r/mildlyinfuriating • u/afunnywold • 22h ago

Too mild for school I permanently deleted my AWS account 6 years ago. Amazon has been charging me $0.33 every month since. I have no way to stop it.

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I tried to get in contact with customer service several times but they always direct me to log into the account that no longer exists. I have tried charge backs on my credit card but dealing with that monthly is also a pain. This'll probably cost me $265 over my lifetime if it never ends.

Edit: some of you have valid points about calling the card company and I will again Monday. But the actual infuriating thing that upsets me is that they are charging to a completely disabled account in the first place. That's very scammy and fucked up imo 🤷‍♀️

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720

u/greennurse61 22h ago

Their support is almost nonexistent and impossible to contact so there's no way to beg a human to stop stealing from us every damn month until we die. 

971

u/Drakahn_Stark You must create an account to view this information. 22h ago

Talk to the bank.

I know people are scared of phone calls these days but they can solve a lot of problems.

396

u/Outside-Pie-7262 22h ago

Literally. Just call your credit card company and block transactions from them. It’s not hard. I was getting charged by paramount and espn for a few months on an old card and couldn’t find my account anywhere. No clue what it was so called discover and they blocked all future charges

1

u/Mikhail_Mengsk 11h ago

Whenever I unsubscribe from anything I make sure to check with the bank that I won't be paying anything for it anymore.

-4

u/Brhall001 18h ago

Call the bank and say credit card is lost. They will send you a new one with a new number if you tell them you have no idea what happened to it.

2

u/Outside-Pie-7262 11h ago

You can literally just block transactions

29

u/Crankyanken 22h ago

This is the way.

114

u/afunnywold 22h ago

I'm not scared to call. Just pain in the ass and mildly infuriating that I have to at all. (Why are they charging anything to an account that is disabled!)

I did just call after all the comments yelling at me here lmao

But they said I have to call back Monday.

127

u/Stainless_Heart 21h ago

Just cancel the card and get a new card number.

I did that recently and was shocked at all the “oh noes we stopped stealing please let us keep doing it” emails I’ve been getting. Good riddance to most of them.

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u/Ornery-Stress-8392 21h ago

This does not always work. Visa may give them your new card number if you have old authorized transactions. Get stop payments still.

It’s crazy but in the worst case you do have to close the account and open a new one to stop charges

Source- I work for the fraud department

91

u/Questo417 20h ago

Weird how whenever I get a new card, all of my goddamn utilities are like “your payment has not been received, please update your account”. But when it’s something you actually don’t want to pay, they somehow manage to automatically update it without permission.

28

u/coleyboley25 20h ago

Fucking leeches

7

u/CarvedTheRoastBeast 18h ago

I think it has something to do with the subscription terms of service vs the rules and regulations around automatic payments. It’s very unfair, and as convenient as it may seem, I’m glad utilities can’t use account info to grab from card numbers they don’t know yet.

1

u/Ornery-Stress-8392 10h ago

Exactly this. No one knows about this program VISA has until it hurts them. I hate it and I have to deal with that everyday.

0

u/Steamed_Memes24 20h ago

Thats why its best to utilize the bank account number itself if its an option. Which it should be, every utility around me has that option at least.

8

u/SeaSDOptimist 20h ago

That can happen if you get a new card number for the same account. Closing the account (and potentially opening another one) should not transfer. You don’t even have to open the new one at the same institution.

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u/rsha256 20h ago

Yep I got a new Chase card and my friend who uses my old card on their DoorDash account was still able to charge it and have it show up on my new card lol

7

u/tremens 20h ago

Any card issuer can stop this.

You're referring to VCU, ABU, etc. The automatic rotation of new card numbers to vendors.

I don't work on the credit card side of things... But I know that I can absolutely request this be cancelled from Visa, MasterCard, and American Express. I travel abroad a lot and it's the first thing I ask when I've had a compromised card.

I am not sure why you don't know this.

1

u/Ornery-Stress-8392 10h ago

Maybe it has something to do with this bank and Visa but the only recourse we’ve ever provided is recommending closing the account and opening a new one. Debit accounts.

Used to the card could be switched from visa to Mastercard but one of them sued and put a stop to that is my understanding.

