Complain about a product or service

XM Satellite Radio

Marvin of Victorville CA (05/14/08)
I sent a payment of $144.45 for the whole year and they kept charging me $23.74 then it went to $25.74 then it went to $27.74. I explained to her that I had paid for the whole year and why do they keep billing me. She give me some story about $2.00 fees and usage fees.

I don't owe them anymore money and feel this is way work is being sent overseas because of people like this. Then everyone wants to cry about know jobs. She wanted to send me back $91.45 because I said I already paid for the year. Before I spoke to her I spoke to another young lady who was worst then her who would not put a supervisor on the phone so I had to hang up and call back.

Lenore of Hinckley IL (05/09/08)
18 months ago I subscribed to XM Radio. I would be billed $38.85 quarterly. I recently noticed when looking at my visa bill that I was being billed twice from XM radio - once for the radio and another charge for XM online. That charge was $7.99. I looked back at my other Visa statements and found that they have been charging me for online radio for 18 months. I never authorized the xm online.

I spoke to a representative and she said I would be reimbursed the $143.82. She also agreed that I should not have been charged for something I had never ordered. Now XM is saying that they will only pay me back for 6 months. They say it is my fault for not noticing their mistake earlier. How can I be held responcible for their illegal actions of charging me for I service I had not authorized? When I would see XM on my bill I just assumed it was for the radio until I looked more closely and saw that there was an extra charge of $7.99 for XM Online.

L of Foxboro MA (05/01/08)
I received an XM radio for Christmas from my husband. I finally got around to setting it up in January and I chose to prepay one year of service via invoice format (I did not give them any credit card or bank information). I chose to prepay the year because of the purported savings when opposed to monthly billing. Well, I had my radio turned on in January, received the bill and remitted payment. I recently received another invoice bill for $28.13.

I called the customer service number to ask what the charge was for and I was told that they interrupted my service (unbeknownst to me) on March 8th due to non receipt of payment. They then received my payment on March 16th and turned my service back on and began my year contract on that March 16th date. So now XM is saying that my 1 year contract is from March 16 and not January and they are demanding another $28.13 or they will shut off my service (even though I have prepaid $157.44 for an entire year). I could not understand why they did not apply some of the $157.44 to the standing balance and leave my contract beginning in January as was understood by me when I turned the service on. If I pay this extra $28.13 it pretty much negates any savings I may have received by prepaying for the year.

When I asked the representative to transfer me to a manger she said that the manager would tell me the same and that is just the way XM does it's billing (oh, by the way, the radio service is only $26.13 of the bill, they are charging me $2.00 to invoice me for payments because I don't have a credit card or bank information on account). I told the representative I did not care what the manager would tell me and that I wanted to file a complaint with them regarding their billing practices. Needless to say, a manager was unavailable and nothing was accomplished. As it now stands, I can terminate service, receive a refund for services not rendered and then I am stuck with a radio I paid $90.00 for that is useless to me.

Lynda of Nanoose Bay, Canada (04/29/08)
I purchased an XM radio for both my mom and husband for Christmas in 2006 and signed them both up for a 1 year subscription prepaid on my credit card to which I never did get a break for paying for 2 radios on the family plan! As the year came to an end we decided not to resubscribe to the radio and they disconnected our radio.

Four months later I have now received a bill in the mail from a collection agency stating we owe them money for disconnection. They have never contacted us or sent us a bill until it went to a collection agency. This company has now put a mark on our credit by putting our account to a collection agency. They never sent us a bill from them to give us a chance to correct this problem.

Keith of Columbus OH (04/28/08)
I've been an XM Radio customer since 2003. At one point, I had radios in simultaneous service and I currently have their family plan. Service has generally been fine. The times I've called in the past to activate or modify my service have been handled well - until my most recent call. I discovered today that XM had charged my expired VISA card $179 (in essence, without my approval).

First, maybe I'm uninformed, but I assumed that an expired credit card could no longer be charged. Second, they charged me for a radio that I didn't own. So I was being charged for an extra radio, a defective radio that have been replaced by the dealer and which was no longer in my possession. When I called to get the extra radio charge removed from the service, it took 1.5 hours to get escalated through 4 different customer service levels - only to be told that they could refund only the service - pro-rated until today. Not the amount going back to the error they made. On top of that, they indicated that they could not refund the sales tax on the service that I never authorized and never got. So I'm amazed. Maybe this Sirius acquisition is causing them to take their customers for granted. I'm ready to drop the service.

Loss of funds. Convoluted and time consumer run-around to cancel service.

Frank of Wake Forest NC (04/28/08)
I purchased a new vehicle with XM Radio on a 3-month free trial. During the trial period, I decided to sign up for an additional 3 months of XM radio service. However, when the trial period end date arrived, the XM receiver went into preview mode and I no longer had access to their satellite programming. Interestingly, there was no interruption to their online, web-based streaming service through my account. I followed the web site instructions to send a refresh signal to the radio. Several attempts to refresh the radio did not work. Next, I used the XM phone menu system to refresh the radio. I made sure to follow their instructions exactly. No luck. The radio remained in preview mode.

I next navigated through the XM phone menu and spoke to a live human. My account and radio information was verified. The support rep was reading from a script, because he repeated word-for-word the exact same information available from the phone menu re: radio refresh. Patiently, I explained that the 6 previous attempts to refresh the radio had not worked. He assured me that everything would be working fine and that he had sent a refresh signal to the radio. I explained that I would not be turning on the radio for several hours, until I got back to the car. No problem, he assured me. Everything will be working perfectly.

Here's the part that really floored me. Because I tried for several weeks, without success, to get the XM radio functioning again, I asked if he could extend my service 1 month, at no cost to me. At first, he thought I wanted to pay for another month's subscription. No, I responded. I have paid for 3 month's service but haven't had that service for nearly a month, so I want XM radio to extend my existing service by a month at no additional charge. He says, let me check, I will be right back. I thought this fair since by now I'm really not satisfied with the XM radio, and unable to use the unit even though the service is paid for. It's a chance for them to satisfy my discontent. After 15 minutes of silence on the phone, I finally get the idea that he hung up on me. Based on my experience of poor quality of service, both through the automated systems and the human system, it is clear that my local NPR public radio station is much more deserving of the money that I had planned to give to XM. It's a $40 lesson and I will make it so.

Paid for 3 month's of service. Followed explicitly the radio refresh instructions through multiple attempts over a 3-week period. The radio did not refresh and I have not received the service I have paid for. The problem was escalated as I felt appropriate, and a reasonable adjustment was requested and denied.

Regina of Shawnee KS (04/25/08)
I bought a new car in May of 2007 that came with XM radio. When the 3 month free subscription ended I called to extend my service. At the same time I had my husband XM radio reactivated because he had been deployed and we deactivated his radio while he was gone. The XM rep told me that if I got a 3 yr plan it would be discounted and since we had 2 cars on the plan my husband's service would also be discounted, and so I signed up for a 3 yr plan on the new truck and a 1 yr plan on my husbands car. The rep said I owed $271, I gave my credit card info and paid for the service.

A couple of months later my service is cut off. I call XM and I'm told they don't know why my service was disconnected and they reconnect me. About a month later it happens again and I call XM again. They tell me the same thing, my account is up to date and they don't know why my service was interrupted. Now, mind you, each time I call them I'm on the phone a minimum of 30 min. and was disconnected and placed on hold several times.

Well at the end of Feb. it happens again and the rep I spoke to apologizes, reconnects my service and tells me he doesn't know why this has happen, but assures me he has it straightened out and it won't happen again. Well a few weeks later we receive an invoice stating we owe over $100. We get one every other week and I'm real hesitant to call just because I know I will be on the phone for a long time.

Finally, one day I get an email stating my service is going to be interrupted if I don't pay the balance on my account. Well I couldn't bring myself to call again so my husband call. He is on the phone for an hour with them and he gets so frustrated I take the phone and try to reason with the man on the phone. I explain all the problems we've gone through over the past months and he states he understands, but you still owe us this money.

I had called at least 3 times and my husband had called as well and we were repeatedly told our account was current. Than all of a sudden we owe $166.  XM has the worst customer service and the worst service I've ever had the misfortune to deal with.

