The Shit Companies Blog

In Part 1 I detailed the saga of trying to gain an online login to my Amazon Credit card account in order to settle the first bill (which I have STILL not even received a copy of), which eventually I gave up on achieving and cancelled the card as a result.

In Part 2 I detailed how Amazon did nothing to help and instead screwed up my normal Amazon login. To date the associates account still does not work, but I’ve been leaving off placing the international call to Amazon customer services for fear that they will screw something else up more important.

In this Part 3, I detail how to my utter surprise, I can not break free from the Amazon credit card (a Halifax, Mastercard and Affinity Cards combined offering) and instead I am receiving daily harassment by phone and mounting charges, all completely unwarranted and there appears to be nothing I can do except blog about the experience. I feel so much pity for those in a lesser position (the elderly Etc.) needing to deal with these scum bags.

In Part 1 it was very clear that I cancelled the card on the 24^th August 2006 after the very first bill and for good reasons. It is also very clear in Part 1 that I went to every effort to ensure it was cancelled including being forced to make international calls to pay 53 pence (around 99 US cents) by bank transfer after the first agent I tried to cancel with gave the wrong final balance and the second agent (ironically the customer retention agent) would not waiver the 53 pence.

I’m abroad (outside the UK) most of the time. I’ve set the UK mobile voicemail to say do not try reaching me on my UK mobile number and instead redial a UK fixed line number which diverts to me (courtesy of Skype In) otherwise if I take the call I am hit with the extortionate O2 incoming international mobile call rates/minute.

It was therefore somewhat unusual that sometime in the week beginning the 9^th October that my UK phone would ring once or twice a day with no caller ID and that the caller then did not bother following the voicemail instructions. By Sunday (yes Sunday) 15^th October 2006 I was getting fed up with the daily ringing (often multiple times a day) with no caller ID and decided to answer and to absorb the call rate to find out who it was.

It was Halifax in relation to the Amazon credit card. I said that I did not have an account with them and had not done for months, had cleared the balance in full the very first month so there could be no reason to be calling me. But the lady argued that I was due money and said she must take me thru security. I asked her to follow the instructions on the voicemail and dial my fixed line number otherwise I would be facing double digit charges for the call. She agreed but never did call! Going my her attitude it was fairly clear she was not going to bother calling the right number and I was left with the impression she had a list of numbers to dial down and was more interested in clearing numbers than issues.

Every day the UK mobile would ring, often multiple times a day until the 21^st October 2006 when I happened to be in the UK. I answered and again it was the Halifax. It was an African woman who had a very poor grasp of the English language. She claimed that I was due 40.97GBP including a late payment fee. I said that I could not be due any money as I had categorically cancelled the card and paid in full on the 24^th August. I explained my efforts to cancel the card after the first month but she could only keep repeating in a rude fashion that I was due 40.97GBP. I asked for a manager and she said one was not available. She said one would call me back. I stressed how important it was to call me on the right number (fixed line) and was assured a manager would call me back on it. I registered a complaint that a) I was not due money as I had cancelled the card and had still not seen a bill b) that they stop ringing the UK mobile and contact me on the proper number.

By the 23^rd October I was getting very sick of my UK mobile still ringing (I was back out of the country) and nobody from the Halifax had called the fixed line number. So I called up the Halifax up (international) and spoke with a Micheal Flynn. He sounded reasonable and I repeated the story to him. He explained that sometime after I cancelled the card NCP car parks had decided to claim backdated money against the card number and the Halifax had decided to honour it. He said the time they had taken to do this was unusual and that he supported my case. I said I was still quite happy to pay this item even though it was a great inconvenience since they (Halifax operating the Amazon Mastercard) don’t take telephone payments, their Internet site does not work and it would be my third bank transfer trying to clear the damn thing, but they must remove any late payment fee. He said that he understood where I was coming from but they did not have the power to reverse fees and that somebody else would call me in complaints. He registered a second complaint and said that I should expect a call. I stressed not to call the UK mobile, to call the fixed line and failing that call an alternative number in the country where I am based. I requested a copy of the bill since to date I’ve never received a single bill, relying instead on phone conversations to establish the details.

Yesterday (24^th October) the UK mobile seemed to ring like mad again with no caller ID so I knew it would be the Halifax. This is unreal since I’ve called them internationally twice to say ring a different number if you are calling and told them before when they called me to ring a different number. I fully suspect now that their phone barrage which resulted in me answering the UK mobile a few times to them will have caused me a greater bill than their erinaceous yet outstanding late fee. Eventually on the 24^th I gave in again and answered the phone at 17:25pm UK time. I asked the girl’s name in order that I can begin to track down who is doing the screwing up. The girl said “Lisa” and I asked for more details, like call center or extension but she refused. I asked that she call the correct number/s and she said she could not take them as I had not cleared security. I had they were already on file as I had already lodged a complaint twice this week that they are dialing the wrong number. She had the typical Amazon Halifax Mastercard attitude of “don’t give a shit, this is all fun and games” and hung up. As expected she never did call the right number/s back.

I fired this email off to Amazon after the call:

24 October

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I want someone senior to contact me. Otherwise I have no option now but to seek Internet and other media exposure. Please do not reply with cover blankets Etc.

After my first month with the Amazon credit card I cancelled it for good reasons which I have previously detailed. Leaving these issues aside I can not stop the barrage of harassment I am receiving daily over this card.

It is in everyone’s interest that this is sorted out. I’ve been dealing with this issue since 21 August and we are nearly into November.

Please don’t tell me to call customer services Etc. We are way beyond that point. Please have someone senior ring me any day after mid day on +43 6507417316. (that is 0043x from the UK).

Failing this I will promptly and effectively seek great exposure via various media outlets and will involve appropriate regulating 3^rd parties.

Summary so far: I cancelled Amazon credit card back in August after the first bill (although bill still has not been received) as the online login would never work (making Internet payments impossible), and they would not take payments over the phone. Amazon’s only contribution was to screw up my independent Amazon login. Now out of the blue months later I am receiving daily harassment calls (sometimes multiple) from Halifax demanding money which I feel utterly helpless to stop without giving in and paying their unwarranted late payment fee. I am also utterly helpless waiting for my complaints to be dealt with by having a manager call me back on the right number. It is worth noting that I’ve asked twice now that the issue is resolved in writing instead of phone and this was refused.