Brian S.

On November 11,2022, I subscribed to Texty Pro. The company provides texting services to enable individuals and businesses to send and receive text messages via a subscriber's existing landline phone number.

I needed such a service to receive text messages sent to my landline from specific clients.

Texty Pro offers a free 14-day trial period after a customer subscribes to one of its plans. My plan would cost $35 per month.

Regarding its 14-day free trial, Texty Pro's website says: "You will not be charged until after your free 2 weeks trial period is over, and we will remind you seven days before the trial ends."

After subscribing, I received a "welcome" email.

In part, it said: "Your free trial is good until Friday, November 25,2022. Once it ends, billing will start, and your subscription will automatically renew every (?) at $35 unless you cancel by November 25,2022."

In the same email, my Texty Pro account information indicated my "Billing Start Date" was November 26,2022.

So, according to Texty Pro, I would be billed on November 26 unless I cancelled by November 25, and they would send me an email reminder seven days before my trial period would end.

Texty Pro's text-to-landline technology worked generally as described. But it did not enable me to receive text messages via my landline from important clients. For that reason, the service did not fulfill my needs.

I never received a trial period cancellation email reminder after seven days. True, I was not counting the days left in my Texty Pro trial period. I'd expected a seventh-day reminder email.

I was surprised to receive a "paid" $35 invoice on November 25. Texty Pro had charged me $35 via my Mastercard.

According to Texty Pro's "welcome" email to me: "Your free trial is good until Friday, November 25,2022." And my "billing start date" was November 26.

I immediately called Texty Pro support and spoke to a representative.

After explaining that I'd been charged $35 prior to what I believed was the end of my 14-day trial period, the rep told me immediately, "We don't give refunds."

I maintained I never should have been charged anything.

I explained that Texty Pro did not fulfill my company's needs and that I would have canceled days earlier had I received the email reminder seven days prior to the end of the trial period -- which, according to their "welcome" email sent to me -- "is good until Friday, November 25,2022."

The rep said they'd sent me a reminder email from Xedia Networks, Inc. with Texty Pro in the subject line. He could not tell me when they'd sent it.

I said I had not been looking for or expecting an email from Xedia Networks associated with Texty Pro. Furthermore, I had not received one.

He said the company's free trial parameters were explained on the company's website and Texty Pro was not at fault for charging me $35. He said the misunderstanding was entirely mine.

I cancelled my Texty Pro subscription during that call on November 25,2022.

In subsequent texts to and from the same rep via Texty Pro's support chat line, he accused me of subscribing to the service only to take advantage of Texty Pro's free trial period.

But why would anyone continue paying for a Texty Pro plan if the company's services did not work for them? And why criticize someone for availing themselves of Texty Pro's free trial offer?

He said I had not received Texty Pro's seventh-day reminder email because my email system was at fault.

Why then had I received emails containing Texty Pro's "welcome" message, its $35 paid invoice notice and its cancellation confirmation email?

After informing the rep I planned to give Texty Pro a poor review online as a result of his inaction and totally negative response to my issues, he accused me of threatening him.

The company might state what it considers clear parameters to its 14-day trial period. However, I found that my Texty Pro service plan start date, trial period seventh-day reminder date, trial period cancellation and conclusion dates and invoice date to be contradictory.

What's more, Texty Pro did not send me a seventh day trial period cancellation reminder email. If they had, I would have immediately cancelled my subscription.

For me, Texty Pro's customer service was non-existent.

The customer service rep I communicated with considered me to be in the wrong before knowing all the facts.

He did not try to understand or resolve issues I'd presented regarding contradictory dates associated with its free trial.

I expect Texty Pro provides worthwhile services to many companies and individuals. But not for me.

Texty Pro should sharpen its communications regarding the dates associated with a customer's 14-day free trial period.

Whenever Texty Pro sends emails to subscribers, they should come clearly from Texty Pro, not from Xedia Networks or some other entity – especially if such emails contain a subscriber's seventh day trial period cancellation reminder.

Over the years, I've purchased numerous pairs of glasses from Glasses USA, with which I've had an inordinate amount of customer service and warranty issues. I keep coming back because they provide a single pair of glasses that fits my needs very well. I purchased replacement insurance with the last pair of those glasses. Recently that pair was broken beyond repair. When I called the company, I learned the breakage replacement coverage I'd purchased only lasted one year, and I'd owned the glasses for more than a year. I asked the rep if, because I'd purchased many pairs of glasses from the company, if I could receive any consideration such as an extension of the replacement coverage. The rep took all of my information and said she'd forward it to the "higher ups" (my quotes) in the customer service department to see what they could do for me. She said I should get a response within 24 hours, which I did not. I called again and was told by the rep that she'd forward my information again and mark it "urgent." After another 24 hours, I called again and told another rep that due to the company's lack of response and poor customer service, I was going to give them a poor review on Site Jabber. The rep told me that I'd get a response from customer service "in a few hours. Which I did not. I've been down this road before with GlassesUSA. Communicating with them -- after speaking to a level 1 customer service rep -- is usually an exasperating and often useless, time consuming experience. Other current and potential customers should be aware of this.