ISP Problems

sdoobie123 · 8th March 2005

I have some severe issues with the company that I pay to look after our servers. There is virtually no concept of customer service or support. They are extremely aggressive and unhelpful, we have had some severe problems that they don´t show any concern about, servers going down without any action from them (We are supposed to have 4 hour downtime and a support number...) It´s severely affecting my business, and I´m losing customers.

I have tried talking to the company, they don´t reply to emails at all, and never do anything they promise on the phone.

Where do you go with issues like these ?

Thanks,

Steve

markcastle · 8th March 2005

Quote:

Originally Posted by sdoobie123

Where do you go with issues like these ?

To a competitor of theirs i would imagine :-)

tony · 8th March 2005

Quote:

Originally Posted by sdoobie123

I have some severe issues with the company that I pay to look after our servers. There is virtually no concept of customer service or support. They are extremely aggressive and unhelpful, we have had some severe problems that they don´t show any concern about, servers going down without any action from them (We are supposed to have 4 hour downtime and a support number...) It´s severely affecting my business, and I´m losing customers.

I have tried talking to the company, they don´t reply to emails at all, and never do anything they promise on the phone.

Where do you go with issues like these ?

Thanks,

Steve

Steve,

There is no industry body as such to complain to, so the best thing you can do is vote with your feet and move elsewhere.

If you need a quotation I'm sure people here would be happy to oblige if you post it in the correct forum.

sdoobie123 · 8th March 2005

Quote:

Originally Posted by tony

Steve,

There is no industry body as such to complain to, so the best thing you can do is vote with your feet and move elsewhere.

If you need a quotation I'm sure people here would be happy to oblige if you post it in the correct forum.

Well, I´m actually making moves to do that, though I´m worried that when they find out they will sabotage my domains (I registered some through them, so they are the registrant, ultimately I´ll need their help). I want to minimise disruption to my customers, but I have real worries. Professionally, they can´t just turn me off can they ?

Is there anywhere to name and shame a company such as this ?

Thanks.

jamster · 8th March 2005

Keep proof of their transgressions, and your attempts to resolve them, and if they continue to be unresponsive, move your servers. Keep a record of all the costs associated with the server move, and cancel your standing order with them. Your solicitor could help you with the rest

sdoobie123 · 8th March 2005

I wish I could, but it´s difficult to prove they have let me down when our only contact is by phone.

I´m really worried about them.

jamster · 8th March 2005

Are you able to tell us the name or give us the web link to this company?

sdoobie123 · 8th March 2005

Quote:

Originally Posted by jamster

Are you able to tell us the name or give us the web link to this company?

I would rather not just yet as in case they see my messages - I hope you understand. If they pull the plug on me, I lose my customers.

I basically want to get it out into the open that I think they´re going to make problems for me when I move away from them. Then, if they do make problems , it´s public knowledge and something can be done, even if it´s only giving them bad press. I would hope the fact that I´ve mentioned it here in advance would be enough to stop them form doing anything vindictive.

Once I´m away from them, I´ll gladly spill the beans.

racksense · 8th March 2005

I think your first move should be to move your domains elsewhere.

Once that is done you can start the process of setting up with a new host, and gradually move things away from the current provider.

sdoobie123 · 8th March 2005

Quote:

Originally Posted by racksense

I think your first move should be to move your domains elsewhere.

Once that is done you can start the process of setting up with a new host, and gradually move things away from the current provider.

As mentioned previously, they are the registrant for some of my domains, so they will know something is happening when I request a change.

So, I´m moving them anyway, I just know they´re going to mess me around.

When it happens, I´ll post what they did.

Steve

Paul Smith · 9th March 2005

Are they the registrant, or the registrar - it makes a big difference.

The registrant is the legal owner of the domain, and should any issues arise the law their upstream domain providers (ie Nominet, eNom, Network Solutions etc) are likely to come down on the registrant's side. There is usually a way to go direct to the upstream provider to make changes directly should you wish to do so.

If they have listed themselves as the registrant on domains which you have purchased through them, then I would say that the first step is to rectify this problem - once this has been done the transfer of registrar should be (relatively) pain free.

If you want any more specific advice, feel free to PM me.

Paul.

sdoobie123 · 9th March 2005

If the domain is in my name, but they are the technical contact (and they know where the domain is registered, so they have the access to records etc) and I request a transfer, AND I give them written instructions to allow this transfer can they:

1: Refuse
2: Charge me for the transfer ?

Thanks,

Steve

Paul Smith · 9th March 2005

1. Theoretically they cannot refuse a transfer as the domain can be classed as your legal property.

2. You'll have to check the T&Cs which you signed up to to find out about transfer charges as it can vary.

You can normally find out the actual registrar from a whois lookup. For example :

Domain Name: GOOGLE.COM
Registrar: ALLDOMAINS.COM INC.
Whois Server: whois.alldomains.com
Referral URL: http://www.alldomains.com
Name Server: NS2.GOOGLE.COM
Name Server: NS1.GOOGLE.COM
Name Server: NS3.GOOGLE.COM
Name Server: NS4.GOOGLE.COM
Status: REGISTRAR-LOCK
Updated Date: 03-oct-2002
Creation Date: 15-sep-1997
Expiration Date: 14-sep-2011

following the referral URL should take you to the registrar's site. Providing the email address on the admin contact record is yours, you can often request login access directly to the registrar's control panel.

.uk domains are a bit different as changes are handled by Nominet directly which is chargeable - I believe the charge is £15 + VAT to force a change or registrar (tag holder in the UK).

I'm not sure if this applies in your case - are your domains .uk or .com/.net etc (or a mixture of both)?

Paul.

andyb28 · 9th March 2005

THIS USER HAS BEEN GAGGED BY THE FORUM HOSTS FOR SPAM OR BREAKING THE RULES...
User will be ungaged in around 78 hours from this post.

Paul Smith · 9th March 2005

Took me a while to work that one out - must be having a slow day today.

You've got to watch out for the concrete overcoat when changing ISPs you know...