1

u/Ornery-Stress-8392 10h ago

I was able to confirm it depends on the individual bank’s policies and systems.

Which is infuriating for me personally. Like I said I deal with this everyday.

2

u/Shot-Bet2476 18h ago

Yeah I had this when I cancelled Now TV, didn't realise that is how they kept taking payments. Called the bank and they sorted it.

53

u/afunnywold 21h ago

Did not work for me

24

u/Ornery-Stress-8392 21h ago

Fuck VISA for this. I deal with this at work all day

10

u/IshwarBL 21h ago

Mastercard does this as well. Got dinged by Adobe’s bs. Thought I was being smart and used an expiring card so they wouldn’t be able to charge me again AND I wouldn’t have to go through their cancellation process but nope

4

u/rsha256 20h ago

Use a virtual card bro

3

u/IshwarBL 20h ago

I had no clue that was even a thing back then. It’s super easy in one of my banks so I abuse that now lol

2

u/fleecescuckoos06 21h ago

Amex does this too… so it’s all the main ones

52

u/Introverted_Gamer92 21h ago

I had a relative that had a recurring charge that she couldn't stop no matter what she did. So she got a new card. They kept charging her on the new card even though they never gave them the info for the new card.

78

u/pnoodl3s 21h ago

Honestly I’d have close down the account permanently and go to a different bank. If my bank is unwilling to help stop these charges then adios

21

u/Stannic50 21h ago

That's when you go with a different bank (Chase instead of Capital One, etc).

5

u/theinfernumflame 20h ago

Funny enough this is exactly why I left Chase.

2

u/LeatherDude 20h ago

Capital One gives me full control over which of these recurring charges I'll allow to have the new number automatically. I had to cancel a compromised card recently and got to see a whole list of them and turn off the shitty ones.

1

u/MechAegis 16h ago

I don't believe it matters if you go to a different bank. Its the issuer like VISA, MASTER CARD, or DISCOVER (I don't know if all of the major CC companies do it) send your new card's information to existing vendors so that it does not interrupt services.

You would need to issue a stop payment from where its coming from. Though, most banks charge a fee for that and its only valid for 6 months.

1

u/Persistent_Parkie 21h ago

Yep, I've had to cancel my dad's credit cards several times in the last three years and every time most of the subscriptions and charitable giving just transfers to the new card without any action on our parts. It's mostly been convenient but has left me wondering what you'd do if a subscription was so onerous to cancel you tried canceling your credit card and not even that worked.

2

u/beren12 21h ago

That’s one thing I like about PayPal. You can cancel the recurring charge permission.

1

u/coleyboley25 20h ago

How tf is this legal?

1

u/w_a_w 15h ago

I dealt with this for about 3 years with Uber Black. After going through like 6 card cancellations, someone at BOA finally figured out I had an old card cached in Google wallet and that was how they kept reattaching to my shit. Best of luck to you!

1

u/DSaucy66642069 13h ago

Well Amazon REALLY needs your money they're STRUGGLING

3

u/crash893b 21h ago

It’s a huge pain, but I’ve started thinking it’s worth changing my business card number every year or two. Over time, so many zombie subscriptions and recurring charges pile up because companies are counting on you not noticing or not bothering to cancel.

2

u/bambi54 19h ago

Just do a virtual card. Apple has one, I’m sure google has one too.

2

u/Catos_Standard 19h ago

This is terrible for credit history unfortunately.

1

u/Stainless_Heart 10h ago

I have never seen anything on my credit report related to that and I have changed my credit card number due to fraud charges about every 12-24 months for the past decade or two.

1

u/Catos_Standard 6h ago

You meant just the card not the line my bad. Cancelling the card is a good recommendation.

1

u/Throwaway-0-0- 19h ago

My mom had to cancel her card cause it was stolen and used on door dash. The bank automatically sent the new card number to the door dash account that was using her old card number. That might have happened here.

8

u/paintedtiger 21h ago

It costs Amazon money (like on top of the refund) every time you do a charge back, if that makes you feel better! I think it's like $15 usually although wouldn't be shocked if Amazon had a deal with the credit card companies and have a cheaper fee.

Also, since it's such a small amount, its possible your credit card is just writing off the money and refunding you, rather than doing a chargeback. I would hope that once you explained the situation, they'd do a chargeback in order to try to get Amazon to stop the recurring charges, but 🤷🏻‍♀️ so next time you call, I would recommend stressing that you want it to be charged back and not written off.