John of Madeira OH (04/22/08)
I recently purchased a used Chevy Truck that has the XM Radio built in. I have a Sirius Account since I am a Truck Driver but still waiting for the companies to merge I signed up for XM to use in my pickup. The total startup was $14.95 and then $12.95 a month. A few days later a charge for $398.98 comes out of my account.

When I called XM they told me I had signed up for the 3 year plan (which when taxes and activation are added comes to $398.98) I REPEATEDLY told them I did NOT want that plan... only the month to month. Called the day of the charge and I was told I would have a credit within 72 hours. Well it has been over a week and I am still waiting. I called my bank and emailed XM Billing, and if the money is not returned tomorrow they said they will start the paperwork for a fraudulent charge to my account (which could take up to 10 business days to resolve).

Paul of Sparks NV (04/22/08)
During November of 2007, I purchased an XM radio and a three month subscription to XM Satellite Service using a prepaid service card from Best Buy. At the time I activated my account, I specified that it was a three month trial only as I had heard rumor the radio didn't work well.

As expected, the radio had so much interference it couldn't be used and I put it away after about two weeks. I accepted the fact I paid too much, three months of service and only used the radio for two weeks.

Six months later, XM has started calling my home daily and demanding that I pay for the additional three months of service. When I spoke to Sean at collections and Alisa at customer service, they insisted I pay for the service I neither used nor requested since my account was never officially deactivated. Neither representative would resolve the issue, but only insisted I must have used the radio since the account was not deactivated. In addition, neither representative would stop the daily calls to my home. Instead,they demanded payment and threatened me with collections. Why should I have to pay for something I didn't want or use?

Mark of Lodi CA (04/16/08)
They without my knowledge or authorization withdrew subscription funds from one of my bank accounts. They claimed they had authorization from, which I explained that I would not have done this, because I don't give this type of authorization to automatically debit my account. Apparently they kept my payment information without my knowledge the last time I paid the on the account and reused it when the subscription was coming due.

They apologized and reversed the funds, but not before the account had been overdrawn because of their unauthorized transaction.

John of Alpharetta GA (04/14/08)
their website is the most user unfriendly, archaic, useless piece of crap ever...xm's website sucks!

Richard of Cinnaminson NJ (04/09/08)
The company charged my credit card for a year after my promotion period ended without my consent. I checked my account one day and saw the unauthorized charge which luckily didn't result in bounced checks to my bank account. I have made NUMEROUS calls and sent just as many e-mails. They keep telling me that my refund is pending. This ordeal has gone on for close to a month and a half. I agreed to sign on for 3 months at a time but after reading all of these other stories, I should have just cancelled my service all together. The service is just not worth the underhanded way they do business. I will make my next complaint with the B.B.B. They will have to answer for all of this sooner or later.

Eric of Mechanicsburg PA (04/01/08)
I signed up for XM during a 3 month free promotion in December, 07. The service was for a my car which has a factory installed radio with XM built in. I was told by the guy on the phone that since my radio is factory installed, I have to buy 3 months to get the 3 free months. This way, I would get 6 months of XM at the 3 month cost. I was told the total with activation would be $53.84 for the total of 6 months, which I put on my credit card. Now, 3 months later I got a notice saying that my account currently has a past due balance! I called and asked why my account is showing overdue when I have only had the service for 3 months? (The person who answered was Natalie) I was supposed to get a total of 6 months with the 3 paid months + the 3 free months. Natalie told me to hold on and when she returned, she told me that I am not eligible for the promotion, because the radio was factory installed. I explained that I went through this when I signed up, and how the guy told me that if I buy 3 months, then I can have the 3 month free trial. Natalie had me hold a few more times while she checked. After 15 minutes of explaining, she refused to honor the terms that I had agreed to when I became an XM customer! What kind of company does business this way? Buyers beware, I looked up XM in the BBB website and found that they have an unsatisfactory rating. What a shocker that is!

Looks like they may shut off my service before the 6 month time period which I signed up for, and already paid for.

Maggie of Alhambra CA (03/31/08)
I bought an Acura 3 months ago and was told that I will have 3 months of free trial. 3 months later, I got a bill in the mail for $16.97. I called XM to see how this can happen, but the reps. keep insisting that I signed up over the phone with XM. Obviously, they have a telemarketing team that is commiting fraud. I never authorized any subscription with XM. It is very upseting to get a bill, and to have someone insisting that you did something that you've never done.

Jami of Valdosta GA (03/26/08)
I called XM Radio to activate and additional radio we have in one of our cars and he told me they had a promotional thing going on where I could get a radio for 5.99. He said I would pay no activation charges and no shipping charges. He also said the first 3 months of service were free and after that if I wanted to activate the radio it would cost 6.99 a month. I agreed to the 5.99 and when I got home and checked my email I had and invoice for 54.38. I checked my bank account and that amount had been drafted out. I called XM and they told me there was nothing they could do since the product had already been shipped. I dont know how they are getting away with that. It is Fraud. They are stealing money without it being authorized. I called my bank and will be filing charges on that end. I will never do business with XM again!!!!!

Stephenia of Brimfield IL (03/25/08)
Tom was the rudest person I have ever has the misspleasure of dealing with at a customer service number. He was so nasty and rude - I had placed an order for an xm radio online and it didn't say anything about not being able to return orders or that I would not get a rebate. I submitted the order and then it popped up a large box saying to keep in mind orders are not returnable and that the rebate does not apply to my order. First, I bought the crazy thing on the basis that I would get a rebate.

Secondly, I am nervous about the portable xm anyway - I am not sure how the reception is going to be out in the rural are where I live. I tried to explain this to Tom (who was the supervisor there) and he said that it was I who got myself in this situation and that I should never have ordered it. His tone, everything was just nasty. I think that they must be in some call center somewhere and just hire these people off of the street to answer the phones. I am really turned off by xm now.

Jay of Shelton WA (02/25/08)
I had been automatically billed for service approx. 6 months after I had thought I had finally cut all ties to this company back around last January, having not used it or desired it and already been over-billed a year before. I had no idea that I had been charged again automatically until accidentally discovering that I still had service when getting my old gear ready to sell. They said I had called as recently as November (No Way) and from then on would be rebated but from that date, had not been reimbursed for balance owed as of February 25! They said I would be reimbursed in the 3-5 business days window.

Major frustration, monetary loss, all for unrequested service.

Andre of San Jose CA (02/25/08)
Been a subscriber to XM radio for 3 years. Annual renewal date is April 2008. I contacted XM radio in February 2008 to cancel my subscription and account. Attempt 1 (2/25/08): XM representative offered me a lower rate (half price) + 3 free months on 2nd radio ID. When I turned down the offer and proceeded to cancel, the XM representative hung up on me.

I recorded the call Attempt 2 (2/25/08): XM representative collected account ID, validated my account. As soon as I said I would like to cancel, she hung on me prior to me getting her phone ID / name.

I recorded the call Attempt 3 (2/25/08): had my lawyer represent me (he recorded the call and maintained very thorough documentation as well as voice recording of the transaction). *cancelling an account should not be so difficult; each time we called customer service, we waited on hold for 15+ minutes. In all, I spent about 3 hours coordinating a simple cancellation request + 2 hours of my lawyer's time. I hope others don't have to deal with this.

Laywers fees: consultation + representation when cancelling my account.

Kevin of Clovis CA (02/20/08)
After my 3 month trial period that came with my new car I decided to buy another year of XM service. Before that year was up I traded the car in. 3-4 months later I start getting bills for XM service that I did not ask for nor did I use. I refused to pay and now they sent it to collections. This business practice of billing first and asking second is unacceptable. I informed the collectors I will not pay now or ever, regardless of impact to my credit.

Up until now the only impact has been the irritation of dealing them. I don't believe the collectors are legitimate either. To date, nothing has showed up on my credit and it's been over 9 months since they started calling me. If you're upset with XM and want to let them know, I encourage you to send an email to Joe Zarella. He is the Exec. VP over business operations and listener care.

