Houston Chronicle

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint.  
The resolution was very clear in the initial complaint to cancel my subscription account.  As you can see by the response Houston Chronicle Publishing is  not willing to do that.I need written confirmation of the subscription cancellation to my email and by conventional mail.
Regards,
[redacted]

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and find that this resolution would be satisfactory to me.  
I do regret the fact that Houston Chronicle did not try to resolve this issue until a complaint with Revdex.com was submitted, but I am happy with the rapid response afterwards.

[redacted],
This is confirmation that I have updated your account [redacted] due to
the delivery issues you and your [redacted] have been experiencing since the
summer.  I have credited your account due to having to go out and purchase
those papers.  With the credit I have applied your renewal date is */12/15.
 Thank you,[redacted]

We have responded and handled this complaint internally. Please let the records reflect that the balance has been waived and all items of the complaint have been addressed in our system.

Mr. [redacted],My apologies you did not receive the full $22.10 refund I promised you.  I adjusted your account to reflect the additional monies owed to you totaling $4.99.  I processed the request effective 2/17/15.Sincerely,Angie [redacted]

[redacted],Your account [redacted] is due to renew on 3/15/15, would like for me to cancel at that time?  May I ask why you want to cancel, I would like to keep you as a subscriber.  My contact number is [redacted].Thank you, Angie H[redacted]

Mrs. [redacted],
I understand your frustration regarding your billing and I am aware of the conversation you had with Alex in our call center yesterday, on July 6th. On your original agreement as well as every subsequent invoice you receive we advise you that prices are subject to change. These...

updates and changes are normal practice among retailers and although I understand you hadn't read the information that is entailed on your bill, we have abided by all required legal obligations to provide notice on our billing by making our customers aware of our charges and schedule of fees on their printed bill and page A2 of every paper we publish. There is a wealth of information located there including our hours of operation, our current rates and offers, and various other information. We follow and adhere to every law regarding our billing, our notification and adhere to every ethical and viable communication we must observe for legal notification purposes.
The difference in your subscription dates isn't due to a price increase it is from the addition of the premium content charges that have been added. Some premium charges are associated with the holidays such as the T[redacted] paper with the additional sales and coupons most everyone is so excited to get around that time of year. Our premium content is beneficial, helpful and offers direct connections to Houston events and local establishments/ and businesses fortifying our regional pride and awareness. If you do not want to be charged for the premium content all you need to do is simply contact our subscriber services and we will credit you for the premium charges you receive. (Alex should’ve taken ownership and taken care of this for you yesterday when you voiced your displeasure and confusion). You will still receive the content as our appreciation to you for your patronage and we hope you enjoy the materials.  I also want to make you aware of the bill processing fee that you were charged on this most recent bill. Since you are not signed up for automatic billing you are subject to a fee of 7.95. The charge is subsidized back to the subscribers who choose to receive a paper bill due to our bill processing costs. There are numerous retail organizations that pass fees on to their customers regarding billing and payment options due to the increased cost incurred for such items. I believe you’ll find charges such as these are common with your phone and credit card companies just to name a few. I understand it is not a popular charge and we will gladly waive it for you when you choose to sign up for our [redacted] option. When you sign up for [redacted] you receive an automated bill statement notifying you of your charge and your payment is deducted using the credit/ debit card of your choice.
I apologize for your frustrations and that we didn’t take appropriate steps to resolve this proactively when you contacted us yesterday. I have applied a credit to your account for the premiums and as a courtesy I have credited back the bill fee you incurred as well since you have been charged for understanding you paid for a year in July 2014. Your subscription is now set to expire on 7/23/15. Feel free to contact me directly should you have further questions or concerns. I am here to help you.
Thank you,
Dennis G[redacted]
Customer Service Director
Houston Chronicle Media Group
 
801 Texas Ave.
Houston, Texas 77002
 
Office  |  713-362-6347
Cell      |  832-549-3447
Fax       |  713.354.3122
Email   |  dennis.g[redacted]@chron.com