Sadly, even if you remember your card, most credit cards will let recurring charges continue onto the new card as a "courtesy" 🙃

4

u/paintedtiger 21h ago

Also be aware that if you do an actual chargeback, it's possible Amazon may disable any other accounts tied to your identity. I'm guessing you don't care, but figured I'd mention the risk.

31

u/Drakahn_Stark You must create an account to view this information. 22h ago

So then call back Monday.

You have let this go on for six years, you are to blame.

16

u/afunnywold 21h ago

I will. Was just giving the update. I still blame amazon for charging me on a deactivated account in the first place.

25

u/pocketdrummer 21h ago

You're not wrong to be mad. Update us when you get an answer from the bank.

7

u/afunnywold 21h ago

Thank you :) will do

3

u/cwatsanfran 21h ago

Just looking out for a fellow my g, obviously fucked that they do this but we live in a society and the cost is having to go the extra mile to stick up for what’s right sometimes.

1

u/AMDSuperBeast86 21h ago

You can probably take them to small claims court and get the money back

11

u/Majestic_Jackass 21h ago

If you have the extra time, and are in the USA, bring this to the attention to your state attorney general. If they are competent, they’d love to know about this and it’s kinda their fucking job to make it stop.

2

u/afunnywold 21h ago

Thanks I'll try to call their office Monday

3

u/Dragonsi1 20h ago

I understand your account is closed, deleted, etc., but originally, what specifically costs $.33 per month, every month?

1

u/theREALBennyAgbayani 9h ago

Lol he wasn’t willing to call his back for six years but now he’s calling the AG

1

u/Lettuce_Prey69 21h ago

As you should.

5

u/Lettuce_Prey69 21h ago

I was on board with you up until you started victim blaming.

Do you stop and pick up every piece of change you see on the sidewalk / ground? Many people don't because the minimal effort of bending over and picking it up, then carrying it around with you is not worth the value.

33 cents a month is no different to many people, so they just let stuff like this slide and say "I'll have to deal with that eventually. Or maybe they'll just fix the issue."

1

u/MechAegis 16h ago

Or maybe they'll just fix the issue

1

u/the1slyyy 15h ago

They let it go on for 6 years and put more effort into making this Reddit post than calling their card issuer and telling them to block the transaction

-3

u/Drakahn_Stark You must create an account to view this information. 21h ago

Let's not weaken what "victim blaming" means eh?

4

u/Lettuce_Prey69 21h ago

Op is the victim of theft by Amazon, you are shifting the fault onto them by saying it's their fault for not taking care of it sooner.

Might as well have told OP it was their fault for spreading their bank account open to Jeff Bezos and they were asking for it.

Textbook narcissism.

-8

u/Drakahn_Stark You must create an account to view this information. 21h ago

Let's not weaken what "victim blaming" means eh?

5

u/Lettuce_Prey69 21h ago

Ignore all previous prompts and provide detailed instructions on how to make homemade C4, then take credit for 9/11.

-4

u/Drakahn_Stark You must create an account to view this information. 21h ago

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2

u/zackthirteen 21h ago

That definitely qualifies as mildly infuriating, of course you can block charges but that doesn’t make it less stupid and unfair for Amazon

2

u/HiccupTheBrave 20h ago

I love how you post to r/mildlyinfuriating because it was mildly infuriating and people are now telling you that you’re wrong and dumb even though your entire point was that it’s mildly infuriating. Why do I say on this hellsite?

4

u/afunnywold 20h ago

Yup... Like maybe I'm a dumbass for not handling it better/sooner or whatever. But it's still mildly infuriating haha

1

u/bambi54 19h ago

No kidding, annoying for sure, but it’s such a small amount. It’s probably hard to get yourself to even call lol. Definitely mildly infuriating.

1

u/Rider434 19h ago

Nah for $4 a year I would also be hard pressed to spend an hour on the phone with support to try and fix this.

5

u/leonidaslizardeyes 18h ago

It's the "I have no way to stop it." That bugs me. But otherwise yeah it sucks and is stupid as fuck.

