EA Games + POGO = A NO GO
I had a horrible experience with POGO and their CLUB POGO service. Rather than just explain it, I am copy and pasting the online correspondence that occurred between their customer service and me. And while it was eventually resolved in my favor, I would like you to look at how long it took for this to be resolved. And even more importantly, read what cause the problem to begin with.
Customer (Kristina): 01/19/2008 09:10 AM
My name is Kristina Brooke (username kandykd3). I signed up for Club Pogo’s free trial on January 18, 2008 and chose the Paypal option. No where did it say that I would be charged instantly- and to do so negates the idea of a 14 Day Free Trial. I called your customer service hotline on January 19, 2008 and spoke to a representative who was rude and basically implied that I was an idiot because I used my PayPal account and not my credit card. If the 14-day free trial is offered for credit card users only, then PayPal should not be offered as an option. As someone who uses PayPal often to pay for online purchases, I find it odd that Cub Pogo would offer it as an option for payment but then ignore the terms of a Free Trial by charging right away. Your customer service representative was not only unprofessional, but uneducated and disrespectful as well. I am offended by the service that I received and, although I may have signed up for Club Pogo in the future, I am now turned off by the service. I would like to cancel my subscription and be given a full refund as soon as possible. Failure to do so will result in me taking further action with The Better Business Bureau.
Response (Ankur Jain): 01/19/2008 09:27 AM
Hi Kristina,
Thank you for contacting Electronic Arts. We apologize for the inconvenience caused to you, please respond with the following information:
Account Name:
Email Address registered with PayPal:
PayPal transaction ID:
Date of Payment:
Once we receive this information we will be able to resolve the issue in an effective manner.
We look forward to your reply.
Thank you,
Ankur
EA Online Support.
Customer (Kristina): 01/19/2008 10:22 AM
Account Name: kandykd3
Email Address registered with PayPal: {NOT SHOWN FOR PRIVACY}
PayPal transaction ID: {NOT SHOWN FOR PRIVACY}
Date of Payment: 1/18/2008
Customer (Kristina): 01/22/2008 03:31 PM
I have yet to receive a resolution to my complaint.
Response (GM Myria): 01/30/2008 06:31 PM
Dear Kristina,
Thank you for contacting Pogo Support.
I sincerely apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused you. I have refunded your PayPal account.
Please feel free to contact us if you have any other questions. You can also reference our support site at support.pogo.com.
Sincerely,
GM Myria
Player Relations
Electronic Arts
I give EA GAMES and CLUB POGO a BIG FAT ZERO!
6 Responses to “EA Games + POGO = A NO GO”
By Sally on Jan 31, 2008 | Reply
You seem to have neglected to mention that you originally notified Pogo of your problem on a Saturday and received a response on that same day (most companies do not even provide customer service on a Saturday) and then wrote back to them on a Tuesday (following a holiday Monday) to explain you had not received a response to your problem (without providing any reference to your original complaint via a reference number or your username or any identifying information). Yes, it took them a week to respond to your inquiry and get you a refund, but this is a miracle considering you didn’t provide any information for them to work with.
Yes, Pogo should have treated you better from the start, but there are underlying circumstances that you neglected to mention in your post. Give credit where credit is due, and at least you got your money back. A lot of companies would have found a million reasons not to help you.
Me? I’ve been a Pogo subscriber since 2001. I’ve never had a problem with them, even when contacting customer service. But then again, I’ve never tried to get something for free from them, either.
By Kristina B on Feb 6, 2008 | Reply
I did not neglect to mention that I contacted them on a Saturday- I posted the date. Secondly, I contacted them from within my account so providing any identifying information should not have been necessary as it was from within a signed-on account with my username attached to my contact info. Thirdly, their Customer Service claims to be 24 hours including holidays as I was told by the agent that I spoke to on the phone on Saturday (the first post OBVIOUSLY explains a prior conversation).
You seem to missing the point. I signed up for a 14-day free trial. I have been using pogo for years and I wanted to try out Club Pogo before paying for it. That is what a free trial is. Signing up for a free trial is not trying to get something for free. It is signing up for a trial before deciding if I want to buy. And why is it that the only way I seemed to get a response was threatening to take legal action?
If you have not had a problem with pogo- great for you. But I did and I will not recommend them when they advertise a 14-day free trial and then charge you on the day that you sign up for it.
By Pat Babcock on Feb 16, 2008 | Reply
I am having what seems to be a very common problem with pogo. I won $5 on a spin, and almost 2 weeks later, I get an email stating they are rescinding the prize because I have been cheating, using some type of automated software. I have never used any, don’t know where to get it or how to use it. From what I’ve read, many, many winners get this same email (seems to be automatic). I will be canceling my subscription and telling everyone they are nothing but a scam.
By Pam on Mar 22, 2008 | Reply
I too won a $5.00 instant prize on 01/31/2008. I also was falsely accused by Pogo of using a “cheat” program or “auto-run” program. I have vehemently denied this allegation.
I filed on-line a complaint with the Better Business Bureau, the California Attorney General’s Office, and the FCC.
I encourage all falsely accused Pogo winners to file with these offices to stop this harrassment and customer abuse.
The more people who contact these offices the sooner this company will be stopped from what appears to be criminal activity.
By Anne DeLair on Apr 11, 2008 | Reply
i purchased a pogo game on March 4,08. Tri-peaks 2 quest for the ruby ring. not only can i not play it, i was charged double for it. i do not want the game as i cannot play it, it is a waste of money. i would like a refund of my 19.95×2 please!!!!!!!!!
By Kristina B on Apr 14, 2008 | Reply
See, I’m not the only one with EA Sport/POGO problems. They suck!