Domain a/c terminated - solutions?

[DomainSalesAgent]

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[M90]

1&1 suck.

They are a complete NIGHTMARE to deal with. If you forget to pay for one domain, your entire account is suspended till you cough up. It's easy to forget, especially with their 'In Writing' cancellation policy.

Your options are limited. If you are able to pay off the account with the debt collection agency, you may get your account reinstated long enough to transfer your domains out but my own experience was that regardless of paying off the agency and squaring the account, my domains did not transfer to the other registrar. Apparently, it 'took too long' or something to that effect.

Don't hold your breath.

[Anthony Ng]

Sorry to hear about your story, but it also reminds me again NOT to put my eggs in one basket (i.e. domain names and Hosting). By the way, I still haven't used my *free* 3-year hosting plan at 1 & 1, but I doubt I would ever use it at all.

[DomainSalesAgent]

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[actnow]

I still haven't used my *free* 3-year Hosting plan at 1 & 1, but I doubt I would ever use it at all.

I had two free 3 yr hosting plans.

I, also, had no intentions of using it.

A couple months ago, a non-profit organization in which I am an officer needed
hosting.

So, I gave them one of the accts.

They were delighted.

For the guys that have been in the domain business for a while will remember
a number of years ago when the hosting companies wanted to control the
domains.

A lot of GREAT domains were lost by the owners because of the hosting companies
controlling the domain.

Never let a hosting company control your domains.

[Dave Zan]

Can the registrar who is, after all, only an AGENT confiscate all your assets?

Domain names are so unique, aren't they?

Anyway, the answer is yes. They can actually take all your domain names for
any reason they see fit: they just do so within reasonable limits.

Although "best business practices" exist, how one industry does things isn't
isn't necessarily handled the same way by another. There are variations.

But remember the most important thing: none of us can ever own a domain
name outright no matter what. We only lease them from the registrar.

So if your lease expires and you don't pay up on time, you lose it.

Sure they can take your money and restore access to those domains if they
want to. But they can also choose to refuse, and that's what their "right of
refusal" clauses are for.

Am I not entitled to certain 'basic' rights under contract law because of this - regardless of the inequitability of the TOS ?

Ideally you agree to the contract the moment you register the domain name in
their systems and you check the box beside the "I have read the TOS/service
agreement and agree to its terms". In reality, you can challenge that.

But challenging it is one thing, winning is another.

Bottom line: you lose all rights once your domain expires, and the registrar has
no obligation whatsoever to you when that happens.