Buyer Beware with GoDaddy coupons - current scam

[Joe Styler]

I wanted to point out something that has been more and more commonplace on NamePros in hopes of helping protect domain buyers. Here's what has been happening:

Someone on NamePros posts or advertises in their signature that they can register domains for you at GoDaddy cheaply, say for $3.99 or so per .com. Or they offer to register it for you for less than the price of normal registration which with the Domain Discount Club is currently, $8.47. You pay them directly and they register the domain name for you and then push it to your account. Everything seems great until a few days later our fraud department repossesses the domain name from your account and you cannot get the domain name back or your money back from the people who offered to buy you the domain for less than cost. This is if you even get the domain name in the first place.

I have been getting privately contacted by several people concerned about this exact issue lately who have had bad results when trying this in one way or another.

Basically what is happening is people are abusing coupons we offer for brand new customers. They are meant to help someone get their new business off the ground for the first year and made to only be used once per new account. There are several ways people are trying to abuse them and they are monitored and stopped up front in most cases, which would result in you paying someone less than the registration price, them not being able to get you the domain because we catch them trying to misuse the coupons and them just keeping your money.

The other way where they slip under the radar and actually register a new domain name cheaply and move it to you winds up with them being caught after the fact in which case we repossess the domain name they misused the coupon for. When this happens the person you paid to register the domain name has to contact us and clear things up and they would have to refund you the money you paid them since you never paid us we do not have your money. The reason I am being contacted is because obviously the person taking your money is not going to give it back to you when the domain name is taken out of your account.

Bottom line is this is against our rules of the coupon use and we do not want anyone to unknowingly be taken advantage of by someone misusing the coupons. If it sounds too good to be true it probably is.

 

[DNGear]

Thanks clarifying @Joe Styler @DomainerY @steitieh
is there any chance of coupons for domainers in future??

Swetha

 

[Joe Styler]

From time to time we offer coupons for less than our cost but that is rare. The best price we give consistently is the $8.37 a year on .com with the domain discount club.

 

[DomainerY]

I didn't run any service, I have used that service for few domains
I was unaware about consequences
Thanks for telling us @Joe Styler
You saved us all

 

[steitieh]

I was "Saved" by the bell - The email of the service provider was publicly listed. It also seemed a little odd to me as he was very insistent and sent me 5+ emails per day - and took the price down from $5 to $3.5 claiming he has a coupon for each $ Value Segment -

I was literally about to give him a list of 100+ domain in about an hour from now!

I was also about to ask GoDaddy why would people get better prices than us (Holding the discount Club status - my Rep. in GD sold me 5 years of the membership ahead of time!)

 

[Joe Styler]

I was "Saved" by the bell - The email of the service provider was publicly listed. It also seemed a little odd to me as he was very insistent and sent me 5+ emails per day - and took the price down from $5 to $3.5 claiming he has a coupon for each $ Value Segment -

I was literally about to give him a list of 100+ domain in about an hour from now!

I was also about to ask GoDaddy why would people get better prices than us (Holding the discount Club status - my Rep. in GD sold me 5 years of the membership ahead of time!)

I am glad to hear that. My hope was to help protect people with the post.

 

[deez007]

Yikes man....thanks for the heads up Joe.

 

[DNGear]

I am glad to hear that. My hope was to help protect people with the post.

Those who bought already, is there any solution to save their domains??

Luckily, i did not buy any.:D

 

[alcy]

I wanted to point out something that has been more and more commonplace on NamePros in hopes of helping protect domain buyers. Here's what has been happening:

Someone on NamePros posts or advertises in their signature that they can register domains for you at GoDaddy cheaply, say for $3.99 or so per .com. Or they offer to register it for you for less than the price of normal registration which with the Domain Discount Club is currently, $8.37. You pay them directly and they register the domain name for you and then push it to your account. Everything seems great until a few days later our fraud department repossesses the domain name from your account and you cannot get the domain name back or your money back from the people who offered to buy you the domain for less than cost. This is if you even get the domain name in the first place.

I have been getting privately contacted by several people concerned about this exact issue lately who have had bad results when trying this in one way or another.

Basically what is happening is people are abusing coupons we offer for brand new customers. They are meant to help someone get their new business off the ground for the first year and made to only be used once per new account. There are several ways people are trying to abuse them and they are monitored and stopped up front in most cases, which would result in you paying someone less than the registration price, them not being able to get you the domain because we catch them trying to misuse the coupons and them just keeping your money.

The other way where they slip under the radar and actually register a new domain name cheaply and move it to you winds up with them being caught after the fact in which case we repossess the domain name they misused the coupon for. When this happens the person you paid to register the domain name has to contact us and clear things up and they would have to refund you the money you paid them since you never paid us we do not have your money. The reason I am being contacted is because obviously the person taking your money is not going to give it back to you when the domain name is taken out of your account.

Bottom line is this is against our rules of the coupon use and we do not want anyone to unknowingly be taken advantage of by someone misusing the coupons. If it sounds too good to be true it probably is.

thanks for headsup. I seen someone advertise it some days ago on namepros.
quite a few people seemed to show interest, but rest of us knew exactly how this would end. which is as you said it.