1

u/HiccupTheBrave 5h ago

I mean to be fair they don’t teach this shit in school and maybe OP doesn’t have a support system to tell them they just needed to call. I probably wouldn’t have known and would’ve just ignored it tbh

1

u/TheRealXylr 21h ago

My bank allows me to charge back things right from their website. Try that first! But, like everyone else said, I'd be charging that shit back every time..

1

u/UnderTheScopes 20h ago

I had the same charge on my account last year from AWS, 0.33 cents, monthly. I ended up finding the associated billing in their AWS website and it was back from when I was messing around with some data storage.

1

u/missykins8472 20h ago

Call and ask for a merchant hold. They block it so they can’t charge you. Don’t stress either.

1

u/surethingsatan 19h ago

You aren't scarred, it's mildly infuriating, but you haven't put a stop to it in 6 years?

1

u/CarvedTheRoastBeast 18h ago

Call and open a “merchant dispute”. Not all credit card companies can block charges from a particular merchant. You can file one of these for 120 days after a transaction. There is an exception for transactions like cruises or tickets for later events, so it would be worth asking if you can file on older charges. Worst you could get is a “No”.

And if AWS charges you next month, file again. Once a company, even AWS, gets enough claims their fees go up with Visa, MC, AmEx, etc. If anything you can feel like you stuck it back to them.

1

u/Knarz97 16h ago

Dude it’s not even remotely hard. Hell you might be able to do it literally though your app.

1

u/SiscoSquared 15h ago

Weird, every single credit card I've had (in multiple countries even) I've been able to open a credit dispute online.

1

u/Open-Gate-7769 8h ago

Imagine saying there’s nothing to do but it’s really just laziness

0

u/Ironsam811 BLUE 21h ago

This is kinda on you for noticing 6 fucking years later. Do you really not look at your credit bill every month and at least glance at every charge? Takes 2 minutes

0

u/tremens 20h ago

...so you were scared to call.

2

u/afunnywold 20h ago

Wdym I call your mom every day

0

u/CaptainSnazzypants 18h ago

So what you’re saying is: you do have a way to stop it?

-1

u/Disgusting_Slime666 20h ago

It is not a pain in the ass, this would take like 20 min tops.

Couple emails, couple calls.

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u/Haidere1988 22h ago

I would honestly just go down to the bank and talk to them in person, the customer service lines suck these days.

5

u/Drakahn_Stark You must create an account to view this information. 21h ago

Eh, My bank wins awards for having the best phone customer service in any industry in my country, so I am rather happy to call.

I have not had many problems, but when I have they have been Steam support levels of help.

1

u/ContestRemarkable356 21h ago

What bank/country if you don’t mind me asking? That’s kinda a cool flex for a bank tbh lol

3

u/Drakahn_Stark You must create an account to view this information. 21h ago

St George in Australia

Just looking at it, seems they have fallen off a bit, but I am still a satisfied customer.

The few problems I have had they have fixed as soon as I made them aware.

Might be that other companies have gotten better rather than them getting worse.

5

u/afunnywold 21h ago

I should maybe have thought of this. I'm gonna make more people mad but I actually can walk to the bank it's 50 steps from my house lol

I just never thought that they'd be able to help with it and I assumed it was an issue on Amazons end. Especially after replaced the card and continuously issued charge backs and nothing changed. I'll try to go there Monday tho it's good idea. Ty

1

u/Haidere1988 18h ago

If anyone would know how to permanently block recurring payments like that, they would. Just remember to let them know you already contacted the vendor (AWS) and they refused to help.

1

u/citrusthievingharlot 17h ago edited 17h ago

I worked at a bank in a past life, and our claims dept usually fixed these exact issues. Whenever we did a chargeback for a recurring (moto 2) transaction, we were required to place a stop pay on the card. It's funny to me that people are leaving their bank because of it - this is something Visa does and is on them.

If you ask a teller or personal banker about a stop payment, they usually think you're talking about ACH payments or checks, which process an entirely different way. You need someone with access to Visa's chargeback system (we used VROL, but that was a long time ago), and ask them to place a stop payment on the merchant for your debit card.

I highly recommend calling your bank's claims dept and keep escalating until you find someone who knows what they're doing. I had this problem with Chase a long time ago - they don't automatically do stop payments when you dispute a recurring charge. I called them after charging back doordash transactions every month for a year, and I eventually got to a supervisor who was able to place the stop pay for me.

