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not getting refund for domain
Hi,
I'd like your advice and opinions on something.
I went to a certain webhosting company to purchase an IDN domain name. An availability check on their domain register form showed that the domain was available (which we'll come back to soon). I duly purchased the domain, read their terms and conditions (which we'll also come back to soon) and deposited the sum of €50 into their account. Within seconds their bot emails me my invoice and login details. Five minutes later I receive another email from them.
Dear Sir or Madam,
best thanks for your order.
Unfortunately your desired domain name
DomainIChose.idn ... xn--DomainPuny.idn
is not available for new registration now.
Reason stated by the registry:
"
This domain name already exists.
"
Therefore we offer you to choose an alternative domain name at .idn
Your account will be reconfigured at no additional cost on good will.
Please inform us about your desired alternative domain name at .idn
within 7 days through a support request in CustomerCenter,
item Support | Request Support
________________________________
Five minutes after putting €50 in their, I am now €50 out of pocket. The domain that their site said was available, evidently isn't. But, hey, I can choose another domain in the same extension within seven days and they won't actually charge me another €50 for it, which kind and human altruism they call "good will."
I submit a support ticket and tell them that I don't want another domain name, that domain name was the only one I wanted in that extension and in any extension at the moment and I would like a refund... and the fun begins. I receive an email back telling me I cannot have a refund because I accepted their terms and conditions, but I can cancel my account for no refund. How nice of them. The email goes on to cite the following moneygrubbing, blackhearted, pseudolegal garbage in their terms and conditions which makes it okay for this company to whilst acting as an registry intermediary receive money from a client and then... simply keep it... if the registry doesn't have the name.
11. The event that a domain cannot be registered or assigned does not constitute
a supply failure, short delivery or non-delivery of ThisParticularCompany.Net©. Thus the customer is not entitled to a refund and / or compensation. Non-assignment of the desired domain name by the registry to the customer merely means, that the contract between the customer and the registry covering the license of a domain name does not take effect. ThisParticularCompany.Net©'s domain service exclusively covers services for the technical operation of a domain name (Domain Name Service, DNS) as well as the creation and submission of the application to the relevant registry and remains unaffected by non-assignment of the desired domain name. In this case the customer refrains from requesting receivables due to non-execution of services.
[...]
13. The event that the desired domain name is already assigned elsewhere does
not constitute a supply failure, short delivery or non-delivery of ThisParticularCompany.Net©.
Thus the customer is not entitled to a refund and / or compensation. In this case
the customer refrains from requesting receivables due to non-execution of services. ThisParticularCompany.Net© may suggest an alternative domain name in the same namespace to
the customer, but is not required to do so.
[...]
20. The domain service of ThisParticularCompany.Net© includes services for the technical operation of a domain name (Domain Name Service, DNS) as well as the creation and submission of the application at the relevant registry.
________________________________
I read through their TOS when I purchased the domain and the above didn't stand out. The domain showed as available on their site and I duly purchased it on that wise.
I email them back that indeed the event that a domain cannot be registered or assigned DOES constitute a COMPLETE supply failure, short delivery or non-delivery of ThisParticularCompany.Net, along with other cordial comments. Nothing. No response. The usual from this type. I haven't had a chance to follow this up for the last while but now I'm very back on it and I emailed them again that I'm going to cancel the account and I want a refund. I receive the same bs as above and also this --
In case of a cancellation there is no refund, as we do not charge registration fees (this can only be dome by the registry itself) but we charge for our domain service, which includes the technical operation of a certain domain name (dns service) and the filing and submission of the application to the registry.
__________________________
Okay, so basically buying a domain from this company is like gambling. You pay them your money for a domain that their site shows as available, if it's available, you win; if it's not, you lose and your money stays in their pockets. You might as well go to your local casino and put €50 on black or red because that's what dealing with this company is like. Whatever you pay for a domain, if it's not available, that's the amount they'll keep for "the technical operation."
I'd be curious to see what you guys think of this. Is there any legality in the above terms and conditions? To me, it's absolute garbage. It's like I go to my friend and say to him, "Is your next door neighbor's lawnmower still available?" He goes, "Yeah." I say, "Okay, here's the money. He's your buddy, I don't know him, go and get it for me." A little while later he comes back and goes, "Actually, it's not available but I'm keeping your money anyway." That's exactly what this is. If I walk into a car showroom, browse their catalog, choose a car and pay them for it, they can't come back the next day and say, "Sorry, actually the car you wanted isn't available from the manufacturer, but we're just going to keep your money anyway." They refund me. I have no dealings with the manufacturer, I'm paying the showroom for the car and if I have not received the product I paid them for. Just because something is in your TOS doesn't make it legal. You can put you have the right to torch someone's house in your TOS and it doesn't mean you won't spend the next 20 behind bars for arson with the judge laughing at you as you tell him "but it's in our terms and conditions that we can torch people's houses." To me, this is theft... and btw the domain still shows as available on their website.
Would really appreciate your thoughts on this.
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