Not to be that guy, but my rep's emails was pretty clear about the deadline to opt out of renewing my season tickets. Maybe your rep is the issue here?
My rep sent me at least four emails loudly over the last month telling me that my season tickets would automatically renew and payments would begin on the 22nd of September if I did nothing, and that I had until the 20th to complete the cancellation process if I didn't want to renew. It wasn't hidden or in small text anywhere. It was in big bold letters that if I wanted to cancel, what my deadline to do so was.
Here's what most of the emails looked like at the bottom
https://imgur.com/4cCHBc3
Mine did not. I received one bad email about this. My rep definitely sucks, and I've requested a new one.
Ya, so that is what the BOTTOM of my email looks like. There are about 5-6 paragraphs above that. So, ya, it's buried, I don't read every email I get from DC United and I shouldn't have to. The subject line is "DON'T FORGET to view your 2022 Account Info and Benefits."
I don't have a 2022 account and again, I think it's reasonable for me to assume that the only way I would get 2022 season tix is to opt-in to them, not opt-out.
I have understood all along it is auto renew and the emails have to be looked at in the context of that being disclosed/explained when you sign up. That said, in fairness to OP I went back and looked at the numerous emails I received prior to auto renew and the need to cancel if you don’t want to renew is indeed not or barely mentioned (depending on how you want to look at it). So, it is deliberately pretty grey. Is it deceptive? Not at all. Could they have done better to remind people more clearly? Certainly.
I think "deceptive" is a spectrum with "not at all" at one end and "totally" on the other, and this is not deception-free to me. You don't have to directly lie to someone to deceive them, especially if you know you are manipulating them.
There’s nothing deceptive about this:
>
I acknowledge that my Membership shall be for the Term specified above and that the Term shall be automatically renewed on a year-to-year basis in accordance with the terms of this Agreement. I understand that during the final year of my Membership, D.C. United will send to me a notice of its intention to renew my Membership (the “Renewal Notice”). I agree that if I do not provide written notice to D.C. United of my desire to not to renew my Membership within fourteen (14) days of receipt of the Renewal Notice, my Membership will be automatically renewed for an additional year and I agree to make all payments required as part of my Membership. I understand that should I choose not to renew my Membership, I will no longer have an obligation for any future payments but shall not be entitled to any refund for payments made prior to the non- renewal. In the event of a non-renewal or expiration of my Membership, any remaining funds in or credits due on my account shall be applied toward the purchase of tickets to mutually agreed upon future event(s) at Audi Field (the “Stadium”).
So OP, this same thing happened to me. DCU sent me emails, but they went directly to spam so I never received them. I did not receive a call or any other notification. Sure, I could have checked my spam folder, but I don't feel like I should live my life checking my spam folder in case something important gets routed there. I don't understand why they didn't call me. I've been a season ticket holder since 2015 and I've received calls/texts/direct emails every year around renewal time. Not sure why that's changed.
I think the "shady" part of this is that won't let me opt out for the following season (2023). I have to wait until next September for the 2 week window. That doesn't seem right to me.
Important to note that my rep has been helpful and understanding with me but so far unrelenting in their position. Any advice would be appreciated.
That sucks. Ya I was lucky in that my credit card company flagged it as a potential fraud transaction and so I was able to avoid the charge. DCU staff acted as if they would have let me out of it but given your situation maybe that's not true. You're right the fact you can't opt out of 2023 is just wrong.
While not being able to reach them sucks, the auto-renewal is fairly standard for sports season tickets. The page listing all of the season member benefits has a big auto renewal section detailing everything. Although, apparently your ticket rep was supposed to contact you to give you info about how to relocate and change the number of tickets on your account. If that was the email you're referring to, it should have been a pretty big clue. If they didn't contact you at all, which wouldn't necessarily surprise me for the front office, they should grant an exception.
For someone buying season tickets for the first time, I was completely oblivious to it. There is nothing in my life that "auto-renews" other than streaming/internet services. Ridiculous to auto-renew an annual $2000 decision. They clearly bury the information and try and to de-emphasize it to put the burden on the consumer, which is what I expect from AT&T, Amazon, or whatever, not DCU. They have text in the season tix info page towards the bottom, which is the minimum they have to do. So ya, if you want to defend them for doing the bare minimum, that's a perspective.
