The Times -- a disgrace

[GoSeigen]

I've just been through an hour-long process trying to cancel my subscription to The Times and still now success! This is what I tried:

-Went to the subscription section of the online web site. There is no cancel function.
-Tried the same in the App. No cancel button.
-Updated the App to latest version, still no dice.
-Looked in their online help and clicked the link to cancel a subscription. It just went to a page with telephone contact numbers and an online chat facility.
-Used the online chat to issue the cancellation instruction. The agent refused to process it , instead demanding information about where I am, whether I am on holiday and insisting I call the UK number.

I've now sent an email of complaint to customer services but I'm shocked that with our consumer legislation and simple common sense about doing business that a large company like The Times can still treat an instruction to cancel with contempt.

I don't much like The Times anyway, but they have now ensured I will never touch one of their products again.


GS

[monabri]

I recently unsubscribed from The Telegraph as they were increasing the subs significantly from £29pa to £265pa. It wasn't easy. The unsubscribe instructions say that it can be done online but I'll be darned if I could find where even after following the instructions - some of the links to the unsubscribe page lead to links that returned to the original instruction page in a loop.

Having eventually unsubscribed by phoning their subscription line, I left it a week and then signed up again on a £29 pa rate.

[GoSeigen]

And now they have refused to process my emailed cancellation instruction! What a shower.

GS

[terminal7]

Does this not work?

https://www.thetimes.co.uk/account/cancel

T7

[DrFfybes]

I suggest a Strongly Worded Letter.

[simoan]

And now they have refused to process my emailed cancellation instruction! What a shower.

GS

How do they take payment? If DD, just cancel it.

[GoSeigen]

And now they have refused to process my emailed cancellation instruction! What a shower.

GS

How do they take payment? If DD, just cancel it.

Thanks, I've cancelled the payment instruction, and I did inform them that I'd do so and if they didn't like it they could take me to court. But why should just an ordinary customer with a subscription costing just £1 a month have to go to such lengths?

GS

[simoan]

How do they take payment? If DD, just cancel it.

Thanks, I've cancelled the payment instruction, and I did inform them that I'd do so and if they didn't like it they could take me to court. But why should just an ordinary customer with a subscription costing just £1 a month have to go to such lengths?

GS

You've made every effort and their cancellation process is wilfully difficult. They don't have a leg to stand on. Just stop paying them and they will get the message.

All the best, Si

[UncleEbenezer]

How do they take payment? If DD, just cancel it.

Thanks, I've cancelled the payment instruction, and I did inform them that I'd do so and if they didn't like it they could take me to court. But why should just an ordinary customer with a subscription costing just £1 a month have to go to such lengths?

GS

They could ignore court and send it to debt collectors, who will then be after you for payment.

Virgin Media did something similar to me: a succession of six or seven different debt collectors over about a year(ish). Each time I found a way to contact the debt collector and point them to documentary evidence (online) of my attempts to contact Virgin, whereupon I heard nothing more until it got passed to the next debt collector. Evidently the Heavies are much more reasonable than Virgin!

[Mike4]

Thanks, I've cancelled the payment instruction, and I did inform them that I'd do so and if they didn't like it they could take me to court. But why should just an ordinary customer with a subscription costing just £1 a month have to go to such lengths?

GS

They could ignore court and send it to debt collectors, who will then be after you for payment.

Virgin Media did something similar to me: a succession of six or seven different debt collectors over about a year(ish). Each time I found a way to contact the debt collector and point them to documentary evidence (online) of my attempts to contact Virgin, whereupon I heard nothing more until it got passed to the next debt collector. Evidently the Heavies are much more reasonable than Virgin!

When I wanted to cancel Sky I found similar, it was simply impossible as they had an answer to every possible reason for wanting to leave so after a bit of thought I took a different approach. I pressed the "moving house" option. This took me to a very helpful young man who wanted details etc of my new address so I explained (whilst concentrating on keeping a straight face) I was moving onto my boat with no Postcode, and I would be cruising the canals up and down the land and just needed them to come and fit a Sky dish on my boat please.

He was awfully disappointed to have to tell me it could not be done and Sky were going to cancel my subscription with immediate effect.

RESULT!!!

[DrFfybes]

When I wanted to cancel Sky I found similar, it was simply impossible as they had an answer to every possible reason for wanting to leave so after a bit of thought I took a different approach. I pressed the "moving house" option.

I did similar - I'd actually sold the house and moved in with MrsF, but forgot to cancel it.

I went through the questions - house sold, new property already has it, dont need to renew, and they said "Fine, all cancelled".
"Oh, I said, don't you want my name and address?".
"No, we got the info from the number you're calling from".
"You mean the landline I'm ringing from?"
"Yes"
"The one in the new house, as I've already told you the old house is sold and I've moved out?"
"Oh, hang on a minute Sir, I just need to make some adjustments".