Karen of San Francisco CA (02/15/08)
I have been overcharged various times and everytime I call customer service they tell me it's been fixed only to have it happen again the following month OR the charges still remain. I have called at least 20 times and to no dismay. Transfer after transfer, manager after manager...nothing. I will never do business with them again and I will tell everyone I know not to either. Hundreds of dollars just wasted.

Mike of Huntington Beach AL (02/07/08)
I get continued unauthorized bills for services not requested, and products not received that were paid for. I tried to resolve issues but was lied to as they said would be taken care of and it never happened. Finally was told had been to long and they were not going to supply product and no refund. This process took over one and a half years.

Over 350 min. of phone calls, 657 dollars of products and services.

John of Danville CA (01/29/08)
XM turned me over to a collection company when I ended my subscription with them and continued to bill me. When I called XM to ask why they were continuing to bill me and why I needed to pay for additional months of service that I did not use, the customer service representative hung up on me. I had to call them back again to pay and hope this stops the harassment.

XM has negatively reported to my credit and charged me $25.90 for months of service I never used.

Janine of Washington, DC (01/28/08)
XM radio is essentially doing the same thing that Time Warner was doing-automatically renewing subscriptions.

I called them as soon as the bill appeared on my credit card statement. I hadn't been using my XM radio for over 6 months so I didn't know that the service had been automatically renewed. I called them and they were very aggressive, saying I would have to pay them for the balance of the month or they would have a collection agency come after me.

Scott of Princeton, IN (01/28/08)
I think the service is absolutely terrible. I ordered 1 radio and received 2 and was billed incorrectly. It took forever to clear that up.

I followed their instructions on returning the extra radio and the warehouse didn't show having received it for 1 month after I shipped it out. I have come to the conclusion that XM is doomed and it starts from the top down.

I finally canceled service after the final incorrect bill. 

Tom of Goose Creek SC (01/24/08)
I have over 30 phone calls to them They double charged my credit card refuse to refund it and now continue to bill me still. Every bill gets larger and larger over 30 calls to XP hours and hours on the phone and every call they promise it will be fixed and it never does. XM radio has the worst billing practices I have ever seen. They lie and steal to get your money. I have no idea how they get away with this but someone needs to stop them I hope the Government would do something they are ripping everyone off and I can not take it anymore I am going to have to let them put it on my credit report when they actually owe me money.

several hunderd dollars and massive stress and loas time trying to work with them and thye just keep lieing and never do it. and the bill gets higher and higher for no reason.

Chris of Miami FL (01/23/08)
XM radio will not stop billing me for their services. I have tried repeatedly for almost 6 months to get them to stop but they will not. I have a couple of emails I have sent to them as FOLLOW UPs to phone calls with their representatives to establish proof of my requests which I started collecting in October, 2007 after 3 months of unsuccessful attempts. They were debiting my credit card account so I canceled the card. It was attached to my main bank account so the fall out and administrative work have been substantial. Now they are sending me paper bills. Is there anything which can be done about this?



Peggy of Atkins AR (01/21/08)
I bought a new car with xm radio. It was time to renew and every person that called, I explained that I could no longer pay for this service and did not need it. Now I received a notice in the mail that I owe them $25.00 and have been turned over to a collection service.I do not feel I owe them this money and I feel this is how they make millions off unsuspecting people. They keep asking me if they called me or I called them. I really have no idea, I'm sure I have done both.

Allen of Stokes NC (01/20/08)
We had two radio subscriptions. One was a installed unit in my truck and the other was a factory radio in my wifes Pontiac. We traded that Vibe in on July 4, 2006. I called on the 10th to cancel since we no longer had the car. Made the call and everything went fine or so I thought. I've been setup on the quarterly from the get go and I never really checked on my account since then, my fault for that, but not my fault XM billedf me for 18 months.

After I decided this past Friday to cancel my truck, I checked my account online only to find that I was being charged for 2 radios still. After calling to inquire, I was told that yes, I had called on the 10th but I had hung up before it could be completed. I traded a car and if I had been disconnected before the service was cancelled, I would have called back! I work too hard for my money to have them take it. They tell me I will be refunded but the woman's computer was updating and she couldn't tell me how much. So I called back today (2 days later) to be told that, "yes, I was receiving a refund in the amount of $19." This is for 18 months of service that I had cancelled 18 months ago. Now I'm waiting for a call from billing who will be investigating this. And another thing, why can't I get someone that can speak clear English? If I don't get a full refund, I will pursue this in whatever way I can.

Kim of Lineville IA (01/17/08)
They absolutley cannot keep their billing straight. They refuse to tell you the same thing twice in a row about any problem with billing. 5 times in the last 45 days they have shut one of our radios off for what they claim is non-payment only to turn they back on when we complain. They then promise to credit back our account and did that twice and then sent us out a third bill showing where they had taken all of their credits back. The last woman that I talked to said that she couldn't do anything to rectify the situation because, get this, the radio had been shut off too many times in the last 45 days. Needless to say, I almost lost control at that point, as up until that moment in time they had always maintained that it was a mistake and that the radio wasn't supposed to have been shut off, and always had immediatly restored service. Guys, this is nice to be able to blow off steam but seriously what do we do about these people. I really do like the programing and so do my kids, so much so we cancelled our tv service. But this sort of hassle for us has been going on for the better part of over two years. Hubby is a truck driver and adores the programming but has also had his belly full of the nonsense they dish out in custumer care. I really would like to keep my service but I am having a difficult time justifying this much headache. The programming is good alright but NOT THAT GOOD. Please have your attorneys contact me, I need someone in my corner, that is for certain! PS. I think I still have to invoices they sent out in December showing the credits back to my account for the first two shut offs. And the most recent one where they took them back.

Right now they are trying to force us to pay $156 or $113 or one guy said we only owe $92. I really depends on who you talk to and if the person you are talking to cares to honor their promisess of the credits back to the account for wrongly shutting the one radio off 5 times now.

Sharon of Menomonie WI (01/12/08)
My 17 year old son received a letter on January 11, 2008 stating that XM Radio was unable to bill my debit card due to expiration. I called to inform them that he did not wish to extend the service. They then transferred me to their deactivation department. They deactivated the radio and asked me why we no longer wanted service. I told them the antenna broke after 3-months and my son, who has the service in his name, did not have the funds to purchase another antenna, therefore did not use the service. They were sorry and deactivated the service. They then informed me that I had to pay $7.80 because the contract expired on December 24th and I did not call until January 12th. I told them I just received the letter on the 11th. They told me that they had sent notice prior to the expiration date. I told them that we had not received anything and she said they sent an e-mail. I informed her that I had not received an e-mail as I no longer had that internet service. She said they had sent notice so I was obligated to pay the fee. I told her that upon sending the e-mail they would have received a mail deamon that it did not get delivered as the internet service/e-mail had rejected it. She did not care. I told her that I needed proof that the email was sent/delivered. She indicated they would send me something but they didn't have my e-mail. I told her to send it via mail and they obviously had my address as I had just received this letter. I plan to take their notice upon receipt and report them to the better business bureau. Of course I will have to pay the charges to keep my credit rating intact, but their unethical approach to increase their profits is unacceptable.

Payment of $7.80 penalty for them not sending notice in a timely manner. In addition I feel that doing this to an underage child is extremely unethical and they should be brought to further consequences for their actions.

Donald of Fairfield CA (01/05/08)
XM radio used my credit card they had on file to start another subscription. I found out when I got a radio in the mail. I called and they refused to credit my card. I disputed the amount and sent the radio back. Now they are putting it on my credit report.

Negative credit, charged me for something I never authorized.

James of Scottsdale AZ (01/05/08)
I sold my car and they made me pay for several extra months as I did not give them 2 months notice. I bought one year of service and they said it is in the terms and conditions that it automatically rolls over. They were going to send my account to a collections company. Terrible company - sound quality of XM is far below regular radio. I liked not having commercials but I will not be paying for this option in any future car I own.

Gwen of Sulphur LA (01/05/08)
XM Radio took over programing of the Power from radio one. The Power is an African American talk radio station. Xm is now taking some of the best and most educational programs off the air starting Jan. 7th of 2008. Due to this change in programming I will not renew my subscription in my car or at my home. I am stuck with the subscription at my home because I bought it a year in advance, an it will not expire untll June.

