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| Stamps.com? More like Scamps.com!! |
Fist of all, Stamps.com is NOT affiliated with USPS.
Back in January 2015, I received a flyer to my house that Stamps.com, a "registered" company with USPS, is giving away $5 worth of postage for free. I misunderstood Stamps.com as USPS (trustworthy, government run), let my guard down, and went ahead to register on their website. Registration was fast and easy and I did see $5 balance on my account.
Problem happened a month later.
While I was checking my bank account as usual, I noticed a suspicious $16 pending to be withdrawn. I was so shocked because Stamps.com has never sent me a notification regarding this charge. I was bitter but decided to call the customer service first. Then I find out that Stamps.com charges $16 per month for monthly membership. And the perks for this membership? NONE. The lady on the phone tried to persuade me that I will be able to print out stamps at a discounted price but I have been able to do the same using Paypal or eBay shipping services.
I said "thank you for your explanation but I'd like to cancel my membership." Then she said that she is going to credit $10 on my account AND waive the service fee if I stay for another month.
I wanted to get my $16 back, yet did not want all that hassles with disputing, so I thought $10+$5 Stamps.com credit is an OK offer.
Two weeks later, I finally have used up the stamps.com postage money and called the same number to close my account. Funny how they now say they are going to reduce my monthly bill from $16 to $5 (seriously, where do these numbers come from?). The only thing I desperately wanted was no more transaction with Stamps.com. so I closed my account. (Frustratingly my billing information still remains on their website.)
I received two confirmation emails that my account has been successfully closed. But alas, Stamps.com was far more notorious than my expectation. When I received their third email stating that I owe $8 of service charge for two weeks of their (nonexistent) service, I was shocked, confused, and furious. I called their customer service again, but I wasn't able to talk to anyone because my account is now closed.
Reluctantly, I had to call my Chase dispute center and file a claim. At this moment, I am still awaiting to hear from Chase regarding the refund. Overall, I learnt my lesson-- that Stamps.com is a scam-- the hard way. They charge you ridiculous fees without any notification, do not allow self account closing (you must call their CS), and account closing just means stop future payments-- other information such as billing and shipping address still remains within them.
I sincerely hope to see no further victims of Stamps.com in the future, and hope this posting comes in helpful to you.
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