How do you get a non-automated reply out of Wizards's Customer Services?

[Goonalan]

Here's my story, a week to go and I need to renew my sub at low rate for 4e DDI, so I try... Only I keep getting a bill for $0.00 and a message to say it's not worked, that was using Paypal so I switch to my credit card- same again.

I'll try later I think, so I do in five or so hours- same again.

So I message Customer Services.

Two days later they get back to me to say it's a billing problem and some one from billing will be in touch.

A day later and I think I must be an idiot, so I try again- this time I get a different message but the same result.

I raise another question with Customer Services basically saying I want to re-subscribe at low rate, tried with Paypal and with Credit Card please advise- the clock is ticking.

Two days later a message from Billing saying there's a problem with my paypal account. This in reply to my first Question. Now I know there's not a problem with my Paypal account because I bought £30 worth of ink for my printer just after I tried to re-subscirbe, from two different companies- no errors, and the inks here already. Also the re-subscription wouldn't work with my credit card either.

I reply to Billing with the above and ask them regardless can they renew my subscription.

Two days later I get a reply from my second Question- apparently there's a problem with my paypal account, nothing about me trying to pay with my credit card, which I included in my question.

So I try to re-subscribe again, the price has gone up now, but hey I'm game for a laugh- it doesn't work, same error as the first time- with Paypal and Credit Card, the same credit card I used to pay for my original subscription by the way.

Two days later I get a reply to my reply to the Billing department- apparently there's a problem with my paypal account.

All the message are from different people, although suspiciously (I'm not a detective I admit) they all read the same, hmm- it's like there's one communal hive mind.

I write rather a long missive asking, nay begging for a real person to reply, pointing out I've been playing the game for 25 years, loyal customer, ran 2 D&D clubs, coerced dozens of my students (and friends, and friends kids) into the game; I'm a good little consumer of Wizards products.

Three days later and no reply.

To reiterate my Paypal account is fine, I've not messed up on my password- it works, believe me; although if you're an employee of Wizards then there's nothing I can say that will make you believe me apparently.

My Credit Card is fine.

Is there a way, other than phoning- which I am loathe to do from the UK, to sort this out; I've checked all the Help sections at Wizards, done everything right and yet...

Is it me or do Wizards suck?

Any help much appreciated, and if this is in the wrong forum then please feel free to shift it to the right place, I'm just desperate for an answer.

 

[Goonalan]

So I just tried again, you know, for kicks-

Payment was not completed for this order. Please click here if you would like to place a new order.

Ah the first message, how I have missed thee.

Sucks.

 

[Bumbles]

One of the major online payment services had an outage this week, a fire in their datacenter. I don't know if Wizards uses them, but it's possible that your problem is related to that.

 

[Goonalan]

Thanks for that- that maybe the reason, although I still can't re-subscribe.

Funny how I had to come to ENWorld forums to find that out, I've been mailing Wizards for a while with not a word of the above.

Hang on... I had to go to some where other than Wizards to find out what's going on with Wizards- I've heard that before somewhere, hmm.

I'll keep trying, any suggestions as to how to get in touch with a human being who reads e-mails at the Customer Services place though would still be a step in the right direction however.

Cheers Paul

 

[Bumbles]

Well, it did just happen on....Thursday night, so it's possible nobody has been on to respond to you. Or maybe it's totally unrelated and something else is going on.

Dunno, but it is a holiday weekend. Hopefully you'll have better luck tomorrow.

 

[pedr]

I think that if I'd had this much hassle trying to get someone at WotC to let me buy their product, I'd call the UK Customer Service people

Customer Service UK, Ireland and South Africa

Wizards Of the Coast
attn. Game Support Line
Wizards Game Support, Hasbro UK
Caswell Way, Reevesland Ind. Estate
Newport, Gwent
NP19 4YH
United Kingdom
Tel:+44 (0)8457 12 55 99
Email:wizards@hasbro.co.uk

(see Wizards Europe Contact Information for various European contact information).

I'm not sure if they'll be able to fix it, but you ought to at least be able to talk to someone. Alternatively, you can skype-out to US and Canadian 800 numbers for free, so if you have a microphone and headphones you can call WotC via skype on +1 (800) 324-6496

 

[WotC_Trevor]

Hey Goonalan. Sorry you''ve bumped into this problem and are getting a weird run around trying to solve it. If you PM me with the email address you've used when trying to renew I'll touch base with the CS guys and try to find out what's been going on.

 

[Obryn]

Odds are, if you're getting identical email responses, it's not because it's an automated system. It's much more likely that it's from a list of "scripts" that online CSRs are instructed to copy and paste in response to certain common questions. So there are real people on the other end, for what it's worth; they're just unhelpful real people.

I would be surprised, given the size of WotC, if they had an actual customer service area for DDI billing concerns. It's very likely that this kind of request is outsourced, either domestic or foreign. Even if it's through Hasbro, I expect much of Hasbro's customer service area is outsourced as well, given the nature of its business. If so, this can also cause problems in service since communication between the outsourcing company and the client company can kind of suck.

-O

 

[WotC_Trevor]

I would be surprised, given the size of WotC, if they had an actual customer service area for DDI billing concerns. It's very likely that this kind of request is outsourced, either domestic or foreign. Even if it's through Hasbro, I expect much of Hasbro's customer service area is outsourced as well, given the nature of its business. If so, this can also cause problems in service since communication between the outsourcing company and the client company can kind of suck.

Digital River is the company that provides and runs the e-commerce (read store end) of the DDI experience. They handle all the billing type transactions and issues.

Wizards CS can help with account issues not linked with billing. For example you have a subscription but you can't log in, or you're getting weird messages, or you hit your download cap for some reason. Those are all things that Wizards CS could help you with. Also, when there is a break down in communication concerning a customer's problem (as is the case here) the management of both teams join up and make sure we can resolve the problem.

This is why on the phone tree you'll have a different option for DDI billing. When you choose that option, it forwards you over to DR's CS group. Hope that clarifies what's going on in the background.

 

[Obryn]

Absolutely.

I'm a business & reporting analyst working with my company's customer service area, so this sort of thing always interests me.

-O