My ISP, which begins with Earth and ends with link (LOL ARGH!), aggravated and pissed me off to no end this past weekend. A bit of background: I’ve had an online account (first with Netcom, then Mindspring, finally with ELN) for nearly 8 years, since September 1994. I’ve rarely had problems, and certainly never had any billing problems. I don’t have a “major credit card,” so I get billed for my account–a bill sent in the mail. Usually, I try to pay two months at a time (that’s about as much as I can afford to budget at a time), but sometimes I get a bit behind with things.
The current bill, dated 6/21/02 and mailed (bulk rate) 6/24, arrived in my mailbox sometime around the end of June/beginning of July. There was a credit it on from back in May (I had sent in enough to hopefully cover two months. My bills vary from month to month, unfortunately–fees that they keep changing!), with a balance due of $26.55. The due date was listed as July 6, 2002. Well okay, I probably should have paid this bill out of that first paycheck of the month, but unfortunately rent has to come out of that paycheck, so it would have to wait until the 19th. When the 19th and my next paycheck rolled around, I duly mailed off the bill with a money order for $50 in it.
Forward to Saturday night, July 20…I’m trying to log on to my account, and keep getting password errors–it won’t accept my password! I figure it’s some system problem, and keep trying. However, the problem persists, until finally I called technical support, by which time it was nearly 2 AM Sunday. First, the tech support person couldn’t find my account, I had to keep spelling it out for him (I had to use the A-as-in-apple method). He still can’t find my account! Then all of a sudden he tells me, “Oh here’s why–last activity on this account was July 20th and it shows it was cancelled. You’ll have to talk to customer support about that. I’ll transfer you now…” Me, incredulous (even though I do realize that I was late in paying them $26.55, it really was in the mail, and it was only 2 weeks late), “Okay… but are they still open/up?” Tech support, “Oh yes, they’re still open.” Phone rings, voice mail picks up, “Please call back during these hours…” Argh, I had to wait until later Sunday morning to talk to them.
Sure enough, the account had been “closed” for non-payment. Apparently, I had owed a few dollars from the previous month, and after July 6, the current billing cycle’s due date, it was like I was two months behind. According to customer support, my account is still there, and as soon as the money gets to them and is processed, it will be reactivated. ARGH!!!
All I can say is that Earthlink will -not- be recommended by me any longer to anyone. I’m waiting until I get home tonight to see if the account is back up, btw–I don’t want to be caught fussing & cussing here at work. GAH.
tarragon