So I cancel my AOL and NOW they are offering it for free???

[im10ashus]

:wtf:

I've been paying $23 a month for about 8 years and NOW they are giving it to me for FREE???? What's that about? Had I known, I would have canceled a long time ago. Does anybody still pay for e-mail? :shrug:

[SofaKingLiberal]

1. How many free months are they offering you?

[im10ashus]

3. Unlimited.

"As a long-time, valued customer we would like to extend our services to you at no charge. No gimmicks. Guaranteed."

If there's one thing in life I have learned, there is ALWAYS a catch.

Not to mention their service has been less than stellar in the first place. Is this standard? To let someone pay for the service while others get it for free??

[SofaKingLiberal]

12. Did the message they send you include the word unlimited?

If all they said was 'extended', expect to see charges on your CC in the future.

"As a long-time, valued customer we would like to extend our services to you at no charge. No gimmicks. Guaranteed."

[smtpgirl]

15. So when you are ready to cancel, just try

they employ the stellar customer retention program, this means if you want to cancel in the future, just be prepared to be on the phone for a long time and continusouly stand your ground and say no.

[arcane1]

2. my email is not only free....

it INCLUDES THE ORIGINAL MESSAGE WHEN REPLYING!!!!!!

of all the things I hate about AOL, that has to be #1...

[RC]

17. it INCLUDES THE ORIGINAL MESSAGE WHEN REPLYING!!!!!

You have a problem with the other person knowing what you are talking about?

That is why some webmail sucks.

[arcane1]

18. no..

I have a problem with replies I get from AOL users, that never include my original message... so that by the time they reply back with "ok" or some such thing, I've forgotten what they are replying to

I'd think that by 2006 they would have that figured out? :shrug:

[Disturbed]

4. Does anybody still pay for e-mail?

Yahoo and Hotmail are free.

Yeah I got AOL free for a month and they offered another month for free. Same with PeoplePC and NetZero. One must be careful though to mark the date to cancel two days before offer expires. I now have Netscape for $10 per month. Not too bad.

[im10ashus]

5. I have a g-mail account now and have YET to get any junk mail.

AOL was never good at filtering out the spam. It just amazes me that I have paid for this for 8 years and now I am being offered the exact same service for free.

[Viva_La_Revolution]

8. their customers are dropping them left and right

because they have finally realized they are being ripped off and monitored.

On edit: since you are keeping their service may I suggest you do not click on the AOL icon to get on the web, go with your internet explorer, it takes you straight to the web without having to go through their portal.

[libnnc]

11. we canceled earlier this year

and had been customers for over 10 years. They gave us a song and dance about accessing our email for free but I was skeptical. Now my SO uses yahoo and I use our Time Warner Cable email account. I just loathe AOL.

[oneighty]

6. One of our fellow DUers

Has an offer of six months 'FREE'. AOL has somehow gained access to their checking account and took money to pay for the first two months of that 'FREE' time.

A real problem this here 'FREE'AOL stuff.

180

[im10ashus]

7. That's what I am wondering.

When will the other shoe drop? I can't wait to see if they continue to charge my account. I will be LIVID my friends. :-)

[fknobbit]

9. Not so fast

If you used a credit card AOL is still in your pocket and remain there I canceled three months straight and finally had to cancel the card to get away from them

[Lost-in-FL]

10. Oh goodness... don't fall for it!

AOL is like the mafia, once you are in it takes a lot to get rid of them. I went through hell to end my service with them. Even cursing them out won't. It was a nightmare to stop my service !

[Jack from Charlotte]

13. Might I recommend....

If you want a top notch cheap dial up..... Highstream.net

I've used it sveral years with zero problems. Costs about $10 per month. Was highly recommended by a computer/net web site.

[JitterbugPerfume]

14. beware of AOL

I had to change my credit card number to get rid of them, They then somehow got into my checking account and it cost me $57 to get rid of them . I do not know how they got my banking information



THEY ARE EVIL

[lisa58]

16. They did that to me years ago....

...after a dispute over paying full price after I got broadband. After I dropped them completely they called and offered it for free. I told them they should have offered that three phone calls ago. Never looked back.

[Heddi]

19. oh, don't do it

Every. Single. Person. I know that has signed up with AOL has had to go through 10,000 hoops to get the motherfuckers to stop charging them.

About 8 years ago, hubby and I had gotten a computer and had internet for the first time. We did the 500 free hours with AOL. Great. It was free. For 500 hours. Not bad. We had a 28.8 dialup so it's not like you could do heavy surfing, even in those times.

AOL asked for the credit card in case we went over the 500. No problemo.

After a few weeks, I was just totally not impressed with AOL and cancelled the service WELL before we reached the 500 hour limit. WELL before. I think our account showed we had been on for MAYBE 50 hours, AT THE MOST.

So we cancel. We get a cancellation number.

The following month we get a charge for $24 on our credit card.

Called the bank and they said we had to get it resolved through AOL. Well, that was less fun than sticking hot pokers in your eyes for sure. Honestly we were on the phone with these yahoos for about 3 hours, getting transferred from here to there. Finally got someone who said that they had proof we were on the computer THAT VERY DAY about 10 minutes earlier. I said no way. We uninstalled the fucking program after the first week and threw away the CD. Got transferred again and was told the amount would be credited, yar yar yar.

Next month - $24 charge from AOL.

Went through the bank this time and told them it was fraud and the bank lady made an audible groan and said what a pain in the ass it was dealing with AOL because they get tons of these calls EVERY MONTH and she couldn't figure out why that crummy business was still allowed to operate since what they was doing was clearly illegal.

Next month : $24 charge from AOL.

This happened SIX FUCKING TIMES. We were able to get all the charges removed, and finally after a very terse email and series of phone calls to AOL, they stopped billing us.

---

Fast forward about 3 years later. We were in a new place and didn't have internet. Did the AOL thing again (stupid). Same thing happened and it was even harder to get it taken off the credit cards. Finally did, and have pshawed AOL ever since.

---

My mom got AOL free for a year when she bought her computer. Like always, they ask for the CC # so they can bill you if you go above and beyond your year. Well, about 11 months into the thing, she just goes ahead and cancels. Tell her she has to at least have AOL on her computer for that next month and just not use it and they can't cancel the account until the 12th month. no problemo. 12th month rolls around and seh called again to cancel. No problem. You're done. Thanks for being a customer. yada yada yada.

Well, my mom isn't the greatest when it comes to looking over her credit card bill---about 3 years afterwards (yes, 3 years) she looks at her CC bill and sees a charge for $24 from AOL. Goes back through CC bills and sees $24 charges every month for the last X amount of time that she has old bills. Calls the CC company-they say AOL has been billing her for $24 every month since the month after seh cancelled. She was able to get about a years worth of charges wiped off, but had to bite the other 2 years for being an idiot and not looking at her statement occasionally for a 2 year period.

---
Like the bank lady, I don't see how AOL can continue to be in business after their repeatedly documented bad business practices. What they do is (in my mind) fraud and they KNOWINGLY continue to bill people PURPOSEFULLY and they know most people won't go through the bullshit necessary to get ONE $24 charge removed here, or another $19 charge there. How much money have they gotten from these illegal means?

I know there are local businesses that credit card companies refuse to do business with because they have such horrible business practices, overcharge, double charge, etc, and so after so many complaints, MC & visa just refuse to allow their cards to be used at these stores. Why don't they do the same for AOL???