I'm getting ignored

And I'm out of pocket

[xcandyman]

Hi All

I wonder if you can help me, my current hosting company is being a pain.

What is was I forgot to take what I owe them out of my account for "supposbly" 8 months.

I reluctently payed the amount owing, but after a nights research I found I had already payed for 4 months hosting 4 months ago.

I contacted them about this matter the next morning and they apologised about the situation and said I should expect a refund into my account inside a week.

Now 2.5 months have passed, with me chasing around trying to get the money which is owing but they seem to be ignoring me (could be over a week without contact from them) and when I do catch them they always say they are looking into it or coming up with petty excuses.

I cannot call them as they have no phone number on the site and whois, and also they are based in some far off country.

Where do I stand and what do I do?

Thanks

[Mardi_Gras]

Did you pay by credit card? If so, just challenge the charge. If you paid by check, it gets tougher.

In the meantime, find a decent host. No phone number is a dead giveaway that they do NOT want to hear from you.

[worker]

If you are planning on staying with them, just send them a note that you will pay once the additional time you have paid for has elapsed. Just think of it as a pre-payment that you have made to them. While it is a little annoying, it really isn't that big a deal. You just won't have to make another payment for awhile.

[xcandyman]

Thanks for your comments.

I payed by direct debit (uk)

Because of a lot of downtime recently they have given high bandwidth customers 3months hosting free of charge so I don't particulary want to wait that long to see my cash in action. Also I don't think I will stay with them that long.

It's a pretty hefty bit of cash so I don't want to lose it. I am currently looking at a new host. But the problem is I have very specific requirements. ;-(

[Mardi_Gras]

I think your options are pretty limited. Good luck.

[divaone]

just as an fyi, while i would not host with someone i cannot call, sometimes its a good thing to communicate via email. written records are supportive of your case. i would write up to 3 more times stating what was agreed upon and directly requesting either the money or more time hosted.

[anallawalla]

Because of a lot of downtime recently

I think you should plan an exit strategy. I use five hosts ranging from $9.95 - $19.95 a month and not one has had downtime that I have noticed in the past five years. Anything with a "lot" of downtime is the exception, so find a more reliable firm.

What is the "some far off country"?