I bought a year subscription that will not expire till June. Is there anything that can be done?

Vella of Charlotte NC (01/03/08)
I called to simply re-instate my account. The representative, Erica asked for my credit card. She then went on to tell me a charge of $XX.XX would be billed to my credit card quarterly. Of course she has an accent and is fast-talking. I stopped her and said, excuse me I DID NOT AUTHORIZE YOU TO QUARTERLY BILL ME FOR ANYTHING. By the way, I was previously receiving a quarterly bill by mail. I told her I had a problem with her unethical tactic. I requested an explaination of my options and the total amount. I asked to speak with a Supervisor, Lois, at the end of the call. I asked if the representative received extra pay for establishing quarterly payments via credit card. The Supervisor stated it was part of her job. My options were not initially explained to me by the representative. I almost missed it until at the end she said your credit card will be quarterly billed. She assumed the opportunity. I should have been offered a choice of receiving a quarterly bill or having it billed to my credit card. Her tactics were underhanded and upsetting to me. If I had not stopped her, I would have received a payment plan not requested by me and a payment plan I did not want. Very, very upsetting!

I would have been automatically billed and not known until I noticed it on my ATM credit card statement. If the funds were not in my account at the time, it would incur an insufficient funds charge. I'm retired and on a budget so what goes into my account does not leave much room for error. This could have been my little Mom, Aunt or older sister. They don't like speaking on the phone regarding their bills because they feel they will be taken. They often call me to do a three way call with them because I'm a retire representive from a Major telecommunications company.

Lisa of Webster Groves MO (12/19/07)
I purchased an XM Radio for my son last Christmas with a $30 gift card to trial the service. My son, who was 16 years old, called and activated the service explaining that he only had a $30 gift card and was not signing up for anything more. 3 months later he recieived a bill from XM. I called and explained that my son did not sign up for anything and that I was not going to pay this bill. Now one year later after countless calls from collection agencies and XM radio agents and hours spent explaining this situation, I am exhausted. I made one more attempt today to explain that a minor cannot enter into a contract and therefore was not legally bound to this agreement. The collections agency asked me to write a cease and disist letter so that they would not contact me by phone anymore, otherwise they were going to continue to call twice a week until I paid this debt. They then told me that they had other ways of collecting debts. I am not sure what that means.

I then contacted XM radio to expain the situation, only to be told that they could do nothing for me and that the debt was outstanding. I explained patiently again that minors can not enter contracts and she told me that this was not a contract, that these were terms and conditions. I asked her what they were terms and conditions of? No answer from XM radio. I am beyond frustrated. I have been harrassed for almost 9 months. I am not paying this bill merely on principle. I took the XM out of both of my cars and will never use this service again. I hope others will do the same.

I have spent countless hours trying to rectify the problem. I receive harrassing behavior from both the XM radio people and from the Collections agency.

Debby of Torrance CA (11/19/07)
I have had XM RAdio since July of 2006. My first subscription was for six months. Thereafter I was offered various promotional deals to continue my subscription. My experience with their Customer Service is exasperating and aggravating to say the least. After my six month subscription expired I was offered a three month subscription at a reduced price. The customer service representative asked me if I would like to pay by credit card or would like them to invoice me and I chose to be invoiced. When the bill came I was charged a $2.00 fee for the invoice. This was not disclosed to me and, although the amount is minimal, I was furious. When I called Customer Service to complain I got a representative who proceeded to try and get me to change my subscription to a six months for a special price. I asked a lot of questions but never finalized with him. Needless to say he booked it into the system. I was furious and asked him to reverse it. He told me he couldn't right then, asked me to call back and actually hung up on me. After two different calls to customer service I was able to remove this subscription as well as the $2 fee. In October of this year I was offered two months free service if I didn't cancel my subscription. I confirmed with the customer service rep that this meant the free service would expire on 12/1/2007. She told me yes and said that if I didn't contact them before this date to cancel I would automatically be billed from then on at the regular rate. Just last week I received a bill from XM RAdio for around $23. According to the bill this is for the period 11/1/2007 to 2/1/2008. When I called to inquire why I was being charged when my understanding was that I had free service until 12/1/2007, I was given some explanation I could not understand about proration and being on a three month billing cycle. I was furious and asked that the charges be reversed and my subscription cancelled. I was told I had to be transferred to another department to cancel. Needless to say I got cut off when being transferred. I called again and explained my situation and was told again I had to be transferred and I got cuf off AGAIN. On the third attempt I finally got transferred. The service rep I got tried to give me another free month of service. I was so disgusted and furious I just asked him to reverse the charges and cancel my subscription. I do not trust these people and am scared to do business with them.

Vel of Geneva OH (10/31/07)
I returned a defective XM radio shortly after receiving and called on 4/23/07 to deactivate. Noticed in August that we had still been billed May-August ($55.16 total). I've spent over 3 hours on the phone and talked to 19 customer service reps trying to get the money back. Some reps look up the different accounts (3 accounts for 3 radios) to see we called; but whoever deactivated, wrote in the notes we accepted 2 free months of service so it wasn't deactivated. (On a unit we no longer had,why would we accept free service?). Three times we were told we'd receive credit on card but it never happens. It was sent to tier 3/escalation team who either don't call us or call to say that we didn't call to deactivate or we can't get a refund because of accepting 2 months free.

We've explained over and over that were getting billed: we didn't get 2 months free even if we DID accept it! Had to close active accounts, sell radios, change credit card number and file dispute with credit card company. I plan on reporting this to BBB, attorney general, posting it on web sites, telling my friends to stay away from XM and doing anything else I can. They robbed me of over $50 and a lot of time I could have been spending with my family!

Larry of Grand Prairie TX (10/02/07)
I bought a radio from XM radio last week (9/24/07). The sales person on the phone led me to believe that it was plug and play. And if I didn't like it, I could return it within 30 days. Well, I receive the unit October 1 and to my surprise, very little of anything he told me was true. The unit needs professional installation (says it on the box). It needs additional parts in order to hear music.

As well, when I read the copy of the invoice at the bottom it reads: ALL SALES ARE FINAL. I called to speak with a customer service person and she basically told me I'm stuck with the unit and wanted to argue about the recommended installation guide by AudioVox. I asked to speak to a supervisor and she said it would take a long time because they were all tied up with other callers...which really sounds about right!

Jason of Bloomington IN (09/28/07)
I just read this complaint, and I got the same call. They had my name and tried to say that I had an overdue account. I called XM and spoke to Rocklle, or whatever she said. When I told her that I received a call from a collection agency, she immediately hung up.

The GOV NEEDS TO DO SOMETHING ABOUT THIS SCAM. I feel like XM knows about it, they know their information has been stolen, but do not want to admit it!

Cathyann of Coventry, RI (09/24/07)
I have owned my new car for 1 year. I found the free trial of XM worth renewing - and from the start I'v'e had account billing problems. I get billed when I've paid. But the latest issue is worse.

On Sept. 12, 2007, I was away from home when a call was logged on my caller ID. When I returned the call, the number was identified as being the COLLECTIONS DEPARTMENT at Xm Radio(1-800-335-6800). I held and got an agent. After going all through my account information, I was told the account was current and I should not have been called. Two days later (9-14-2007) I was called again and answered the phone. The person identified themselves as being from Xm Collections and started a litany about the acount being over-due, blah, blah, blah!

I interrupted and said that there had been a call 2 days earlier and that I had spoken with collections and been assured that the account was fine. The person then said, let me look . . . , oh, yes I see that but the reason for the call is that you were late in your payment - I said no, I wasn't the payment was made in August, then the guy said, let me look, (short passage of time) oh yes I see that but we're calling because you only paid for 3 months and the account is a 6 month account, I said NO the account is on a 3 month cycle and has always been 3 months and I paid 3 months ON TIME.

Then he apologized and hung up. (Did you notice that the stated reason for the call changed 4 times!?) I went to a phone in the house with caller ID and noticed that the 1st and 2nd calling numbers were different - the second (202-380-1294) was NOT identified as an Xm corporation number when I looked it up. So I called Xm back and made a FRAUD complaint, going through all of the BS AGAIN!

