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Disclaimer: This post was drafted with the assistance of ChatGPT to help organize and clearly present the facts. The situation described is 100% real and reflects my current experience navigating a contractual dispute with GoDaddy.
Any feedback, positive or otherwise, is truly appreciated and will be respectfully considered as this matter moves forward.
I’m sharing this to warn others about a serious breach of contract involving GoDaddy’s Lease-to-Own program.
Background
GoDaddy’s Role
This situation exposes a deep vulnerability in GoDaddy’s Lease-to-Own system:
If you’ve had a similar experience or have advice, I’d appreciate hearing from you.
Any feedback, positive or otherwise, is truly appreciated and will be respectfully considered as this matter moves forward.
I’m sharing this to warn others about a serious breach of contract involving GoDaddy’s Lease-to-Own program.
Background
- I entered into a Lease-to-Own agreement through GoDaddy, with a total purchase price of $1,995 split over 18 monthly payments.
- I had already made 7 successful payments, on time and in full.
- The contract clearly stated a 12-day grace period beyond the monthly due date before repossession or termination would occur.
- My credit card expired, and while I was waiting for a replacement, I proactively contacted GoDaddy via chat on May 18, confirming I still had time to pay.
- Their representative explicitly told me I had until May 20 to make the payment and retain the domain.
- On May 20, I attempted to make the payment — but the domain had already been removed from my account, despite this being the same day of the month my previous payment had successfully drafted.
GoDaddy’s Role
- Acknowledged that I contacted them within the grace period, yet still failed to uphold the lease terms.
- Took no meaningful steps to protect me, despite being the platform processing the payments and enabling the agreement.
- Failed to hold the seller accountable, effectively siding with the party that violated the spirit (and likely the letter) of the agreement.
This situation exposes a deep vulnerability in GoDaddy’s Lease-to-Own system:
- There is no meaningful buyer protection, even when you follow the rules.
- Sellers can reclaim domains and reprice them astronomically without recourse.
- GoDaddy’s platform gives you the illusion of security, but offers zero enforcement when something goes wrong.
- I am evaluating legal action for breach of contract and damages.
- And I’m sharing this publicly so others don’t fall into the same trap.
- After 11 years with GoDaddy & hundreds of thousands of dollars transacted with them, I have moved all ~3,300 domains to a new provider. GoDaddy’s price gouging & unethical practices have become out of hand the past 12-24 months, IMO.
If you’ve had a similar experience or have advice, I’d appreciate hearing from you.
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