Account, payments & subscriptions

[MichelleC1]

Good afternoon,

I work for a bank in Ozark, Mo. We have a mutual customer that turned in fraud paperwork regarding a charge for Roku for Disney Electroni. I informed her how to access her Roku account and cancel subscriptions. She stated she was not seeing this subscription on her Roku account, and we gave her a new debit card number. The charge just came through again today and I noted it states recurring.  Logically this would be a charge on her subscriptions, that would seemingly be the only way the new card number could have been run, when she added it to her Roku account. It seems there is virtually no way to get a hold of customer service. How can I get assistance for her on this?

[atc98092]

If your customer says there's no subscription showing in her account, then Roku is not the one billing her. It is most likely a fraudulent charge from someone that is not connected to Roku in any way. Roku cannot assist with it, because they are not the one submitting the charge.

If you really work for a bank, you should be well aware that scammers can submit phony charges with any name they desire on the charge. They simply have a stolen credit card number and try to get someone to pay the charge. 

[MichelleC1]

Working for a bank I am well aware that occasionally there are indeed fraudulent transactions. What is definitely more typical is friendly fraud, when a family member or friend uses a debit card that is attached to a device, such as a Roku. I think it is particularly evident this is the case due to the fact she obtained a brand-new debit card number from us, and the recurring charge just came through on this card when she added the card number to the Roku device. 

What I am needing help with is to see if there is an easier way, than requiring her to come in so I can physically walk through this with her, that she might be able to find this subscription information.

[fred_ziffle]

These streaming services make it very easy to enroll but they're terribly hard to cancel.  Good business?

I received the very same charge yesterday from Roku for Disney Electroni.  When I started digging into this, I saw on my Roku account that I had no subscriptions.  I saw below on the same page that "partners" like Hulu, Disney+, etc. manage their own subscriptions, not Roku.  This is a red flag.  If Roku does not manage those subscriptions, they shouldn't allow their name on the bill.  Yes, the "expert" correctly admits that fraud charges can have any name on them, but if my company's name were appearing on fraudulent charges, I'd find a way to curtail that before my reputation went to **bleep**.

Digging in deeper, I went to Disney (disneyplus.com), where I could find no subscriptions.  I "logged in" with my email address, and was sent an email with a passcode - I have no record of having a Disney account and was prompted to "pick a streaming plan".  This is another website where it's hard to find account information and control.  I finally found a place where I could delete my account, which I did, but the page said that would have no effect on any subscriptions I had.  I was never able to find any subscriptions before I deleted my account.

I have removed my card from my payment method in Roku.  I will dispute the charge with my credit card after the pending state.  These automated charges with no responsibility are not the way to do business.

[atc98092]

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@fred_ziffle wrote:

I received the very same charge yesterday from Roku for Disney Electroni.  When I started digging into this, I saw on my Roku account that I had no subscriptions.  I saw below on the same page that "partners" like Hulu, Disney+, etc. manage their own subscriptions, not Roku.  This is a red flag.  If Roku does not manage those subscriptions, they shouldn't allow their name on the bill.

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Roku isn't permitting anyone to put their name on fraudulent charges. When the scammers submit a phony charge to your credit card, there is a text box for them to enter the name they want to appear in the bill. They simply type in Roku because they stand a good chance that the person they are trying to steal from might actually have a Roku device and pay the charge without thinking about it. Roku has no way of blocking a thief from using their name when they submit phony billing. 

[HDMIGuy]

@fred_ziffle Is is possible you have a second Roku account with a different email address?

[fred_ziffle]

Thanks @HDMIGuy.  It’s possible, I have an email account I use for possible spam. However, that’s not the account I use for Roku. Nevertheless, it’s a good point. I’ll check both Roku and Disney with that account. 

[fred_ziffle]

Partially true. But in this one case there are two separate incidents using the exact same name. I’m betting these aren’t the only two.
Given that, the minimum Roku could do is send out a notification to their customers that there have been attempts to scam customers using their name. They could also enlist their partner, Disney, to help thwart this.
I should also mention that their name, address and telephone number were included on the charge. Admittedly, it could still be some elaborate scam. 
I’ll be looking for some form of action on Roku’s part. They may not be explicitly allowing their name to be used but inaction of some sort indicates implicit acceptance. 
Poor business practices. 

[Pallmallred]

Hello,  

I'm in the same situation I get charged $9.99 a month on a closed Roku for Disney account then I get charged $9.99 for a Hulu account.  I canceled Hulu completely and I'm filing an FCC complaint against Roku for Disney! It's a scam they say my account is closed and yet they keep charging me.

[atc98092]

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@Pallmallred wrote:

Hello,  

I'm in the same situation I get charged $9.99 a month on a closed Roku for Disney account then I get charged $9.99 for a Hulu account.  I canceled Hulu completely and I'm filing an FCC complaint against Roku for Disney! It's a scam they say my account is closed and yet they keep charging me.

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Please see the advice above. If Roku is charging you, the subscription can be viewed and changed/cancelled on your Roku user account web page. If there's no such subscription listed there, then you are not being billed by Roku, period. It doesn't matter what your CC statement says, so please check that first.

Remember too, deleting a channel/app from your Roku device will NOT cancel a subscription to that service. You must cancel it on your user account page.