I got a call reference number and was told I'd get a call back in 72 hours. Today is 9-24 (10 days) and I decided to follow-up. After speaking to two others I got a supervisor who looked at my account inside and out and assured me that the account is fine and that THERE WAS NO RECORD on their call logs of ANY calls being made to us.

I said that I KNEW THAT the account was current! My concern was/is that it's OBVIOUS someone was making unauthorized billing calls and since the first call was from a corporate phone either someone who worked for them had made it or else someone had somehow tapped into their lines. And that the second call came from a number identified to be in the private sector - that means SOMEONE has access to their account information and is trying to get fraudulant payments - if they're doing it to me they're doing it to others. Xm doesn't seem concerned about their accounts being secure.

Patricia of Clarksvile IN (08/22/07)

My husband and I had 2 XM radios subscriptions for 2 years. Each year we paid in advance for a 1 year subscription. This year, we decided not to renew because one of the radios had stopped working prior to he one year subscription ending. My husband called to cancel and of course, was given the one month free service line. Two months later we receive a bill from XM and on the same day, a letter from a collection agency. I've made several calls to XM and the collection agency.

Being turned over to a collection agency and having a blackmark on my credit history that I've strived to build all my adult life. All of that for a subscription!

Brandon of Baltimore MD (08/09/07)
For x-mas I received an XM radio and a year's worth of pre-paid gift cards. I activated my radio right away, pre-paying for a years worth of service. After about 6 months, I stopped listening to XM for whatever reason, and eventually took the small XM radio out of my car. Months went by without using the service, and I assumed that when my prepaid service had ended that would be the end of that. WRONG!!!!

After coming back from traveling, find that I have a bill for $30.00. I called XM to let them know that I never asked for service to continue, and never signed anything saying that. I was transferred, supposedly to an XP rep that was going to help, then surprisingly I was hung up on. I called back explained my situation yet again to another rep. She did not want to help. All she could tell me is that XM has no clue that customers want to cancel their service so they continue to bill and ASSUME that the customer is using the service.

Thomas of Houston TX (07/05/07)

I prepaid for 3 years of service. Decided not to renew service. Received a collection notice about owing 26 dollars. I was promised return phone calls that never came. No replies to my emails. Nice way to milk a couple of extras months out of me. I could understand if I was month-to-month customer with a revolving charge. But that's the reason for prepaying.

Michele of Mission Viejo CA (06/08/07)
My car came with 3 free months of XM Satellite Radio. After it expired, I decided to reactivate the service. I paid $77.00 with my bank card. They sent out their signal, but for some reason, after following instructions to the letter, it would not activate. I called again, and the signal went out again. This happened 7 times.

Finally, I asked to be reimbursed, as the signal was not reaching my car. They told me to try again. I said I've tried enough and would like my money refunded. They said they would have to prorate my refund. I asked how do you prorate something that never worked in the first place? Also, the night I initially paid the $77.00 to reactive my service, I bought their radio for $5.99 that I was going to put in my daughter's car. That service was $55.40, which was charged also on my bank card. I hadn't even tried to get that activated, since the activation in my car wasn't working.

I told them I hadn't taken the radio out of the box yet, and would like to cancel the service on the radio I bought. They said it was a binding contract and I couldn't get out of it. I told them I had signed nothing stating I was in a binding contract and would like to be reimbursed for both the $77.00 and $55.40. I asked to speak to a manager and was cut off. I have yet to be reimbursed. I would like to let everyone know that XM is the worst company I have ever dealt with.

Kathy of Grants Pass OR (06/06/07)
December 2005 bought a year subscription for my son. Expired in 2006 December. Never renewed never received a bill, my ex husband whom I have no contact with mailed me a bill he received with his name and address which is a different state and last name. Called Xm radio and was told that they would credit and send me a new statement showing a zero balance. This all happened in April 2007. On June 4th I received a collection notice for 39.83. When I called I had to talk with 3 different people and the last person Amanda told me that it was internally changed on 2-1-06 and reinstated, I told her that when I talked with Lynch on 4-29-07 that nothing was activated. I am now pursuing legal action with my attorney. This is called fraud.

C of Merced CA (05/09/07)
Although paid up, I continue to receive bills from XM, each one higher. I bought a 2nd radio at Christmas and was not told I need a 2nd subscription. When I discovered this I called their (what a joke) phone # and spoke to a rep. I paid for a full year on one radio, and 6 months on another.

In 2 weeks I received another bill.  I immediately called, went through a canned talk, insisted on speaking to a supervisor; he assured me I was paid up.

2 weeks later I received ANOTHER BILL. Called back, wasted 20 minutes, supervisor said was corrected. I checked website & it showed all paid. I have received 3 more bills, each one higher, now called delinquent and now a collection bill.

What a shame - love the radio - hate being ripped off.

Ellen of Marietta GA (05/01/07)
As many other complaints listed, XM Satellite Radio customer service is deplorable. In 2 years, they have not gotten a bill right, and I have spent countless hours on the phone with their foreign poor-English speaking customer no-service representatives. Once you get the bill straightened out, they want your credit card and authorization to take it right out of your account. NO WAY! It's bad enough you're paying for the ruse of commercial-free radio, but you can't get billing correctly, and they want access to my accounts?

Tim of Chula Vista, CA (04/24/07)
XM Radio electronically took $30 from my savings account for their service that I was unaware of and did not approve. 

I immediately contacted XM Radio both by phone and email. I received an acknowledgement that the money was taken without my approval and knowledge. They refunded $16 but kept the balance and will not refund it.  This is corrupt, to say the least, as this is no way to operate a company.

Darrell of Carlsbad NM (04/09/07)
When my XM came up for renewal I cancelled because the cost has risen to a point that it is not worth what they offer. I did the payments year to year. I tried to cancel, but they kept sending bills--what is funny--that were being lowered 10 or so dollars at a time. This last invoice (received 4/09/07) states that they will turn me over to a third party collection agency if I do not send in the money.

I am not using the radio and have not used if for the last 7 months. I am getting tired of being threatened with collection agencies, etc and individuals who will not take a cancellation order, or individuals who speak rather poor English. I would like to see these people punished, but I doubt that anything will ever come of it. I have no intention of paying for something that I no longer use.

William Countryman of Sahuarita AZ (03/14/07)
XM Radio Billing practice. I purchased a new XM Radio, Signed up over the phone (Cell Phone) and PRE-PAID for (1) Year of Service. I am now getting a XM Collections notice for 26.00 because they state in the agreement that I must call and cancel my service. My complaint is I prepaid, I was not a month to month user, and even then the service is pre-paid. XM Radio has found a way to bilk millions of dollars in extra revenue from the customers who are not going to continue with their service. This should be a class action Law Suit.

A.j. of Oconomowoc WI (03/14/07)
Cancelled my five contract on 02-07-07 Stated they would send a $300.00 refund in two to three weeks. Keep getting the same answer after numerous telephone calls and email to XM radio. Explained I was going to Iraq and needed my refund. I would never again use or buy XM radio. They lied to me and continue to do so!

Don of Brownfield TX (03/12/07)

In November of 2005, my wife received as a gift, a XM radio. I signed up for 1 year subscription. As the one year was ending I got a couple calls about renewing and I told the saleswoman I was not going to renew. Then I got a bill in January of 2007 for $26.60. I did not pay it and then I started getting bills from "Collections-XM Satellite Radio", referring to my delinquent account.

I finally called and asked why I was getting bills when I told them I was not going to renew. They said I had to cancel by calling a certain phone number and telling them I was canceling. I went ahead and paid the $26.60, but I am finished with them. Kaput!

Carlos of Miami Beach FL (03/05/07)

On November of 2005 I received an XM radio with a one year subscription as a present. My subscription expired on November 2006. I called XM in December 06 when the radio was disconnected and they told me that the service was discontinued and my account was closed and that I could do whatever I want with the radio because it was mine.

Three months later and with a disconnected radio, I received a notice from XM Collections Department stating that I owed them $29.14. I had not received any correspondence from them between my cancellation of service and the collection letter. I called XM and was told that because I did not send a cancellation request my account was automatically renewed and that I owe $29.14. Failure to satisfy my balance could result in me being reported or a legal action to collect. They would not even acknowledge my call on December 2006 as a request for cancellation.