I wanted to ask you for small clarification though.. you say current price is 8.37 USD (inciuding all fees), however, I am and have been charged 8.47USD for past few months or so. was going to email you to ask if you had recent increase, but never got round to it. can you clarify it all here plz. thanks!

I attach picture of a new reg I made in fact just today.. to show you. as u suspsect.. same fee applies to .com renewals.

 

[steitieh]

thanks for headsup. I seen someone advertise it some days ago on namepros.
quite a few people seemed to show interest, but rest of us knew exactly how this would end. which is as you said it.

I wanted to ask you for small clarification though.. you say current price is 8.37 USD (inciuding all fees), however, I am and have been charged 8.47USD for past few months or so. was going to email you to ask if you had recent increase, but never got round to it. can you clarify it all here plz. thanks!

I attach picture of a new reg I made in fact just today.. to show you. as u suspsect.. same fee applies to .com renewals.

Show attachment 28437

Same here , $8.47

 

[Joe Styler]

Yes sorry that was a typo, should have hit 4 not 3, $8.47 is correct.

 

[alcy]

Yes sorry that was a typo, should have hit 4 not 3, $8.47 is correct.

oh ok.
am I correct in saying that no one has ever been notified of this increase? when roughly did it occur if I may ask?

and lastly, can you put to rest some of rumors I heard there is a price increase starting as soon as april15th of this year.. either way.

thanks!

 

[Joe Styler]

I am not aware of a price increase on .com in the past few years. I could be wrong on our domain discount club but I think it has been the same. I know we have no plans to raise the price on com soon. Verisign is not raising .com pricing this year.

 

[alcy]

I am not aware of a price increase on .com in the past few years. I could be wrong on our domain discount club but I think it has been the same. I know we have no plans to raise the price on com soon. Verisign is not raising .com pricing this year.

I think there is small misunderstanding.
when I asked you to confrim 8.47, I was saying that it has been 8.37 before
for a very very long time.

this is a relatively new increase. sadly I cannt pinpoint exactly the time. and thought you might be able to.

and now that you say what you say, perhaps it is altogether an error and the increase should not be there at all. feel free to check it please.

here is another reg of mine.. from jan9 2016

 

[Joe Styler]

It should be $8.47 for a long time back, years. But from time to time they have run a promotion for new registrations on DDC being a bit cheaper so it may have been part of a promotion which you would have automatically received if you owned the domain discount club (DDC).

 

[alcy]

It should be $8.47 for a long time back, years. But from time to time they have run a promotion for new registrations on DDC being a bit cheaper so it may have been part of a promotion which you would have automatically received if you owned the domain discount club (DDC).

that's possible.

maybe someone else can confirm.

as far as I can remember it has been 8.37 all through 2015. then 8.47 all through 2016 so far.

thank you for your help.

 

[Joe Styler]

that's possible.

maybe someone else can confirm.

as far as I can remember it has been 8.37 all through 2015. then 8.47 all through 2016 so far.

thank you for your help.

I asked in the office and that is what I was told. We have some big customers who buy/renew thousands of names at a time so 10 cents adds up for them and their account reps know all the pricing variabilities intimately. They let me know it has been 8.47 for years but sometimes there is a 8.37 promotion for new registrations not renewals.

 

[Nattydomain]

Hi Joe. This is something I forgot to ask you at the meetup last month. Why not have for every yearly membership of the Domain Club allocate say 5-10 .99 coupons we can use up for a years time while enrolled. I am sure this incentive alone could bring in more members who pay annually but also can still get some codes that will be for them and used by them only.

 

[Joe Styler]

Hi Joe. This is something I forgot to ask you at the meetup last month. Why not have for every yearly membership of the Domain Club allocate say 5-10 .99 coupons we can use up for a years time while enrolled. I am sure this incentive alone could bring in more members who pay annually but also can still get some codes that will be for them and used by them only.

That seems like a good idea to bring up to the marketing team. I will let them know.

 

[Recons.Com]

@Joe Styler

Why GD is adding tax? I am Texas resident, don't understand why you being in Arizona have to charge me that.

 

[Skyvisum]

Hi Joe. This is something I forgot to ask you at the meetup last month. Why not have for every yearly membership of the Domain Club allocate say 5-10 .99 coupons we can use up for a years time while enrolled. I am sure this incentive alone could bring in more members who pay annually but also can still get some codes that will be for them and used by them only.

Nice Point you have here.Godaddy should definitely give some form of incentives for sure.

 

[Joe Styler]

@Joe Styler

Why GD is adding tax? I am Texas resident, don't understand why you being in Arizona have to charge me that.

Short answer is because we have to. We only collect taxes we have to collect and we send them to the right authorities, in your case the state of Texas. Tax law is extremely segmented, complex and ever-changing. We have a team of accountants that deal only with that. If you feel there is an error you can contact your account rep with a receipt as an example and they can escalate it to a team here who handles taxes.

 

[iowadawg]

Move to Iowa then.
So far, I have never seen new regs or renewals taxed for me.

 

[SirDrago]

@Joe Styler
I sent you a PM can you please check it and get back to me?

 

[silentg]

Thanks for the heads up.