This whole thing began when I called MSN and talked to them about possibly joining the network for internet service. At that time, I was just inquiring about the service and its cost. The operator told me that I could have 5 months free service to decide if I wanted to change my provider. After a few months, I realized that we hadn't used MSN's service at all and so I called in October and told the operator that I wanted to terminate our free service and also cancel it so that I wouldn't forget to do it before they began charging me.
She told me that was fine and she would cancel the service. She then gave me a cancellation confirmation number, which I wrote down at that time on a scrap piece of paper.
I didn't think of MSN again. The last few months, I began to notice a charge of $21.95 coming up on my bank statement and I wondered what it was. I noticed an 800 number on the entry and tried to call it. When I got MSN and it gave me some options to chose for the Internet, I thought maybe I had dialed the wrong number, so I hung up. I do make purchases online occasionally and I began to think that maybe I had purchased something and didn't remember what it was. So I looked a little closer at the monthly withdrawals on my bank statement and I noticed that this MSN online billing was on there each month.
I called the bank and they told me it was a debit and that I should call that 800 number. So I did, yesterday. That's when I decided to hang on to the phone call and see what I could find out. When the lady, Jackie, answered, she asked me what phone number my account was attached to. I told her that I didn't have an account but that I had been charged $21.95 and I didn't know why. I told her my debit card number but she couldn't find the account that way. I gave her my name and she found the account. Jackie told me that I was subscribed to MSN Online Internet Service and I told her that I had never, ever used it, so how could I be charged for it? She said that it was offered as a free 5-month service to me.
I then remembered that, and told her that I had called and cancelled that a few months before the 5-month period was over. She said, Oh, I see that. You cancelled it in October last year!
I sent a faxed letter to their MSNIA Investigating Billing Department and they sent me back a response via email which basically said that their contract that you "agree" to says that if you don't find their mistake in 120 days, they can keep on taking your money and that all charges are valid!
I am furious and am glad to know that I am not the only one who has been ripped off. If there is anything that anyone has found that they can do to recover their money, please post that so that we can all take advantage of it.
LYNNEL
White Heath, Illinois
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