This is by far the worst company I have ever dealt with. I can’t even count the number of phone calls I’ve made and attempts to resolve this issue and so far have not been able to resolve it.

Troy of Benton AR (03/01/07)

My wife bought me an XM satalite radio receiver from Wal-Mart upon my return from Iraq in August 2006. We activated the radio using a debit card from my bank account. During this activation process, I carefully read the small print on the website, and found that I could opt for automatic withdrawl from my credit card upon my 3 months expiration, all I would have to do is print a form, and mail it in, authorizing them to make the withdrawl. I gleefully opted not to do this. Three months later, we look on our online banking site, and see that we have a $41 charge to our credit card from XM for 3 more months service. I called XM radio, I talked to a woman who convinces me to accept 3 months of free service, along with a $50 credit to my credit card to be seen in 24-72 hours, after that, she took my credit card off the account, so that it wouldn't be charged again. That was November 10th, 06. 5 days later, I call XM again because I have not seen the promised $50 credit to my account. I talk to 3 different people. I told them I want to close my account for good and I want my money back. They said they can close my account, but since I took my credit card off the account and went to invoice billing, they would have to mail me a check and I should recieve that check in 3-5 weeks, a manager then makes a PROBLEM REPORT on my account. That was November 15, 06. After a month, I call again and talk to someone, who tells me that it will actually take 5-7 BUSINESS weeks. I angrily ask to speak with a manager, and after being put on hold for 15 minutes, I explain my situation, and ask what they can do. He tells me I need to keep waiting for my check to arrive. I ask him if XM is going to send it to my house and how long it will take. He tells me the check is first sent to corporate and they can't rush corporate. I remove the radio from my car. This was December 16, 06. I check the mail eagerly for a few more weeks expecting to hear something from XM. Nothing. I call yet again, on February 10th or so, and was told by the rep that I was already mailed a check for $15 and they would mail me out the rest real soon. I told them that I hadn't received ANYTHING from XM in any shape or form. A manager submits a third PROBLEM REPORT on my account. Feb 25th 2007 I make an offer on a house and it is accepted. I want to call XM and see if I can solve this problem and I speak with the floor manager, who informs me that me account is STILL ACTIVE and that I actually owe a balance of $16. I inform him that this is UNACCEPTABLE, because I specifically asked for the radio to be cut off and the account terminated 3 and a half months earlier. I am then forwarded. After explaining my situation to Peter, I'm forwarded AGAIN. At this point I'm so flustered that I actually have to pull my car off the freeway to continue talking. I am informed  that XM has ALREADY refunded me $50 as CREDIT toward my account 3 months ago, and tells me that I need to stop using my radio and cancel my account. He promises me that the checks will be sent out and reach me promptly. They put me on hold for 18 minutes, and comes back telling me he talked to his supervisor, and that his supervisor has APPROVED a full refund, but that XM can ONLY refund the money the way they took it out, and that he would have to put my credit card BACK onto the account and refund the money in 24-72 hours. Hesitantly, I gave him the Credit Card Number, and he actually gave me a confirmation number. That was Yesterday. No sign of it yet, but I'll keep looking...

 

Alan of Houston, TX (02/26/07)
I sold my XM-equipped car 3 months ago.  I called XM on at least three separate occasions to cancel service. During these calls I was endlessly re-routed, placed on hold for long periods of time, or disconnected. Eventually I called American Express to explain the problem and asked them to deny future payment to XM.

A few days ago I received two late notices in the mail from a collections department at XM. I immediately called to explain, and the rep stubbornly stalled me, trying unsuccessfully to entice me to stay. Then he told me he could only go halfs with me. I insisted that I was not liable for the service, had sold my car, and had not used the service, and had been unable to reach their cancellation department after considerable efforts.

Finally he agreed to cancel service and credit me the alleged late payments. But recently I have been getting anonymous calls, and today I finally answered one. It was a very rude woman with a thick accent who insisted that I owed XM money. I explained the problem and that I had already taken care of the issue last weekend, and she hung up on me halfway thru the explanation.

Sheyna of Jupiter FL (02/20/07)

I was enjoying my free three months in my new car and decided to subscribe. Two days before the free service was scheduled to end and the billed portion to begin...it stopped working. As it turned out, someone named "Christopher" had called and had the service transferred to another radio. I don't know anyone named Christopher and was aghast that someone could just call and transfer my account. Not to mention the fact that I have no idea what information these people might have given out to anyone who calls up with the radio ID.

The service was turned back on and two weeks later it happened again. Same exact thing, someone had just called up and transferred the service. The customer service representative said that she had never heard of something like that happening but could do nothing for me other than to make a note of what had happened and gave me the corporate number in case it happened again.

While I'm happy they resolved my problem, they couldn't / wouldn't say they would do anything to prevent it from happening again and had no explanation for it. Pretty disappointing.

Tony of Hampton, VA (01/25/07)
My XM Radio was automatically re-newed with out my knowledge. When I subscribed, I wasn't informed that I had to call to cancel service. I received a statement in the mail, not saying I owed any money, but for another year's subscription. My gut told me to call and make sure that there was no outstanding balance (I haven't used my radio for at least 4 months). I was told that it was renewed and that I would have to pay for the past few months.

When I told them I wanted to cancel they offered me 3 months free, then offered the subscription for 1/2 the price. (If I had renewed my subscription through the mail, I would be paying $151.35). When I told them no, and asked if they could cancel the balance, they told me "No". Their supervisor couldn't help, so I finally asked for the Corporate office, and they finally credited my account.

I shouldn't have to go through all of this trouble to get rid of something that I don't want anymore, or something that I haven't used.

Robert of Foster City CA (01/17/07)
Due to breaking my XM radio, I went on line to buy a new one to replace it. At the same time, since it was coincidently about a year since I became a first time customer, I renewed for the year. Buying online was quicker than the first retail shop experience but..the radio I received was defective. I worked with customer service right after getting. We could not get it to work. I then was given a return authorization number and address. I shipped on my dime back to XM to the return address provided. Got my proof of delivery from UPS 2 days later. Bought on 11-14-06, return received 11-21-06.

Though all was paid in full, I still to this day, after making at least 6 calls, cannot get anyone at XM radio to get authorization to send me a new replacement. Today is 1-17-07!! They no who I am, they have records of all my calls. However, the pin heads who run the show, won't let the customer service people do..customer service. I gave them till this friday to deliver a radio to me or I will cancel order and service with a claim processed with my MasterCard provider. In the meantime, I dont have a radio that I have paid 2 months service for already, had 2 road trips during the holiday that I had no satellite radio, and I have spent a great deal of my time on the phone. Now I wish I had bought retail. At least I could have returned the device to the store and forced them to provide a replacement then and there.

Misty of Austin TX (01/12/07)
My 2005 Acura came with three months of free XM service. The service is definitely not commercial free or worth $12.95/month to me, so at the end of the three month period, I decided not to renew my subscription. XM representatives contacted me for several months and in late 2005, I agreed to reactivate the subscription at a reduced rate (around $65 for 12 months of service). At no time did I receive a paper bill, welcome kit, account agreement, or any similar information from XM about my account or their services.

A year later, XM charged a quarterly subscription fee of $38.85 to the credit card that I had provided to them in late 2005. I never received a paper bill or any notification that my subscription fee would increase. As soon as I received my credit card statement, I called to cancel my account and ask for a refund. I did not even know what my XM account number was, because I had never received any paper document or bill from them in the mail. I was informed that it was part of my account services agreement that they could raise my promotional rate at the end of the year, and that it would have been my responsibility to call and cancel my account before they charged the $38 fee to my account. Therefore, according to them, they did not need my authorization to make the deduction from my account.

In addition, I am only entitled to a pro-rated refund for the time period that has not already expired (there was a time delay between when they charged my account and when I received my credit card statement). I explained to the service rep that I had never received a copy of an account services agreement or other materials from XM, or been informed over the telephone that my subscription could be automatically renewed at a higher rate, and that I felt that this policy was unfair. The representative insisted that they provided me with a welcome kit that would have included a service agreement and that they could not make any retroactive adjustments to my account. Perhaps if I had been willing to continue my subscription, they would have offered me another promotional rate, but it definitely seemed like the representative was just reading from a script and was not willing to work with me because I was not interested in continuing my service.

