What's On Your Mind? AOL, Budget Rent-A-Car, Skype

Some services are notoriously hard to cancel. AOL is one, according to the many complaints received by ConsumerAffairs.com.

“I found out in December of 2011 that AOL was taking funds from my account,”Craig, of Pasadena, Md., told ConsumerAffairs.com. “I cancelled my service over eight years ago. So I called many times to tell them this was cancelled but I got nowhere. I just received a bill for December and January because I had my bank block them. What can I do!

Craig should write a letter to AOL at this address: AOL, P.O. Box 65100, Sterling, VA 20165-8800

Specify that you're cancelling, give your full name, phone number, address and signature, and either the primary billing contact's AOL screenname or the last four digits of the current payment method. It's a good idea to send it registered or certified, and retain a copy for your file.

Keep a copy of the letter and, when you get the delivery receipt, keep that together with the letter. If that doesn't do the trick, you can sue the company in small claims court, complain to your state's attorney general and to the Federal Trade Commission.

Always check the paperwork

At the rental counter, a clerk may ask you a series of questions and then fill in the form with your answers. Or at least, you hope they are your answers.

“I was careful to verbally decline the LDW coverage at the Budget Rent-A-Car counter when renting a car for one day in in Las Vegas recently. I was also careful to return the car within the 26 hour timeframe that the paperwork clearly stated was allowed, including a 26 hour grace period,” said Mark, of Madison, Wisc. “However, when I returned the car the next day, I was unpleasantly surprised to notice that not only had they deceptively charged me for the declined LDW coverage, they actually charged me for TWO days of coverage. Apparently somewhere in the fine print it notes there is no grace period for LDW coverage. When I raised the issue, they pointed out that I had initialed a box indicating acceptance of LDW coverage.

Shame on me for not reading the paperwork carefully enough - I guess I trusted the woman at the counter to fill in the form based on my verbal responses to her questions.”

Most of us don't both to read the rental car agreement, but with the increased possibility of extra charges these days, it's wise to make the time.

Unwelcome calls

In late January, Randy, of Mississauga, Ontario said he received two strange calls on his Skype app., both from women in Ghana, Africa.

“The first female was begging me for money, told me her parents were dead and she had no job,” Randy said. “The second call was also a female who told me she needed a husband and could I help her with money problems. She also asked for my Skype password, and when I refused she was upset and changed her attitude toward me!”

Randy is wondering if his account has been hacked. He says he's changed his credit cards and his passwords. Anyone else having this experience?