - buyer beware

whiteballed

Hi. I wonder if someone can help. And if not I hope that this post serves as a warning to others.

Today I received an email from 123-reg.co.uk advising me that a payment of £59.99 has been taken for a backorder of a website domain that I placed over 6 months ago. For those that don't know this is a service that monitors the availability of website domains and then purchases them for you when they come on the market.

This was the first time that I have ever used such a service and I was shocked not to be asked again prior to my payment being taken if I still wanted the domain.

As I no longer needed or want the domain I contacted 123-reg's customer support centre to be told in no uncertain terms that there would be no refund and that I could not cancel the order. Should I not be offered a cooling off period? What are my statutory rights? I'm led to believe that 123-reg would have known that the domain was likely to become available circa 30 days ago. If thats the case then surely they could have notified me by email to check if I still wanted to progress with the order.

Has anyone else come ac cross this before?

AJXX

Sorry but you placed the domain on backorder so that they'd buy it for you when it became available - it became available so they completed your requested backorder and purchased the domain; and now you're annoyed that they purchased it for you, just like you asked?

You told them you wanted it when you placed the backorder, they've got no reason to question this or hold your hand asking if you are still sure etc... If you no longer "wanted or needed" it you should have cancelled the backorder - simple really.

Domains are notoriously difficult to receive refunds for. Take the loss on the chin and mark it down to your own inexperience.

You may want to change your title from "buyer beware" to "buyer should use common sense".

lucy03

whiteballed wrote: »

As I no longer needed or want the domain I contacted 123-reg's customer support centre to be told in no uncertain terms that there would be no refund and that I could not cancel the order. Should I not be offered a cooling off period? What are my statutory rights? I'm led to believe that 123-reg would have known that the domain was likely to become available circa 30 days ago. If thats the case then surely they could have notified me by email to check if I still wanted to progress with the order.

Has anyone else come ac cross this before?

The service seems designed to ensure that a domain name is acquired for a customer at the earliest opportunity. E-mailing asking if you want it would surely slow that process down (so that the opportunity might be missed), and it would also mean that you could have acquired the domain name from another registrar, rather negating the entire point of the process.

I don't think there's any legal claim against 123-reg here.

philatio

You ordered something... and when it was available, the supplier delivered.


Definitely one for Watchdog, the European Court of Human Rights and Wonder Woman this one.

mattyprice4004

Oh no, how dare they do exactly as you asked with no fuss and inconvenience!
I think you should be angry at your own lack of thought rather than 123reg.