My economic losses were minimal (less than $10), but if I did not carefully review my credit card statement each month and immediately contact XM about what I believed to be unauthorized charges, the representative told me that they would have been authorized to deduct the same subscription fee from my credit card each quarter. I am a lawyer, so I do pay attention to the standard agreements that I receive in the mail and am always on top of my financial affairs and obligations.

Because I am only out of pocket a few dollars, it is not worth it to me to haggle with XM on the phone for hours or to pursue this through other avenues, but based on the other comments on this website, I am concerned that XM may be taking advantage of people by not providing them with notice of the policy that allows them to raise a subscriber's fee and automatically deduct the higher amount from a subscriber's credit card. Although I am aware of my rights and pay attention to charges made to my credit card account, I am concerned that XM could really take advantage of someone who does not know any better.

Janet of West Bend WI (01/05/07)

We bought service for one year but chose not to renew. 3 months after the subscription ran out we received bill. We called and they said they would close the issue. 3 months later we got another bill. 1 month later got another bill. We called again. 1 month later we got a letter saying they were going to send the matter to a 3rd party collection. 3 weeks later we get a phone call saying we still owe. Every time we called they said the matter was closed. How do we make them leave us alone?

Joann of Slidell LA (12/31/06)

One year ago I called XM Satellite Radio and ordered one year of their services that I pre-paid with a bank debit card. This subscription was a Christmas gift to a young family member. The intention was one year of service as a gift, not an obligation for a lifetime. This year on the one year date they recharged my card for another year in advance. I immediately called to complain and demand my money back. I spoke to a telemarketer in Jamaica who said my money would be refunded and she offered me three months of free service.

I questioned her over and over about the "free offer". She assured me it was completely free with no obligations. I agreed, thinking what wonderful customer service! Days later when the money was still not back in my account I called XM's customer service and was told by another agent that on my previous call I had agreed to a pay-by-the-month plan!

I'm now fearful of making another call to their customer service department. They have my card number and I'm quite frankly over a barrel.

Paul of Alvin TX (12/06/06)
I recently had a bad experience with those lovely people at XM. It started with them calling me repeatedly to renew a subscription which I had already renewed (for a full year) months ago. This went on for about 2 weeks. I finally asked them to acknowledge the year's payment I had made and take me off of their call list forever. They did......or so I thought. Today, while perusing through my bank account, I came across a charge which occurred last week for $26.36 from guess who - XM. I called them and asked what I was being charged for and to my suprise, I was being charged a quarterly payment!!!

The woman informed me that it was per my request that this charge was being withdrawn from my bank account. Whenever I had spoken to someone at the main office for XM, which is in Virginia, I was at least left with the feeling that everyone understood the situation and that my account information was all correct AND my account was paid up for a full year. Now, the lady in Panama says they have no record of my payment, only an invoice. That's it. And she also said that I requested to be billed quarterly. I can only deduce from this that these offshore people don't get the same information as the people within the continental United States.

To make this long story short - I no longer subscribe to XM. I will never again subscribe to XM. I will file harassment charges against XM if I ever receive another call from them to renew my subscription!

Charles of Kent WA (11/20/06)
When my wife and I bought our new GM vehicle, it came with a 3 month trial to XM Radio. First, it is not commercial free but I still liked it so we paid for a full years service. Now I regret getting involved with them at all! We started getting a bill for $26.21 and no explanation as to what it was for. When we contacted them, they would politely tell us the mistake must be on there end. Then we would receive the harassing phone calls at all hours of the day, 5:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. demanding payment.

We finally decided to just cancel the service and get our advertised refund back for the unused period. We even decided if they charged us the $26.00 it would still be worth it to get rid of this worthless company. We have spent countless hours on the phone with these people with -0- satisfaction. They refuse to give you anything but a first name of the person you are speaking to and forget ever talking to a supervisor. So each phone call starts the process all over again. I even tried writing the whole story out in an e-mail but received the same nonsense I get over the phone with them. Warning, take heed, don't waste your time and money with this undesirable company!

Michael of Osage Beach MO (11/03/06)
XM Radio is a joke. 100% commercial free? Bull!#$*. I tried it after listening to a friends radio. Right away noticed the commercials but the real problems started when they sent me a bill 5 AFTER I'd paid for a one year period. I called to inquire what the bill was for but the Mexican I spoke to could barely even speak English let alone read his script. He pretended not hear me when I requested to speak to a supervisor.

I hung up and called back and got a different customer service person who was marginally better at the language but she couldn't tell me what the bill was for. Said she would open a report but also said she would leave my service on for 15 days until the problem resolved. Never got my service back and despite two e-mails to customer care, NOONE has fixed this problem, going on two weeks now. My on-line account shows NO balance due and my service paid up until March 2006. Miserable company! Try Sirius instaed...

Nothing being done by XM as far as I know. Reported them to the BBB and Attorneys General in Missouri

Genevieve of Chapel Hill NC (11/01/06)
I purchased a gift card for my brother from the XM website on August 27th. No where on the website did it say that the recipient would have to sign for the delivery. If that were the case, I never would have purchased it, as I know my brother is never home during the day. After a month had passed without my brother receiving the card, I called XM and they told me that their information said the card had been shipped, but since there was no one to sign for the package, it had gone back to the warehouse.

So I asked them to refund my money. They agreed, but then called back and left a message on my machine saying that gift cards are non-refundable, and the card would be shipped back to my address, which they identified in the message as my brother's address. I called them back to tell them that that was the wrong address, but they said they couldn't change it without sending a message to a different department, and as soon as that was taken care of, it would be sent back to me immediately. That was two weeks ago. It has now been two months since I purchased the gift card and it looks like I'll be out 100 bucks and my brother will never get his birthday present. Also, the XM customer support line put me on hold for over 20 minutes on several occasions. Ridiculous!

Chris of Loxahatchee FL (11/01/06)
When I bought my new GM vehicle it came with XM Radio. After the initial trial package expired I did not renew the service. XM Radio is by no means commercial free radio. XM trying to regain my interest sent me a promotion offering three months of service at a cost of sixteen dollars and change. I called and accepted the offer authorizing the THREE MONTH offer at the sixteen dollar rate. I paid for the service via debit card. That was in April. I soon stopped listening to XM, I could'nt stand all the commercials, why pay to listen to them. I later sold my vehicle and while doing so pushed my on-star system to make notification. I told the on-star advisor to dicontinue all services affiliated with it which includes the on-star security, XM radio and the intergrated phone. Now in November I get a bill from XM radio saying I owe them $32.98 for service AFTER the three month promotion I agreed to.

According to XM they will continue to bill you EVEN after a promotion, even if you did not authorize continued service. I have spoken with the XM billing department who say's they will send the bill to collections. They apparently like to get you wrapped up in a promotion then hit you with a bill demanding payment six months later. I don't mind paying for something that I authorized because I enjoyed the service, however, I was not impressed with the non-commercial free music and had no intention of extending the service promotion. Bottom line is XM radio sucks, and so do there representatives. They need to HEAR the music of customer dissatisfaction.

If you really want commercial free music, I suggest burning your own favorites. XM radio does not make music for easy listening. By the way on-star did what they were asked. On-star in my opinion is a great service.

Joe of Eden Prairie MN (11/01/06)
I am very upset with your company and DEMAND that my bank account be refunded. I received a gift card in March of 2006 for service with your company so I logged on to your website to activate an XM receiver. The service was turned off in June of 2006 for non-payment. I assumed that once the gift card was used service would end I didn't plan on keeping your service.

In June of 2006 I received a bill in the mail for $58.03 so I called your customer service line, because I didn't want your service nor did I ask to be billed for service I just wanted to use the gift card.

