Just signed up, made plan mistake, should I dispute the charge with my credit card company?

[grapereader]

Just switched to public mobile and while I was signing up I changed from 30 days to 90 days in the "create your plan" form. Evidently, this reset my selected text and call plan options.

Now I have no texting or calling on my phone which is a huge issue and needs to be resolved quickly. I cannot change the plan without having to pay another $150 (for a feature that only adds an additional $5).

I sent a message to moderators a few hours ago but have received no reply. Now I am wondering, does it seem reasonable to just kill the charge through my credit card company and open a new account?

Like I said, moderators are being very slow with an issue that is extremely high priority (loss of service). I put in a best effort attempt to resolve this issue with the merchant, and as this was a technical error, I think I have good grounds to dispute the charge. Will public mobile fight my dispute?

[steff12321 · Accepted solution]

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@grapereader wrote:

Hah! When has a little fraud ever hurt anybody?

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Literally every single time. It raises costs to PM if you happen to win the dispute, which will inevitably raise the price of plans (as has just happened less than a month ago). Also costs your bank money, as well as the credit card company (Visa, MC, etc). Overall, it's a really selfish move.

That being said, I am the first to suggest filing a chargeback when it is warranted. 

Really not sure if they would refund the $145, as it is at the of the day end, your mistake. They would definitely not refund it to your credit card. If they were in a great mood, they may add it back to your account as a credit, but that would be at the mod's discretion. They usually respond within 12 hours, but they can take up to 2 days. You can also switch to a 30 day plan and split the difference between cost and risk of whether they would issue you an account credit. 

[zfx]

You'd better just wait for moderator to reach back to you regarding this. And I'm sure they'll find a solution for you.

Sorry to say this but this was your own mistake and nothing to do with PM. Just like if you brought something by mistake, you can't just make a dispute with your credit card company but trying to return the item then get refund right? 

[grapereader]

Hah! When has a little fraud ever hurt anybody?

I have $6 of credit in my account already from the autopay bonus. So that is fine.

I am now wondering if I pay the $150 now to just get my service online, would they normally refund my $145 payment?

[steff12321]

No, that would be fraud since you are the one that made a mistake. A chargeback through your credit card company is either saying that you have not authorized the charge to your card (which you did not), or that there is a problem with the purchase you have made (merchant's fault) and you have made a reasonable attempt to resolve it yourself. 

You can either wait it out and let the mods resolve your issue (you should load your account in advance with the $5 so you won't have to go back and forth with them again), or you can pay the $150 and get it resolved right away. 

Also you should read the terms and conditions that came with your credit card as they would also tell you when it is or isn't appropriate to file a chargeback. 

EDIT: Wow I forgot to read the last paragraph of your post. This is not a loss of service, since you are getting the service you paid for. This was not a technical error as it is quite clear what you will be getting before you purchase the plan. This is 100% your mistake and I am absolutely sure PM would put forward their best effort to fight the dispute on their end, since they did abosolutely nothing wrong. Not only would filing a chargeback for this be extremely entitled of you, it might also be illegal.