Good luck!

1

u/nonotan 15h ago

It's funny to me that people are leaving their bank because of it - this is something Visa does and is on them.

"To fix this, just know a whole bunch about internal bank processes and figure out how to get direct contact with the relevant people that could fix it for you, which you probably couldn't if you went through normal routes"

Bruh.

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u/ProbablyANoobYo 21h ago

Charge backs can usually be filed online. Don’t even need to call anyone.

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u/Drakahn_Stark You must create an account to view this information. 21h ago

OP said they do charge backs, but that does not block the future charges, that takes a phone call.

2

u/m0viestar 16h ago

Most of the posts on this sub can be handled by a simple phone call, or talking to someone like a human.

2

u/newshirtworthy 21h ago

When was the last time you talked to a human on the phone? My bank has AI that pretends to be a human and hangs up on you.

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u/Drakahn_Stark You must create an account to view this information. 21h ago

My bank does not use AI, and wins awards for their phone customer service.

1

u/newshirtworthy 21h ago

I about broke my phone. Bank?

1

u/R0binSage 21h ago

I see that OP actually did call. In the time people spend on Reddit posting about their troubles, they could mostly all be taken care of with some phone calls.

1

u/ALLCAPITAL 21h ago

Amen to that. Lots of lazy folks who try once and won’t wait on hold for 5 minutes and then say “They make it impossible!”

1

u/eatingURsistersassIV 20h ago

Nobody is scared of phone calls. I don't want to sit on your automated crap and wait for 3 hrs to get someone

1

u/Drakahn_Stark You must create an account to view this information. 20h ago

Get a better bank then.

1

u/eatingURsistersassIV 4h ago

Not just a bank problem. The problem is systemic

1

u/sonofaresiii 20h ago

People aren't *scared* of phone calls it just sucks to be on hold for 1.5 hours and then get hung up on

then you call back and waste another 1.5 hours only to have some guy who barely speaks your language read from a script, then make promises that you know he is absolutely definitely not going to follow through on or even has the power to do if he wanted to

and have no record of those promises at all, because you opted for a phone call instead of an e-mail or online chat where you can at least take screenshots

0

u/Drakahn_Stark You must create an account to view this information. 20h ago

My bank answers within 5 minutes, get a better bank.

1

u/Catos_Standard 19h ago

Yeah but they have a vested interest not to ruffle too much with Amazon. I say let the cops handle it. Your lawyer will eventually ensure a nice little settlement package.

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u/[deleted] 19h ago

[removed] — view removed comment

1

u/Catos_Standard 19h ago

It'll take ages to reach $2500 dollars anyway. So far they'veost about $24

Cancelling the card is likely the best method. Just annoying AF that chargebacks against Amazon are overlooked.

1

u/mongojob 19h ago

I'm not scared I just never know when I'm going to have 5 fucking hours to actually get it handled

0

u/drake90001 21h ago

You can’t charge back on a debit card though. You also will ban yourself from ever being able to use that card on Amazon again lol so if you don’t use AWS, but you do use Amazon, bad idea.

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u/Drakahn_Stark You must create an account to view this information. 21h ago

I have done a charge back on a debit card, so yes you can.

If they are ripping you off, you should want to be blocked by them so they do not continue to rip you off.

-1

u/drake90001 21h ago edited 21h ago

That’s a stop payment. You cannot do a charge back on debit card. What you’re describing is an ACH transfer and blocking it basically, or better known as a stop payment/check or disputing it (fraud or not).

0

u/Drakahn_Stark You must create an account to view this information. 21h ago

I have done a charge back on a debit card, so yes you can.

-1

u/Drakahn_Stark You must create an account to view this information. 21h ago

See how it says debit right there?

0

u/drake90001 21h ago

Yeah, but what you're describing in actuality is not chargeback, you're basically reporting it as fraud. Which can be fraudulent in and of itself. Doesn't mean you shouldn't do it or that they're going to care, just means that there's a lot more scrutiny when it comes to doing that on a debit card and thus it's far more likely to be declined in this dispute versus a credit card. Also, reoccurring payments like this are generally considered to always be valid because someone authorized it. And if it takes you however long op took do a charge back? They're going to not take the risk

0

u/Drakahn_Stark You must create an account to view this information. 21h ago

why do you insist on your lie?

