ComplaintsforDPS Media

• Initial Complaint

  07/12/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Customer Service Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  They called me and told me I could have free advertising and I kept telling me I had a certain amount of time to respond.  I told them I was not interested but they kept sending me advertisements.  A year later I received a certified letter threatening to send my account to collections after I repeatedly told them I do not want their services.  This needs to be resolved immediately.  I do not want to be contacted by them again as I told them I am not interested in their services. 

  Business response

  07/25/2023

  I received the letter dated July 19, 2023, regarding ***** ******'s concern regarding her advertising account being sent to collections for non-payment today.  

  Ms. ****** states in her complaint that we contacted her and offered "free advertising."  That is not the case.  Ms. ****** has advertised her business, * ****** ***, in the Matanuska Valley directory with DPS Media since 2007.  Attachment A is a screenshot of her account for those years.

  Attachment B is a copy of Ms. ******'s contract for the 2020 issue of the directory.  We do have a voice verification on file for this contract.  Per the terms and conditions of this contract (highlighted in Attachment B) her advertising was renewed annually until we are notified, in writing and via certified letter, to cancel the advertising program.  A copy of Attachment B was sent to Ms. ****** via USPS for her to keep for her records.

  We have not received any request via certified mail to cancel this advertising.  As you can see in the notes from our system (Attachment C), Ms. ****** wouldn't even stay on the phone long enough for us to give her the proper instructions to cancel her advertising.

  Each year, prior to renewal, we send a letter to all customers advising them that it's time to address any concerns they have with their current advertising program and a deadline date by which to respond (Attachment D).

  If you have any additional questions or need more documentation (including the Voice Verification), please reach out to me directly.

   

• Initial Complaint

  02/07/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I signed up to advertise my business P35 Welding and Fabrication with this company one time in the yellow pages. Unbeknownst to me, they auto-renewed my advertising--a service I do not want and a service I did not ask for. I began receiving bills in January about this advertising. I did not sign up for this service. I called to get the bill corrected. They answered one time, and since will not answer and do not return my phone calls. They continue to send me bills, now saying these bills are past due when I did not ask for this service.

  Business response

  03/02/2023

  Unfortunately I could not respond to your request within 7 calendar days as I did not receive this complaint until after that.

  Mr.  ***** *** was a new advertiser in the Washington County, NE directory published by ******** for the September 2021 directory.  Mr. *** paid in full for his advertising in order to receive a 5% discount at the time of sale.  As part of our normal procedure, Mr. *** was sent an advertising confirmation via email to *************************************** which included a copy of the advertising he agreed to along with the Terms and Conditions of his contract for advertising. 

  The terms and conditions (item 1) clearly state that the account is auto renewed on annual basis until we receive a certified letter requesting cancellation:

  1. Acceptance Automatic Renewal Cancellation:  This Agreement is contingent upon and subject to ********* ******* and DPS Media ("DPS") publication of the requested advertising.  Customer may not withdraw its request for advertising or change any copy or listings furnished to ********* ******* or DPS except by notice sent by certified mail and received by ********* ******* or DPS not more than 10 (ten) days from the date of the withdrawal.  DPS shall make reasonable efforts to contact Customer by means of the contact information that Customer has provided in this agreement in order to discuss with Customer any modifications to Customer's advertising or listing(s) in advance of the next publication.  By executing this Agreement, Customer acknowledges and agrees that its advertising and/or listing(s) shall be automatically renewed in subsequent annual publications of the directory and Customer shall be obligated to DPS to pay for same, unless Customer sends DPS a written notice of Customer's cancellation of such advertising or listing(s) by certified mail and such notice is received by DPS not more than ten (10) days prior to the directory close date for the publication.

  These terms and conditions were sent on 02/18/2021 to the email address you provided at the time of sale (***********************************).  Notifications of the renewal, which included these terms and conditions again were sent on 03/28/2022 with a must respond date of 04/04/2022.

  Mr. *** never reached out to DPS to discuss his advertising program.  We did not hear from him until 11/04/2022, after the September directory had printed and was distributed.  After being reminded of the renewal information that was sent to him on 03/38/2022, he stated that he had called us to cancel.  We have no record of that call and we have no record of a letter being sent via certified mail, which is required for cancellations as stated in the terms and conditions (see above).  Knowing that things can get lost in the mail, we've asked Mr. *** for tracking numbers for certified letters he's said he's sent but as of this time of writing he hasn't provided us with this information. 

  We are still in conversation with Mr. *** who has stated that once we confirm he is cancelled for the upcoming issue, he will pay us.  We have confirmed for him we will waive any late fees that have accrued on his account (which total $5.40 as of this time of writing).  We are waiting for his certified letter to process his cancellation request.

  Following this letter you will find (in order) copies of:

  • The email sent to Mr. *** with the advertising contract attached
  • The advertising as it appeared in the 2021 directory
  • The renewal letter sent to Mr. *** on 03/28/2022 with the advertising contract
  • The advertising as it appears in the 2022 directory

  Please contact me directly for any additional information you require or for clarification of any of the information included here for your review.

*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. ↩