Register.com Frustration

**Lazycash** · 08-22-2002, 01:07 PM

I have been trying to transfer two domains away from register.com to registerfly.com and I'm going nuts. Each time I initiate the transfer with registerfly.com I end up getting a transfer rejected notice about a week later. All the info at both registrars is exactly the same and I confirm the emails sent from registerfly. However, after a few phone calls with register.com, it seems they tell me I never responded to their confirm emails. Well I never received any from them even though their renewal notices show up in my email just fine.

This week I initiated my third transfer in hopes of finally taking care of this. I have been on the phone with register.com and have told them to send me a manual email confirm as soon as they get the transfer request. After three days, they are telling me they haven't gotten the transfer request even though registerfly has told me that it was sent early in the week. I'm pissed and not sure what's going on. After reading this section, I see that register.com doesn't have a very good rep and are probably lying to me as I suspected.

These domains expire in two weeks and I'm not about to let them drop nor pay $35/yr to renew them. Although, at this point I think I might have to as I obviously can't prove that register.com is lying to me. One party says the transfer was initiated and they tell me they haven't received it. I guess I'll keep bugging them in hopes that it shows up and then have them manually send me an email confirm to complete the transfer. Has anyone else had this problem with them?

Barry

**GeorgeK** · 08-22-2002, 01:14 PM

Barry: do you have control over the email that appears for the admin contact in the current WHOIS? If it's invalid, you might not be getting the proper emails to do the transfer.

**Lazycash** · 08-22-2002, 01:19 PM

Yep, I have control over the email and I receive register.com's renewal notices just fine in the email account. I have confirmed my whois info for all contacts for each domain and the email is correct. At this point, I don't believe they ever sent the confirm emails, thus I wasn't able to approve the transfer and they then could reject it with registerfly.com. I figured I'd just get on the phone with them and make them manually send the email. Well I can't even do that now cause they are claiming they didn't receive the latest transfer request done three days ago. It's like they have a way out each time in order to avoid losing the domains.

Barry

**DotComster** · 08-22-2002, 02:32 PM

2 weeks is a tight squeaze.

I like registerFly - but if it does not go thru this time try another. You can transfer the domain to them latter if you want.

For register.com it might be best to go with GoDaddy.com or StarGateInc.com next time. Even if you do not like them - you'll get the register.com $12 renewal offer that all transfer requests get.

**Lazycash** · 08-22-2002, 02:37 PM

Hmmm, that's an idea, I have a few domains with GoDaddy. So you are telling me that if I try and transfer them there that register.com sends out an offer for $12 renewal? Heck at this point I'd be thrilled with that.

Barry

**Who-Wiz** · 08-23-2002, 06:48 AM

Just FYI, keep on the look out for an e-mail with the subject and info:

----------------------
From: <customersupport@register.com>
To: <info@who-wiz.com>
Sent: Friday, August 23, 2002 2:11 AM
Subject: Your Registrar Transfer Request
----------------------
This message is to confirm your request to transfer the
registrar for the domain name(s) below from register.com to
another registrar. We hope you'll reconsider and renew your
domain name with register.com for an additional year for the
special promotional price of only $12!

Don't miss out on the benefits register.com is committed to
providing you, including:

SUPERIOR CUSTOMER SERVICE. Customer service is of paramount
importance at register.com, and our goal is to help our
customers with their domain name needs every step of the way,
24 hours a day.

EASY MANAGEMENT of all aspects of your online presence. With
our Domain Manager(TM), you can make changes to your Web site
and account whenever you want to!

CUTTING EDGE TOOLS AND SERVICES. We are continually developing
products to meet your growing domain name needs. Your success
is our goal! With every domain name registered with
register.com, you get personalized email, a customized multi
page Web site, URL forwarding and more!

A TERRIFIC VALUE. Comparable packages will cost you much more
at other registrars!
Network Solutions: $129
NameSecure: $64.95
Registrars.com: $59.95

Please click the link below each domain name to renew your
registration with register.com.

your-domain-name-here.com
https://secure.register.com/renewals...2051e9d4bdd642

YOUR TRANSFER(S) WILL NOT BE COMPLETED UNLESS YOU AUTHORIZE
THE TRANSFER(S) BY August 25, 2002 5:00 PM EST. If you'd
like to proceed with your transfer(s), please use the reply
link(s) below to authorize the transfer(s). Click on each
link or copy and paste into your browser window. In the event
that you do not authorize your transfer(s) by the date noted
above and you wish to transfer your domain name(s), you will
need to reinitiate the transfer through the registrar to which
you wish to transfer.

your-domain-name-here.com
http://register.com/t/?c=7a261234cc2...a8ca95b1d5d5c6

If you have any further questions, please contact
register.com.

Customer Support
register.com, inc.
http://www.register.com
----------------------

\\ The Wiz //

**blasterz** · 08-24-2002, 11:31 PM

I've been having the same problem with them. You might try changing your admin email address before each retry. It looks like they may just make one (perhaps half-hearted) attempt to send with no retries.

