Credit Card Recurring Charges

[johnw 10]

I have just finally managed to have a charge reversed off my credit card.

It was for a subscription cancelled a year ago on a card that had subsequently rolled over it's expiry date since the cancellation and so at the time I felt I had little to worry about.

 

When I asked the ccard Company to reverse the charges once they had verified that the expiry date was incorrect, they told me that recurring charges do not require an expiry date.

 

Frankly I was speechless and when I googled "credit card recurring charges" I was confronted with pages of similar comments to mine ....and not everyone succeeded in reversing the charges.

 

Just wondered if people here were aware of this banking scam and if you are not aware then take heed.

If you are aware, then how long has it been in play.

[Cory2679 11]

I guess the plus side to that policy (if I understand it correctly) is that your service/subscription won't be interrupted or past-due if you neglect to update your CC info when the card expires. I wouldn't use such a strong word as "scam," personally.

[johnw 10]

I guess the plus side to that policy (if I understand it correctly) is that your service/subscription won't be interrupted or past-due if you neglect to update your CC info when the card expires. I wouldn't use such a strong word as "scam," personally.

 

 

A bank survey showed that the insistence of an expiry date created a 40% attrition rate to the subscriptions and so there is your answer to 'scam'

 

The best manner of handling the rollover, is to send an automated email in the month of rollover asking you to load the new expiry date.

Someone I deal with does this, it might be Amazon or dtn or paypal.

 

My ccard company is a bank I have been associated with for over 40 years and this association helped immensely, but not everyone is so lucky. I could have used another ccard from a bank where I am just a name and that would have been time consuming.

 

Be careful.

[SIUYA 11]

thats interesting johnw as i have actually had subscriptions previously cancelled because they tried to run through a card that expired. (This was about 5 years ago)

The new card had the same number, but when the 'magazine' needed to run through the details the expiry was old and they had to contact me. This was in Oz, so maybe there are varying differences in different countries and or banks.

[johnw 10]

thats interesting johnw as i have actually had subscriptions previously cancelled because they tried to run through a card that expired. (This was about 5 years ago)

The new card had the same number, but when the 'magazine' needed to run through the details the expiry was old and they had to contact me. This was in Oz, so maybe there are varying differences in different countries and or banks.

 

Well I suggest you contact your Oz bank because my card was NZ visa processed in the US.

I normally use my NZ card when traveling because I am backed by people who know me in the Auckland Bank and they take care of things rather than me having to cold call Visa.

In fact I cannot remember the last time anything went wrong, but I must admit this incident really shocked me ... I mean 'what next'

[Ingot54 13]

I once had to cancel a CC (MasterCard) because I was unable to stop a recurring subscription.

 

The merchant did not answer email requests to unsubscribe etc etc.

 

The issuing bank said they could not interfere in the business relationship between myself and the merchant.

So in order to stop the recurring charge, I had to cancel the card entirely. The bank would not refund me any

money for the 2 months "cancelled" subscriptions.

 

Needless to say, I no longer use MasterCard nor that issuing bank.

 

There is another scam to watch for that my wife got stung with:

 

The scam is to get you on the "$1 trial" for the first month ... "cancel any time" ... "if you like us ... we bill you full fee

for the second month."

 

Again ... they refuse to cancel the second month even when done before the renewal anniversary.

 

Another card cancelled in order to rub out the charge.

 

These days we use a different approach - a small Debit Visa Card. No hassles!