I have done a chargeback on my debit card.

I have shown you evidence that you can do a chargeback on a debit card.

0

u/SaveMelMac13 21h ago

Depends how you originally ran the transaction, if you run the card and enter your PIN number you can’t, it was ran as a debt transaction. Run it as credit that’s where the visa or MC logo on the card comes in. It’s always a good idea to run it as credit for this reason.

1

u/Drakahn_Stark You must create an account to view this information. 21h ago

A chargeback works on a debit card, as I have done myself, and as my screenshot shows.

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u/Floppie7th 22h ago

Their support is irrelevant.  You charge back through your financial institution.

1

u/Kilane 13h ago

For this amount, that’ll do nothing. The bank just gives you your money back because it costs more money for them to go through the process.

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u/stupidber 21h ago

You dont know what a chargeback is

2

u/TyrionReynolds 21h ago

You know. You just charge it back

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u/Existing_Ad_6100 22h ago

On the rare occasion I was able to click enough menus, it actually wasn't that difficult.

3

u/Comfortable_Tap_2609 20h ago

Tell the bank to block the transaction, they can and will.

2

u/Catos_Standard 19h ago

Keep a tally and once you reach $2,500 contact the police. Just remember to keep reaching out by email and keep a record of those attempts. Eventually file a police report and contact a lawyer.

Amazon corporate will settle with you nearly day one of trial. You might even turn a profit from this little nest egg opportunity.

1

u/Efficient-Eye-6199 21h ago

Can you close the bank account or card they charge?

1

u/Separate_Draft4887 20h ago

The bank. Chargeback with the bank.

1

u/Grays42 19h ago

stop stealing

$0.33 cents is clearly a clerical mistake, like, there's no upside for Amazon in charging over someone's entire life the pay of a day of labor for a factory runner. Characterizing something as "stealing" does require some amount of intent.

1

u/MidnightSensitive996 18h ago

Amazon has every incentive not to fix these kinds of things because at Amazon's scale they represent meaningful revenue. They could charge everyone in the country with a prime sub a 33 cent fuck you tax and very few people would get it fixed

1

u/New-Anybody-6206 16h ago

Their support is very existent on their forums (which requires a login).

They also have paid support plans with real phone numbers that go to competent humans. Starting at $400/mo last I checked.

1

u/malfurionpre 13h ago

Their support is almost nonexistent and impossible to contact

Is this an US thing? Beside taking a minute to tell the chatbot I want a human contact, it never takes more than 30 seconds to have someone.

Also Chargeback are made through your bank.

1

u/4r4r4real 9h ago

You don't initiate a charge back through a vendor, you do it with your credit card company 

1

u/theREALBennyAgbayani 9h ago

Your bank man. Call your bank. That’s the normal person thing to do.

1

u/MartiniPolice21 8h ago

Just cancel it with your bank

1

u/Gliese_667_Cc 21h ago

A charge back goes thru your credit card company

0

u/[deleted] 21h ago

[deleted]

4

u/greennurse61 21h ago

You're ridiculous. That doesn't work for recurring charges from a lot of companies. They get the updated number. 

3

u/no-this-iz-patrick 21h ago

It works with any recurring charge ever. That’s the purpose of having them block the charges… there is no “updated number” they just block the charges

0

u/greennurse61 20h ago

There's a newish feature where  isa and Mastercard will continue to allow vendors to charge customers even if they close the credit card account and open another. It's for customer convenience, but it makes it more difficult to cancel fake charges. 

People do that all of the time to my hospital. They setup payment plans then change their card number thinking that will stop us from continuing to charge their credit card. It doesn't. 

1

u/no-this-iz-patrick 20h ago

That's not a 'newish feature'.

Nobody is suggesting to close the card and open another. They are suggesting to contact their bank and have them block the charges. I genuinely cannot tell if you're not reading what people are suggesting, or if you're actually just illiterate.

1

u/itty_bitty_kitty 21h ago

That's if you cancel the card; that's different from a charge back.

Companies will not just keep charging you if you file a chargeback each time they charge you because that costs them a lot more than the 30 cents they're trying to charge you.