I've not had this kind of problem with them is the past.

Their customer service was not helpful in resolving the issue, but they would probably assist you in the $12 renewals if you are running out of time.

**Lazycash** · 08-25-2002, 10:50 PM

Well today I got confirmation from Registerfly that the domains in question had been successfully transferred to them. What is extremely odd is that I never received any email asking me to confirm the transfer from Register.com. As of Friday, I still had not received the emails that register.com says they send before transfer and after my 7th phone call to them I was beginning to lose hope. Then all of a sudden a get a notice from registerfly that the domains were transferred.

This whole thing was really weird and it seems quite evident to me that after a few phone calls to register.com *****ing about how they were doing things, suddenly the transfers go through. I had not changed any whois info with them and did the previous failed transfers the exact same way as this last one.

It just appears to me that they arbitrarily decide to reject transfers in their system. Their employees on the phone seemed to want to help. However, even five days after the last transfer was initiated with registerfly.com, register.com phone support was telling me they had not received any transfer request at all. It was bs that I kept receiving their renewal notices in my email, but never once received a transfer request confirmation. I'm just glad I finally have the domains transferred and will never do biz with register.com again.

Barry

**AMERICAR** · 08-25-2002, 11:00 PM

Register.Com, has a very tricky transfer confirmation.

When you do click on the link, you may think that you have completed the transfer ... But you have not !

If you do not scrol to the left you will not see the confirm transfer
button, which you must click on .. then repeat the same process again .. because there is a .. are you sure that you want to do this button next.

If you do not hit that button the transfer will fail.

.

**Lazycash** · 08-25-2002, 11:15 PM

Well thats just it, I never got that confirmation, NEVER. I checked my email constantly and never received it, thats why I am baffled that the transfer went through cause I never received or clicked anything. During this last week I kept calling them via phone and asking if the transfer had shown up in their system so they could do a manual email send and I could confirm it. Yet after 5 days of initiating the transfer for the third time, they were claiming they still hadn't received it even though registerfly had told me they had put it through days ago.

I just think I *****ed to enough people at register.com that when it finally showed in their system that they authorized it without any email confirm. It does make me wonder though how ez it would have been to hijack a domain since they authorized a transfer without doing any email confirm. They never once made me give any info over the phone that would confirm who I was other than my name and phone number which was easily found in the whois.

Barry

**David G** · 08-27-2002, 11:26 AM

Originally posted by Lazycash ...I have been trying to transfer two domains ... These domains expire in two weeks and I'm not about to let them drop nor pay $35/yr to renew them... Barry

You may have to pay the high renewal fees! This transfer impossibilty happens at several registrars, the worst being NetSol. They do everything possible to make the transfer as difficult as possible, I assume to keep the names.

I spent ages trying to transfer one of my best names from NetSol to OpenSRS, involving dozens of attempts and zillions of hrs of time spent on it spread out over 2-ys, all to no avail.

Finally at the last minute was forced to renew at $35-yr on the expiry date or else would have lost the name. This also happened on some other domains too.

What makes this so odd is how in the world do thiefs steal NetSol domains when a legitimate change of ownership or transfer is virtually impossible?

We all need to complain to ICANN and the US Dept of Commerce about this but the problem is they seem to do nothing about it.

hosting3.com · 08-30-2002, 10:28 AM

watch out..if your domain name is too close to expiration it can't be transfered away.... I think the period is 2 weeks or even more..

08-30-2002, 12:15 PM

Originally posted by hosting3.com
watch out..if your domain name is too close to expiration it can't be transfered away.... I think the period is 2 weeks or even more..

There is no ICANN restriction on how close to expiration a domain can be transferred, however there are some registrar Terms of Service that stipulate terms you agreed to when you registered the domain.

We regularly get people trying to transfer their domains to us with less than 10 days on the registration. It can be a painful process when the losing registrar rejects the transfer on some technicality and the domain has to be renewed, wait 45 days, and then transferred - but there is no ICANN or Registry requirement that a domain cannot be transferred within the last two weeks of a registration period.

-t

08-30-2002, 01:09 PM

Originally posted by RealNames
We all need to complain to ICANN and the US Dept of Commerce about this but the problem is they seem to do nothing about it.

This is an excellent suggestion, RealNames. Let me add a little to that...

If Dan is agreeable, perhaps he and the mods can put together an appropriate statement, put forth by the DNForum, signed by concerned members. All who support the statement could add their names and contact info, and in conjunction with the statement being sent to the appropriate organizations and individuals, a press release can be drafted and sent to media.

This is the sort of thing that can get media attention. And someone like Dan or safe takes on spokesperson duties, domainers may finally get a voice.

Dan...what do you think about this idea. I'd be happy to add my name to a statement of this sort, and I believe a lot of other DNF members would as well.

Miles

08-30-2002, 03:52 PM

Originally posted by hosting3.com
watch out..if your domain name is too close to expiration it can't be transfered away.... I think the period is 2 weeks or even more..

did anyone try renew domain first, after transfered, call credit card company and deny paymend ?