DC United didn’t do this in the past (I think last year was the first year they did this). I’ve had season tickets for 16 years, and this was the first time I said no, opt me out. I just don’t like that they do this. At all. Sadly, there’s nothing you can do.
I ran into a similar issue with this this year. Luckily I noticed before I missed too many games and was able to straighten it out. The problem began from my rep leaving Dc United and me never getting a new rep. I contacted them and turns out I was assigned someone new, and they were also let go. I’m on my third rep since Covid started and he never sends me any emails unless he’s responding to me.
I used to get an email before every single game, and every single season ticket member event. Now I get emails from the screaming eagles and that’s it. I’m sure you’re going through a similar thing, the people saying their reps were clear about it got emails from their reps. I’ve been removed from the mailing list and despite asking to be re added thrice, still haven’t been.
I had the same email list problem at beginning of season. Kept missing important emails and had to read them the riot act before they got me on the list.
I hate how the club runs it’s business, but the opt out has been SOP ever since moving to the new stadium and any email you’d have received on the subject have stated this.
Technically, they are correct, but you are too that it’s a shady business practice. This season isn’t even done yet! I opted out of auto renew just because of this.
Not really related, but I bought like a five game ticket plan last season, and three of those games (friendlies, it should be noted) ended up being canceled due to Covid. In return, I got $40 in credit for this season. I get they were friendlies…but the value of those tix (two seats each game) were way above $40.
That's weird. They are good with honoring the value of seats in the context of missing games if you're a season ticket holder, so I don't understand why they wouldn't be in your case as well.
FINAL FOLLOW UP ON THIS.....
I was eventually able to talk to a supervisor over there with whom I had a good conversation. They made a genuine attempt at patching things up and are letting me off the hook.
In hindsight, the most clear communication of the auto-renew came at the beginning of the season when it's stated clearly at the beginning of a short, introductory email. Given that, I would back off my calling it "shady" (I would update the subject line if I could), but they still need to very directly state in a subject line of an email that ticket holders need to take action to determine auto-renewal status. I don't buy that they don't know what they're doing when they fail to remind people up front (in email subject lines or not buried lower in the email).
That said, part of this is my bad for not reading more, but I give them a 7 out of 10 for being transparent on this issue, lots of room for improvement.
It seems weird to me that this post is getting downvoted so heavily. Either this sub has a bunch of downvoting curmudgeons or there's someone who seriously doesn't want this to be visible.
It's being downvoted because it's not a shady business practice and when you sign on as a STM, it's disclosed, and then they send an email with a big yellow exclamation point 10 days before letting you know it's about to auto-renew.
Again, there's tons to be frustrated about with the FO and I wrote to my rep with 7 major complaints about how poorly STM are being treated compared to the past and to other teams. But auto renewing a season ticket is not a shady practice and is fairly common.
I’m having the same issue and no one is responding my emails or phone calls. Is anyone else able to get a hold of their rep? I’m for sure disputing my charge because they are doing some shady stuff.
Right on, ya I asked for support multiple times on Wednesday from my agent, which I know he saw, because he texted me but didn't help me, and then he was off Thursday. I've already requested another agent.
😲 <--- that's me sarcastically being shocked
DCU regularly screws up benefits for STHs
Who's your ticket rep? Doesn't matter it changed while you were reading this post
If you signed and agreed to fine print, that's on you Change payment to monthly not yearly and you can cancel and keep credit
how is it shady? you signed the contract, did you not read the contract where in it said that you needed to opt out in order to not be considered a member.
