ComplaintsforPhotobucket.com, Inc.

• Initial Complaint

  03/25/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I have cancelled my account recently, however they still are charging me, after my cancellation and deletion of my account. They were charging my credit card and somehow have moved onto latch onto my Paypal, like parasites. I want my refund ASAP. I have found that I have had to cancel AGAIN as somehow they kept my account up and going. These practices are nothing short of dishonest and fraudulent.

  Business response

  03/28/2024

  Hi there,

  Thanks for your concern. We have reached out to the customer and please have them view their ticket number 6336604 so we can better assist them.

  Thank you.

  Customer response

  03/28/2024

   
  Complaint: 21486190
  
  I am rejecting this response because:

  Whatever ticket mentioned here doesn't exist, likewise with an ethical business model or website. 

  The website is so poorly designed that I cannot delete my payment method, or find aforementioned ticket. 

  
  Sincerely,
  
  ***********************

  Business response

  04/04/2024

  Hello there,
  
  Thanks for your response. Since the customer is using a Hotmail adddress, there is a chance that their email address is blocking our communication. Please advise the customer to check their Junk folder. The customer can also log into their account through our *********** and see their ticket.
  
  With the nature of their request, we will need to have them respond to our ticket.
  
  Thank you.

• Initial Complaint

  03/11/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Product Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Photobucket sent me several messages saying that my account was canceled and that I would need to pay to gain access to my photos. I did so. 3 days later I discovered a link on their help page stating that canceled accounts are eligible for 1 week free trial in order to download. I sent a message asking for a refund. They stated that I couldn't get one since it was more than 48 hours past subscription. I send a screenshot of the email showing that they didn't mention the free trial, and was still denied. I escalated to a supervisor and was still denied, saying they didn't have the power to refund and were not responsible for notifying people about the trial. I would like my $5.00 refunded and would like Photobucket to inform account holders of their options. I wonder how much money they have charged people for something they are offering for free?

  Business response

  03/15/2024

  Hi there,
  
  Thank you for your concern. On March 11, 2024, the customer contacted our Member Engagement Team to ask for a refund for their subscription.
  
  While we do understand they found a link to our free trial evaluation after purchasing a subscription, our Terms of Use state that a refund request must be made within 48 hours. The customer's subscription was purchased on March 8, 2024 so their request was outside of our refund policy.
  
  We will not be issuing a refund because of this. The customer has full access to their images until April 8, 2024, as this is when their subscription will expire. Once the subscription expires, their account will become deactivated.
  
  Here are our Terms of Use if this customer would like to review them:
  *********************************************************
  
  Please have the customer contact our Member Engagement Team if they have any further concerns.
  
  Thank you.

  Customer response

  03/15/2024

   
  Complaint: 21418931
  
  I am rejecting this response because:

  The reason I was not able to request this refund within 48 hours of purchasing the subscription is that I was not made aware that a free trial was an option. Had Photobucket indicated that it was, I would never have purchased the subscription in the first place. Offering a free option but not mentioning it in an email telling customers that they must pay to access their own photos is deceptive. I only learned about the free trial because of coming across the information while searching their help documents for something else. The fact that this happened 3 days after purchase instead of 2 should not be relevant when asking for compensation for deceptive practices.
  
  Sincerely,
  
  *******************************

• Initial Complaint

  02/18/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Sales and Advertising Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I obtained a Photobucket account to get all my old pictures. I got the subscription. When the month was up I went to cancel on their site like the instructions said. The page to cancel was unavailable for days. Once I was charged I reached out to customer service who cancelled my subscription on their end. The second they cancelled my subscription the original page I was trying to access was now available. They are unethically withholding that page to keep people locked in their memberships.

  Business response

  02/23/2024

  Hi there,
  
  Thanks for your concern.
  
  The screenshot provided does show that our billing processor wasn't loading as expected; however, not using a supported browser such as ****** Chrome can cause that issue. The native Android browser isn't a supported one so this can cause issues with the functionality of our site.
  
  However, we have cancelled the customer's subscription so they haven't been further charged.
  
  We do appreciate their concerns and feedback regarding our site. We are always actively working on providing the best experience for our customers. If the customer has any further concerns, please have them contact us directly at ***********************.
  
  Thank you.

• Initial Complaint

  02/10/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Customer Service Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  My photos belong to me. I never gave Photobucket permission to take them. I opened my "free" account on Photobucket years ago and now I am getting email from them to pay money to have access to them. They are my personal photos. I should have an opportunity to see these photos & decide if I want to keep them & if I do, I would be inclined to pay their fee. I was never given the opportunity to decide before being forced to pay them.

  Business response

  02/14/2024

  Hi there,
  
  Thanks for your concern. We are offering a free trial and we are glad to help walk this customer through on how to start it. Please have them contact us at *********************** so we can help them with this.
  
  Thank you.

• Initial Complaint

  02/06/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I have tried to cancel my account with Photobucket as I never use it. Photobucket does not provide me with an option to close my account, but continues to charge me. When I try to log in to Photobucket, ** denied access to my account. Yet they continue charging me every month. When I try to reset the password, Im given an excuse that there was an error in submitting the password reset, please try again. I have retried over a hundred times. Photobucket is a scam. I want them to stop stealing from me monthly and cancel this account that they will not allow me access to. This is ridiculous. Theyve taken at least $50 since blocking me from my account, once I clicked on close my account, I was denied access to photo bucket. But they are still billing me. I want my account closed!!!!!!