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and find that this resolution would be satisfactory to me.   Sent: Friday, July 29, 2016 9:06 AM Subject: complaint #[redacted]I thought I would be fair in my complaint that is now closed.  it says that I am dissatisfied with the outcome.  since this is a once a week issue, only one week has passed and in that one week, I am satisfied with the result.  Tomorrow (saturday) would be the second week, so we shall see.  can you update to show that at this time, I AM satisfied with the Houston Chronicle’s response at this time.thank you[redacted]

[redacted], Thank you for speaking with me today.  This is just to confirm our conversation.  I have submitted the wire transfer confirmation number and date of payment to our accounting department for research.  I will be your point of contact until the billing issues has...

been resolved.   Thank you[redacted]Houston Chronicle

[redacted]
My apologies you have not been able to speak me.  I removed the balance on account [redacted] dated 6/3/16.  If you received a bill dated 5/29/16 please disregard it was crossed in the mail.  I did call this morning and left another number incase you don't get a hold of...

me, please call [redacted]Sincerely,Angie H[redacted]

Mr. [redacted],Your refund was submitted/processed on 7/22/16 in the amount of $45.72.  Our refunds are processed at our corporate office in North Carolina and usually take 2-4 weeks to receive. I did confirm with finance that your refund was successfully handled and submitted and out for delivery. Again my apologies for the delay.Sincerely,Angie [redacted]

Mr. [redacted],Sorry I wasn't able to speak with you when I called.  I am emailing you detailed information regarding your billing concerns.  I can be reached at 713.362.3305.Sincerely,Angie [redacted]

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed...

the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint.  
I would be satisfied with this resolution if I actually received the refund of $22.10.  My refund was only in the amount of $17.11 on February 11, 2015.  I would like to receive the refund I was told I would receive of $22.10.
Regards,
 [redacted]

Mr. [redacted],My apologies your paper has not been delivered to your residence.  I have contacted the field & zone manager to get his resolved and follow-up with you personally.  I have also applied credit to your account for the missed papers to extend out your renewal date to...

1/8/17.Sincerely,Angie [redacted]

Mr. [redacted] I wanted to confirm that the issues you were having with your account and not being able to login has been resolved.  I see a payment of $30.20 was processed on 11/25/14.  Again please accept my apologies that this took a little time to resolve.Thank you ,[redacted]

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint.  
[Provide details of why you are not satisfied with this resolution.]
Regards,
 Since writing this complaint and after talking with aq Ms. Angie [redacted] of the Chronicle., the service has gotten worse. I have not received a paper since Thursday  December 4th.      Since Sunday nov 30th, I have received one paper on time, five papers late and the remaining 16 days I have not received a papr at all. Wow what an impressive score that is.  That forces fme to go to a local store to buy one at inflated prices, and the inconvenience and cost of going in my car to pick them up. Ms [redacted] assures me that she has contacted senior managers within the company who have promised action. But that has not happened.  It appears that senior management just does not care.  To apply a 3 month credit to my account might sound very generous, but what good is 3 months of no papers.   It seems as though the Chronicle has a massive problem in maintaining their home delviery service and needs to get it straightened out immediately or get the heck out of the delivery service. Is the Chroncile going to resolve this issue or not?  And when?Thank you,[redacted]

Ms. [redacted],Due to the refund request amount of $217.00 I will need to speak with you in order to process your request.  Please contact me at [redacted].Thank you,Angie H[redacted]

Mr. [redacted],Thank you I received your email. I will contact you shortly.Sincerely,Angie [redacted]

[A default letter is provided here which indicates your acceptance of the business's response.  If you wish, you may update it before sending it.]
Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and find that this resolution would be satisfactory to me.  
I'm OK with the amended response as it applies to my specific complaints.  I believe that the Chronicle should adopt the approach of not increasing negotiated rates without first obtaining permission from the customer.  If the rate needs to change periodically, the subscription offer should reflect that practice from the beginning.  Alternatively, the customer should be informed prior to any rate increase and be given the opportunity to opt out of the subscription.

[redacted]I have reviewed your account and have honored the $221.77 that you paid for dated 12/13/15 for 1 year of service.  Going forward please contact me directly for any additional issues, [redacted]Sincerely,Angie H[redacted]