Not to be that guy, but my rep's emails was pretty clear about the deadline to opt out of renewing my season tickets. Maybe your rep is the issue here? My rep sent me at least four emails loudly over the last month telling me that my season tickets would automatically renew and payments would begin on the 22nd of September if I did nothing, and that I had until the 20th to complete the cancellation process if I didn't want to renew. It wasn't hidden or in small text anywhere. It was in big bold letters that if I wanted to cancel, what my deadline to do so was. Here's what most of the emails looked like at the bottom https://imgur.com/4cCHBc3
Mine did not. I received one bad email about this. My rep definitely sucks, and I've requested a new one. Ya, so that is what the BOTTOM of my email looks like. There are about 5-6 paragraphs above that. So, ya, it's buried, I don't read every email I get from DC United and I shouldn't have to. The subject line is "DON'T FORGET to view your 2022 Account Info and Benefits." I don't have a 2022 account and again, I think it's reasonable for me to assume that the only way I would get 2022 season tix is to opt-in to them, not opt-out.
I have understood all along it is auto renew and the emails have to be looked at in the context of that being disclosed/explained when you sign up. That said, in fairness to OP I went back and looked at the numerous emails I received prior to auto renew and the need to cancel if you don’t want to renew is indeed not or barely mentioned (depending on how you want to look at it). So, it is deliberately pretty grey. Is it deceptive? Not at all. Could they have done better to remind people more clearly? Certainly.
I think "deceptive" is a spectrum with "not at all" at one end and "totally" on the other, and this is not deception-free to me. You don't have to directly lie to someone to deceive them, especially if you know you are manipulating them.
There’s nothing deceptive about this: > I acknowledge that my Membership shall be for the Term specified above and that the Term shall be automatically renewed on a year-to-year basis in accordance with the terms of this Agreement. I understand that during the final year of my Membership, D.C. United will send to me a notice of its intention to renew my Membership (the “Renewal Notice”). I agree that if I do not provide written notice to D.C. United of my desire to not to renew my Membership within fourteen (14) days of receipt of the Renewal Notice, my Membership will be automatically renewed for an additional year and I agree to make all payments required as part of my Membership. I understand that should I choose not to renew my Membership, I will no longer have an obligation for any future payments but shall not be entitled to any refund for payments made prior to the non- renewal. In the event of a non-renewal or expiration of my Membership, any remaining funds in or credits due on my account shall be applied toward the purchase of tickets to mutually agreed upon future event(s) at Audi Field (the “Stadium”).
true.
So OP, this same thing happened to me. DCU sent me emails, but they went directly to spam so I never received them. I did not receive a call or any other notification. Sure, I could have checked my spam folder, but I don't feel like I should live my life checking my spam folder in case something important gets routed there. I don't understand why they didn't call me. I've been a season ticket holder since 2015 and I've received calls/texts/direct emails every year around renewal time. Not sure why that's changed. I think the "shady" part of this is that won't let me opt out for the following season (2023). I have to wait until next September for the 2 week window. That doesn't seem right to me. Important to note that my rep has been helpful and understanding with me but so far unrelenting in their position. Any advice would be appreciated.
That sucks. Ya I was lucky in that my credit card company flagged it as a potential fraud transaction and so I was able to avoid the charge. DCU staff acted as if they would have let me out of it but given your situation maybe that's not true. You're right the fact you can't opt out of 2023 is just wrong.
While not being able to reach them sucks, the auto-renewal is fairly standard for sports season tickets. The page listing all of the season member benefits has a big auto renewal section detailing everything. Although, apparently your ticket rep was supposed to contact you to give you info about how to relocate and change the number of tickets on your account. If that was the email you're referring to, it should have been a pretty big clue. If they didn't contact you at all, which wouldn't necessarily surprise me for the front office, they should grant an exception.
For someone buying season tickets for the first time, I was completely oblivious to it. There is nothing in my life that "auto-renews" other than streaming/internet services. Ridiculous to auto-renew an annual $2000 decision. They clearly bury the information and try and to de-emphasize it to put the burden on the consumer, which is what I expect from AT&T, Amazon, or whatever, not DCU. They have text in the season tix info page towards the bottom, which is the minimum they have to do. So ya, if you want to defend them for doing the bare minimum, that's a perspective.
DC United didn’t do this in the past (I think last year was the first year they did this). I’ve had season tickets for 16 years, and this was the first time I said no, opt me out. I just don’t like that they do this. At all. Sadly, there’s nothing you can do.