The good news was MrsF was out of contract so they set us up for another 12 months with a £10/month discount

[RockRabbit]

I'm shocked that with our consumer legislation and simple common sense about doing business that a large company like The Times can still treat an instruction to cancel with contempt.

I don't much like The Times anyway, but they have now ensured I will never touch one of their products again.


GS

Similar to the Economist magazine. Very easy to set up a subscription online but the only official way to cancel is to 'discuss' with a representative by phone who then tries to persuade you not to cancel. As a result I'll never subscribe to the Economist again and I'm now pretty wary about any other UK publication.

NB This stupid cancellation system has helped trash the Economist magazine's reputation - currently only 1.3/5 on Trustpilot. The Economist clearly monitor (and respond to) their Trustpilot reviews, but appear to learn nothing from them!

[the0ni0nking]

Have never and will never subscribe to anything online.

If I want a newspaper, I'll go and buy a newspaper. If I want a magazine, I'll go and buy the magazine. I might only be 43 but I'm never going to be minded to replace physical print with an online version.

If anything, I enjoy having to scribble out my incorrect answers to the crossword/train tracks/sudoku or on a Saturday in Kids Corner the Spot the Difference or Wordsearch

[Lootman]

Have never and will never subscribe to anything online.

I am the same, except for free subscriptions of course.

I do have Amazon Prime and Netflix, although those are easy to cancel.

There is enough free media without giving my credit card or current account details to anyone.

[richfool]

I had a similar experience with the NTVLRO (TV licence records office) many years ago, when I had moved overseas and my ex wife was selling the matrimonial home. I said I no longer needed a licence and wanted a part refund, explaining that I now lived overseas. They then asked about my ex wife. I said, she was moving into temporary accommodation, pending buying another property, for which she would be purchasing a new licence at the appropriate time. They were suspicious about that.

They wouldn't give a refund, without me obtaining documentary evidence of the sale of the property, from my solicitor, which I had to get from the UK and then send to the NTVLRO.

In the OP's situation, I would just cancel the Direct Debit.

[UncleEbenezer]

I'm shocked that with our consumer legislation and simple common sense about doing business that a large company like The Times can still treat an instruction to cancel with contempt.

I don't much like The Times anyway, but they have now ensured I will never touch one of their products again.


GS

Similar to the Economist magazine. Very easy to set up a subscription online but the only official way to cancel is to 'discuss' with a representative by phone who then tries to persuade you not to cancel. As a result I'll never subscribe to the Economist again and I'm now pretty wary about any other UK publication.

NB This stupid cancellation system has helped trash the Economist magazine's reputation - currently only 1.3/5 on Trustpilot. The Economist clearly monitor (and respond to) their Trustpilot reviews, but appear to learn nothing from them!

I had no trouble unsubscribing from the Economist last year.

Mind you, that was my dad's subscription after his death. Their bereavement department was happy to cancel his subscription. And after that I got a lot of spam offering (him) a discount to re-subscribe.

[ukmtk]

They want you to phone so that they can dissuade you from leaving.
They normally offer a discounted rate to keep you as a subscriber.

[Gerry557]

I had a similar experience with the NTVLRO (TV licence records office) many years ago, when I had moved overseas and my ex wife was selling the matrimonial home. I said I no longer needed a licence and wanted a part refund, explaining that I now lived overseas. They then asked about my ex wife. I said, she was moving into temporary accommodation, pending buying another property, for which she would be purchasing a new licence at the appropriate time. They were suspicious about that.

They wouldn't give a refund, without me obtaining documentary evidence of the sale of the property, from my solicitor, which I had to get from the UK and then send to the NTVLRO.

In the OP's situation, I would just cancel the Direct Debit.

Yes it's difficult to get your TV licence money back.... even if you are dead. Most utilities were quite helpful. Often with dedicated bereavement lines. The water company even just cancelled everything once informed that the house was being sold and that there would be nothing further to pay. The TV licence were impossible.

[quelquod]

Yes it's difficult to get your TV licence money back.... even if you are dead.

Not my experience. When my brother in law died and his wife went into care I simply filled in the appropriate bits on the website, cancelled the DD and that was that. There’s been a steady stream of letters to his house reminding whoever lives there (no one yet) to get a new licence though.

[bungeejumper]

I had no trouble unsubscribing from the Economist last year.

Mind you, that was my dad's subscription after his death. Their bereavement department was happy to cancel his subscription. And after that I got a lot of spam offering (him) a discount to re-subscribe.

No trouble for me either**. Mind you, I had one of those three-years-for-£225 deals, or whatever it was, and when I stopped work I simply stopped renewing it. Yes, they sent me endless email offers to renew, none of which were exactly generous - but after about two years the tone of their desperate appeals started to fade away into hopelessness, and eventually they fell silent.

More recently, I bought a six month subscription for Gardeners' World magazine for about ten quid, and they were more than graceful when I cancelled just before the cheapo subscription was due to shift to full-price. The whole process was completed online in less than a minute. It's somehow reassuring these days when people behave decently.

BJ (**disclosure, sometime Economist freelance )