Joe of Clarks Summit PA (10/27/06)
I can't fathom why anyone would pay for satellite radio and why investors would buy stock in it. Consider the following: I have been listening to XM radio in a friend's car and had a free trial period in one of my GM vehicles that had a factory installed XM radio. Commercial free - well almost. Too bad one has to listen to the self serving plugs and jingles some XM radio stations put in for themselves. To me, pay radio is commercial free. Language - this retired citizen who may have his grandchildren with him does not want to happen upon the F word or any other bad words while scanning channels on the XM band. The 50's, 60's & 70's channels (our era of music) plays a lot of the original oldies and a lot of copy cat, not so original, and never heard of stuff.

For pay radio, I would think (hope) the music was genuine and original to the period. Every once in awhile there is an occasional annoying lag (moment of silence) when selecting another programmed channel. Likewise, sound quality seems to vary from super excellent to just OK. Dead spots - mountains, buildings, underpasses and maybe the weather (or sun spots?) often interfere with the XM signal. The signal drops but then comes back after a few seconds unless one is parked in a dead spot. I can get dead spots for free on my FM radio stations.

There are growing alternative technologies to satellite radio. CD changers are now common equipment on today's car/truck sound systems. Buy them and/or burn them or borrow them, the CD selection is endless. Ipods now can play (broadcast) music through the car system. Most aftermarket car radios that young people and audiophiles buy and install now have a USB port and in some case front mounted jacks for Ipod type devices. A USB stick or Ipod device can hold thousands of digital quality tunes.

Ipod type players can be used not only in a car, but anywhere, and USB works nicely in any computer. Despite the above, I was interested enough to pick up an XM brochure not to long ago. After reviewing the over 150 channels listed, the most I would ever select to listen to are 10 - yes 10 out of 150+ and one was CNN. Not such a bargain for $12.95 a month plus fees and taxes, plus the cost of getting an XM receiver (at least with cable TV I already had the TV - nothing more to buy). Now if satellite radio had a-la-carte where I could pick those specific 10 channels and only receive those 10 channels say for a buck or two a month I might be interested. You see, satellite radio, like cable TV gives, sells and charges customers for the whole farm wanted or not. And therein lies their Achilles' heel.

Jennifer of Reno, NV (10/24/06)
I bought a new car in July that came with XM Radio 3 month free trial period. After my trial period ended I decided to purchase a year of service.

Four days later UPS is at my door with a package from a distrubution center. Inside was a Delphi Roady Radio. I immediately checked my bank statement online to discover I was charged $96.34 for a radio that I did not order.

I been calling Jamica and they give you the run around. One supervisor told me that my card would be credited and to keep the Radio as a gift.  The next supervisor told me that my card would NOT be credited until they received the radio.  I was also transferred to Canada and was then hung-up on.

Not impressed with this company!!!

Cindi of Sandy, UT (10/13/06)
We have subscribed to XM radio since July 2005. When we installed the service on line, we had trouble so we called the support line who handled everything and assured us "No worrries".  No worries - they have been charging us for two units since then!

When you call customer service you get attitude and a foreign language. No one seems to want to help.  We were told each unit had a special code and therefore duplicating billing cannot happen. Well it did!

We are cancelling our service.  At least they should announce their mistakes and make it right with the consumer.

Henry of Richland MI (10/09/06)
I prepaid for my year of XM radio in my car for around $150. After selling my vehicle I received a bill for twenty some odd dollars. After calling and advising XM radio I had sold the car they said not to worry about the bill it was a mistake. Well the bills continued to come and finally I spoke with a customer care person who I could actually understand that clarified the situation. They don't tell you that you have to cancel your subscription after the prepaid runs out....they just keep billing you month by month at an elevated price.

Anyway I ended up paying the bill, but it just really upset me that their customer care people were not hepful at all and cost me an extra 20 dollars.

Pam of Wilmington NC (07/21/06)
We had three XM radios; when I called customer service about a problem, the customer service rep said that we were paying for five radios, and had been for almost nine months! Because of this, I canceled my account in April, but continued to be billed in May and June! I've filed complaints with the attorneys general in Michigan, Maryland, and NC, and I will continue to file complaints with every state in the union until I'm refunded my money. I will NEVER have XM radio again, and have advised all my friends to avoid them like the plague.

I'm out $150.

Vickie of Sacramento, CA (06/23/06)
On June 15th, I purchased 2 xm roady's from an xm radio phone representative for $29, a Father's Day special offer. The following day, only one roady arrived by FedEx with an invoice that indicated a purchase of only 1 roady for $29.

After several days on the phone with XM radio customer service representatives, many of whom were rude or incompetent, often both, xm radio refused to acknowledge that the Father's Day special I purchased ever existed and they refused to send me the 2nd xm roady. When I requested a refund, they refused that as well. To add insult to injury, they offered to sell me another roady for $39.

Tracy of Rochester Hills MI (03/23/06)
My XM radio was stolen from my car in December. I ordered a replacement radio from their "Retention Team" which they connected me to in early February. I was told as an XM customer I was eligible for "reduced rates" on "selected styles" of radios. I placed an order and waited. Six weeks later I called to find out the status of this order and was told that it had never been processed because "the system must have been down" that day. I went through the order process AGAIN, hung up the phone, and realized I ordered the wrong radio.

I immediately called back. I spent three and a half hours trying to get someone to simply change my order to a different (more expensive) radio. No one would help me. I was told I had entered into a contract and the sale was final. No one ever told me this when I placed the order. Someone in their customer service department went so far as to listen to the actual phone call and verified that no one told me about a final sale or any service contract. I received the (wrong) radio today - with the information that I have agreed to a six month service agreement that will cost me $150 plus $60 for the radio if I break it and that the sale was final. No one told me this when I ordered the radio.

I have tried through phone calls and e-mail to get someone to help me but they refuse. Is this legal?

John of Murphy TX (02/05/06)
I purchased an xmradio receiver on 12/20/2005 online. A day later I canceled this purchase and received confirmation via email of the cancellation. A few days later xmradio charged my credit card and shipped the item to me, overdrawing my account. I sent the unit back at my own expense, have confirmation from both the usps and xmradio that they have received the unit, but cannot get them to issue a refund.

Gary of Mount Vernon WA (01/25/06)
My fiancee and I have had an XM Radio subscription for over two years. During the past holiday season we bought our third and fourth XM radios from the XM Radio website, xmradio.com. When I registered the first of the two radios for activation online, I was routed to a page containing a warning about defective batteries in both the Tao XM2Go radio and the Delphi MiFi radios we had purchased, and in another XM radio manufactured by Pioneer.

The text on that page is addressed to customers who have already received a replacement battery. However, neither of our radios arrived with anything but the defective battery. The packing list that arrived with the radio came from XM Radio; it carries their logo and reads, "XM SATELLITE RADIO, c/o DCL Fulfillment Center, 48641 Milmont Dr., Fremont, CA 94538, USA." (I called and spoke to an XM phone rep who confirmed that the warehouse listed on the invoice was XM Radio's own warehouse.) There was no warning inside the radio package, nor any information on how to get a replacement battery.

If you go to the XM Radio website at xmradio.com, you'll see that they've thoroughly whitewashed this issue by posting no warnings anywhere on the site; you only discover the battery problem when you attempt to activate a purchased radio. After about half an hour on the phone, I finally managed to order a replacement battery from a rep at XM Radio's 800 number. That was over a month ago, and no battery has arrived yet. It's evident that, rather than risk a loss of subscription revenue, the executives at XM Radio chose to let thousands of customers purchase defective radios during the holiday season (their own recorded phone message says "thousands" of batteries are being shipped out every week), reasoning that purchasers would have to shell out for subscriptions anyway, since the radios would otherwise be useless.

I'm sure that many of those defective radios were purchased as gifts, as ours were. Of course, while they offer no information about the defective batteries on their website, they do trouble to mention that they don't accept returns or offer refunds on their equipment. They don't advise customers to notify the radio manufacturers, so XM Radio obviously doesn't dispute their culpability. (How could they? They advertised the radios and sold them on their own website, and they shipped them from their own warehouse.) After a month of waiting for the replacement battery, I emailed their Customer Service department, telling them I had called their 800 number and ordered the battery, and asking when I might expect it to arrive. In reply, they sent the same form letter I'd received in December, advising me to call the 800 number. Very funny...and indicative of their smug indifference to customer satisfaction.

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