  Business response

  02/06/2024

  Hi there,

  Thanks for your concern. We have contacted the customer regarding their concerns regarding their account. Please have them refer to their ticket number 6158423 so we can better address their concerns.
  
  Thank you.

• Initial Complaint

  01/21/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Hello,Photobucket has been contacting me for years about my old free account that they acquired and have been demanding subscription fees for me to access, without prior notification.I finally signed up for a free trial this past month to view what data I still had there, and promptly cancelled that trial in the same day.Then Photobucket charged my account.I used my Paypal account for the trial transaction, and Paypal has already ruled in my favor in this dispute.I just want Photobucket to be held to account for its aggressive pursuit of ****** on previously public data, and its breach of its own contract regarding its free trial timeline.This is a predatory company not acting in good faith for the services it purports to provide. It is only there to fleece previous users into charging a recurring fee to recover their data.

  Business response

  01/23/2024

  Hello there,
  
  Thanks for your concern.
  
  We did identify an issue regarding PayPal trials not properly syncing to accounts. We would have offered the customer a refund if they did contact us rather than disputing this with PayPal.
  
  We do understand the customer's concern regarding this bug, and we have quickly fixed this, so moving forward, customers will be able to cancel their trial evaluation period without running into this error.
  
  If the customer has any further concerns, please have them contact us.
  
  Thank you.

• Initial Complaint

  01/16/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I opened a free Photobucket account back before ******** took off and ******* was ************************ of choice. This account was long ago abandoned and never thought of again. At least until Photobucket somehow go ahold of my credit card info, I assume from ****** Pay payment methods. Starting in December of 2023 Photobucket started charging cards. I didn't catch this until January when I received my credit card statements and discovered "paddle.com" charged my card in December. I then found 2 more Paddle.com charges in January on other cards. I contacted customer service regarding these unauthorized charges 1) to put an end to it by closing/canceling the account, and 2) to get a refund. So far, Photobucket and or ****** refuses to acknowledge any wrongdoing and refuses to issue any refund. I've since regained access to this account in an effort to delete the account and or remove any payment methods, but it seems impossible to actually delete the account. I have no clue if I am going to continue being charged multiple times each month. I am likely going to have to close my credit cards, if I cant get them to stop making unauthorized charges to pay for an account that no one wants and was long forgotten about. So far, $15 dollars in unauthorized charges (1 card in December and 2 cards in January).

  Business response

  01/23/2024

  Hello there,
  
  Thank you for your concern.
  
  On January 20, ****, the customer contacted us regarding these charges and wanted to delete their account from our services.
  
  The customer has signed up for a subscription, and like other subscription services, the subscription plans we offer are set to automatically renew. We advised that since it's past the 48 hours of the initial payment, we cannot issue a refund for any of the charges.
  
  We can confirm that as of January 20, ****, they will no longer be charged for their account ********, as this is the only account that was provided that had an active subscription associated with it.
  
  We do not take ****** Pay as a payment method, so the credit card had to be manually entered into our payment form.
  
  If the customer believes their payment information has been compromised, we suggest they contact their credit card company to investigate this further.
  
  Regarding their request to delete their account, we have provided the steps for them to delete their account on-site or to have them confirm their information so we can delete it for them. At this time, the customer hasn't done either. If they need further assistance, please have them respond to their open ticket number *******, if further clarification is needed for these issues.
  
  Thank you.

• Initial Complaint

  01/02/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  For the past few months, I have gone through the process of cancelling my account. I receive confirmation that the account will be cancelled at the end of the billing period, then I get billed again. I have been charged for at least 3 months after my first attempt at cancellation. I sent an email and was told employees are out of office in observance or ***********************************, which is not until January 15. I do believe this company is acting as a scam and submitting unauthorized charges to my PayPal account. I would like this issue to be resolved.

  Business response

  01/23/2024

  Hello there,
  
  Thank you for your concern. We found that the customer contacted us on January 2, **** regarding an issue with cancelling their subscription. We issued a refund for their January payment and cancelled their subscription so they are no longer charged moving forward for a subscription.
  
  Please have the customer contact us if they have any further concerns.
  
  Thank you.

• Initial Complaint

  12/12/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Order Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Since November 2023 I have been receiving threatening emails from Photobucket that say unless I pay a monthly fee they will delete my photos from my free account. I cant get my photos off photobucket unless I pay $5/month, and finding a cancellation protocol on the website is nearly impossible. Its theft.

  Business response

  12/20/2023

  Hi there,
  
  Thank you for your concern. We would be happy to offer this customer a brief evaluation period to let them view and download their images. Please have them contact us at *********************** so we can help them get this evaluation period started.
  
  Thank you.

• Initial Complaint

  12/08/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Customer Service Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Like many others, I have had a free Photobucket account for many years. They do not have any payment information for me, nor should they, because I would never provide such info for an account that was free. Suddenly about 6 months ago they began emailing me stating that I needed to pay for access to MY personal photos, photos which I was now required to PAY to view. Photobucket also does not give you an opportunity to remove your photos without giving them money. It is truly despicable and shocking that they are allowed to do this.

  Business response

  12/08/2023

  Hi there,
  
  Thank you for your concern. We would be happy to offer this customer a brief evaluation period so they can access their images. Please have the customer contact us at *********************** so we can help them get our evaluation period started.
  
  Thank you.

*Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business. ↩