$5 Domains at 1and1 - Don't know how long the sale lasts

I read nodaddy ... I have had domains with them for years and never had a single problem. I use Namecheap also and never had a single problem.

There are many horror stories about 1&1. Use them if you want to. I just want others to know beforehand what they may encounter.

1AND1 (1&1) Really Is a SCAM! - SitePoint Forums
1and1 scams | Scattered
1AND1 (1&1) Really Is a SCAM! - Web Hosting Talk
1and1.com (1&1) Domain Registration-web Hosting | Rip-off Report: 469184

and many many many more.

1and1 sux. Biggest bunch of thieves I have ever dealt with.

I just changed DNS yesterday on three domains - took about a minute and they are now repointed. I have never had any problem changing name servers on 1and1 domains. I don't use their hosting.

Some of the stories come from early days with 1and1. Originally, the company was b2b only and did not work with individuals. When they opened their business to the public, 1and1 made a common error - they assumed customers knew what they were doing.

For years, they had provided hosting and registration to companies where employees understood hosting and registration. When they went public 1and1 quickly discovered their average customer didn't have the same level of knowledge.

I don't care if people like 1and1 or not as a registrar - but I do have experience with them and don't like to see a company "dissed" based on what happened years ago or on opinion rather than facts.

kay

I was thinking the same...

However i totally agree with what you wrote.
"I heard that" means nothing,you have to try the service first and then give an opinion.


"There are bad stories online about almost every registrar and every hosting company. However, if you haven't used the company - you don't know what's true and what isn't."

Exactly!

No point that I can see - and that wasn't what I did. Your (perfectly reasonable!) assumption about my purpose in thanking, there, was a mistaken one, Kay: I thanked Istvan for adducing the entirely correct point that comparing it with GoDaddy wasn't actually a valid or useful argument. He was right. I felt it's a bit like comparing a Skoda with a Lada (when you're sitting in a Jaguar at the time!). I can't convey all that meaning by thanking a post, but that was my reason, in that instance.

Sometimes (usually?) it's better to say "thanks", even though it's often inevitably amibiguous as to precisely why one is "thanking", than to make a fresh post for it.

Istvan knows me well enough to know that that was why I thanked him. Hope that's ok with you.

hearsay goes a long way in my book -- if lots of people are complaining - that ought
to make you think twice about using their services(forewarned is forearmed!!!)
most people for obvious reasons rely on ratings/reviews/opinions when unsure; its makes
sense......

Oops...edited my post. I meant to write 1and1. Namecheap is fast, 1and1 is not.

Mine too ... I have over 100 Namecheap domains and over 150 Godaddy domains (had over 300 with them) and propagation has always been very fast. In addition, getting Godaddy customer service on the phone is fast and easy and any situation I've ever had was always resolved immediately, and very politely.

A lot of Godaddy complaints have come from big fees to people holding domains that have been reported to Godaddy as spamming. That's in their TOS so it should come as no surprise to someone using domains to spam, such as massive forum profile backlinks, massive blog comment spam, etc.

The complaints against 1&1 are entirely different and has to do with them not letting domains expire or be transferred without charging the customer for it. I prefer to have complete control over whether or not I renew a domain or transfer it out of a registrar and don't expect that to cost me money or hassle.

I have been lurking on this forum for a while, but I just can't keep silent after the original post. It's understandable that people trying to make money in internet marketing are eager to save few bucks, but please be careful who you are dealing with.

There is very little good to be said about 1and1. I signed up with them in 2006 after I received an offer for hosting with 5 free domains for $10 per month. It sounded tempting, because I had a project to be built with several related domains. After I started using them, it turned out that they had a very different user interface (not Cpanel), which was difficult to use. I tried to install a script, which didn't work there (it worket for all my other sites). I neglected that project, but kept paying the $10 per month.

In 2008 I decided to cancel the 1and1 hosting and move the domains elsewhere. I e-mailed them, there was no reply. I phoned them, there beyond rude and said that I can't cancel the service for the next few months. Fortunately, the credit card they were charging expired in April 2008, so they couldn't charge it anymore. Please note that at the time I had no active sites hosted with them.

The expiration didn't stop them. They started sending me threatening e-mails that I must provide a new credit card and pay $30 reconnection fee. I patiently explained that I don't like and don't need their service, but they kept trying to charge me.

They are really an elaborate scam. They have their own collection agency, located in Montreal (that's for Canadian transactions), although their headquarters are in Pennsylvania. They sent me a letter demanding $30 for the three months after the card was cancelled plus $30 for reconnection fees. Then they started calling me on the phone. As of this writing I have received over 100 phone calls from them.

The first letter prompted me to investigate the company. A search at the Better Business Bureau site showed that they had over 800 complaints from customers regarding billing. I filed a complaint with the BBB and the Pennsylvania AG, but at this point the issue is still pending.

They keep calling me occasionally. If they get my wife, she patiently tries to make them understand the situation. If they get me, they are treated to speech that would be considered obscene in the high society.

Here is the major point, if some poor soul tries to save few bucks and gets caught in such a scam, he or she would keep paying to avoid damaging their credit rating. In my case I have all the credit cards I need (although I don't use them much) and I don't need a mortgage or loans to run my business. However, a person who is just starting can be trapped forever. So please be careful when somebody like the original poster tries to lure you into something you will regret, although you will save 4 bucks in the beginning.

Never join any program or service, which you can't cancel with one click. All hosting and domain registration I use now is under my complete control. You should have the same attitude, no matter how desperate or penniless you are at the moment.

As my previous post above be prepared to wait up to 2 days. I've been waiting 26 hours so far!!