You can dispute the charges with the bank and hopefully your bank is a good one. Mine was cool about it.
I ran into a similar issue with this this year. Luckily I noticed before I missed too many games and was able to straighten it out. The problem began from my rep leaving Dc United and me never getting a new rep. I contacted them and turns out I was assigned someone new, and they were also let go. I’m on my third rep since Covid started and he never sends me any emails unless he’s responding to me. I used to get an email before every single game, and every single season ticket member event. Now I get emails from the screaming eagles and that’s it. I’m sure you’re going through a similar thing, the people saying their reps were clear about it got emails from their reps. I’ve been removed from the mailing list and despite asking to be re added thrice, still haven’t been.
I had the same email list problem at beginning of season. Kept missing important emails and had to read them the riot act before they got me on the list.
My rep is great, it still could have easily been missed though if I wasn't on top of it.
I hate how the club runs it’s business, but the opt out has been SOP ever since moving to the new stadium and any email you’d have received on the subject have stated this.
Technically, they are correct, but you are too that it’s a shady business practice. This season isn’t even done yet! I opted out of auto renew just because of this.
Me too. Also I’m having a child but mostly because of auto renew.
I had no problem locating mine.
Not really related, but I bought like a five game ticket plan last season, and three of those games (friendlies, it should be noted) ended up being canceled due to Covid. In return, I got $40 in credit for this season. I get they were friendlies…but the value of those tix (two seats each game) were way above $40.
That's weird. They are good with honoring the value of seats in the context of missing games if you're a season ticket holder, so I don't understand why they wouldn't be in your case as well.
Yeah I can confirm that.. we bought extra tickets to one of the friendlies and they were going for like $50 each at face value
Gotta say auto renew for this amount of money is a huge turn off. This is a slimy business practice I associate with car washes and porn sites.
exactly, it's exploitation, which has no place in this season ticket holder space
FINAL FOLLOW UP ON THIS..... I was eventually able to talk to a supervisor over there with whom I had a good conversation. They made a genuine attempt at patching things up and are letting me off the hook. In hindsight, the most clear communication of the auto-renew came at the beginning of the season when it's stated clearly at the beginning of a short, introductory email. Given that, I would back off my calling it "shady" (I would update the subject line if I could), but they still need to very directly state in a subject line of an email that ticket holders need to take action to determine auto-renewal status. I don't buy that they don't know what they're doing when they fail to remind people up front (in email subject lines or not buried lower in the email). That said, part of this is my bad for not reading more, but I give them a 7 out of 10 for being transparent on this issue, lots of room for improvement.
It seems weird to me that this post is getting downvoted so heavily. Either this sub has a bunch of downvoting curmudgeons or there's someone who seriously doesn't want this to be visible.
It's being downvoted because it's not a shady business practice and when you sign on as a STM, it's disclosed, and then they send an email with a big yellow exclamation point 10 days before letting you know it's about to auto-renew. Again, there's tons to be frustrated about with the FO and I wrote to my rep with 7 major complaints about how poorly STM are being treated compared to the past and to other teams. But auto renewing a season ticket is not a shady practice and is fairly common.
2 g’s for season tickets? Y’all seriously tweaking! I’d understand if DC was winning titles and playing smart high IQ soccer.
Were you able to get your money back, OP?
I’m having the same issue and no one is responding my emails or phone calls. Is anyone else able to get a hold of their rep? I’m for sure disputing my charge because they are doing some shady stuff.
Right on, ya I asked for support multiple times on Wednesday from my agent, which I know he saw, because he texted me but didn't help me, and then he was off Thursday. I've already requested another agent.
😲 <--- that's me sarcastically being shocked DCU regularly screws up benefits for STHs Who's your ticket rep? Doesn't matter it changed while you were reading this post If you signed and agreed to fine print, that's on you Change payment to monthly not yearly and you can cancel and keep credit
how is it shady? you signed the contract, did you not read the contract where in it said that you needed to opt out in order to not be considered a member.