Unable to renew live services

[Michael Quinlan]

Is anyone actually using and renewing their LIVE services? I'm on my third attempt at a monthly subscription, and each time, the original purchase goes through, but the subsequent renewal shows as unpaid, and a month later my subscription expires, even though the credit card used for the original purchase remains valid. Attempting to purchase a subscription via TomTom Home tells me that my shopping cart contains something I have already purchased. The only fix TomTom has been able to offer so far is to change the email associated with my account, and add a new subscription. This is becoming a dreaded bi-monthly ritual.

Why am I going monthly instead of yearly? There's no long term commitment. Oddly, it's also cheaper ($0.55 per year). And with this problem, it's even cheaper still, because I only end up paying for 1 out of every 2 months.

Is anyone else having this problem, or does anyone know how to not have the problem?

 

[Germerican]

I'm having the exact same problem. It's the first time for me though. Subscription was supposed to be renewed on 3/1 but nothing happened. Contacted customer service by phone on 3/2 and was told it was a server problem, which should be resolved within 24 to 48 hours. Waited for two days but still nothing. I get the same message when I try to renew through Home and an error message when trying to renew directly through the device. Wait times on the phone are upwards of 30 minutes. Sent them an email three days ago instead... still no response.

I'm really getting fed up with TomTom and their lousy customer service. Switched from a 630 in October of last year because Plus Traffic wasn't working for almost two months. Now the Live Services on my 740 aren't working. What the heck is going on here?

 

[Germerican]

Just called TomTom. Surprisingly someone picked up right away. They told me they are experiencing problems with their servers. Of course there is no time frame as to when this will be fixed. Last time I heard this Plus Traffic wasn't working for two months.

Anyway, they provided me with the same fix they told you. I tried it and it works for now, however, this isn't going to fly in the long term.

We'll see how long it'll take 'em to fix their servers this time.

UPDATE:
I renewed my subscription today 3/10 and according to the information on my device it is valid until... 3/15/2010.

Called Customer Service back. Supposedly the email address I used had been used for my device before. I know 100% it hadn't. This is getting really annoying.

He made me sign up with a new email address and wanted me to connect to TomTom Home. I'm at work so I wasn't able to do that. Now I'm supposed to call them back tonight.

Oh boy...

 

[dave729]

Disillusioned with TomTom

I am having these same issues. CS told me there is a problem they identified a while back that if an account expires for any reason once something has been paid for (not the free 3 months) that nothing new can be added. So I had to go through the same whole create a new account business they told you. (BTW, I tried sending the issue to the online CS over two weeks ago and have yet to receive a reply).

So I created a new account and bought a 6-month subscription for $59.95, it worked Monday, today its telling me my account has expired and I can renew it for $9.95. I am very frustrated with Live Services right now.

I bought the Go 740 Live specifically for the live traffic. This is a royal PITA, enough so that what used to be my glowing recommendations for the TomTom are rapidly becoming advice to buy something else.

 

[Michael Quinlan]

Whatever this issue is, it's been going on for the past six months at least. I wouldn't hold my breath waiting for them to fix it. TomTom seems to have good ideas, but fails on the implementation.

I'm on my last day of Live services for my current subscription, that I seem to have no way to renew. I'll see what happens when I try to renew tomorrow. I was considering going with a 6 month or 1 year subscription to avoid the issue for a while, but it appears that this has its own problems.

The other issue I have is that my device seems to be unsure of when my subscription expires. When it gives a date, it is always the same (for a given subscription), but the date it gives is one day earlier than TomTom Support tells me that it expires. But sometimes it tells me how many days I have left, which can vary within the same calendar day. Three days ago it told me I have one day left. Yesterday it told me I have zero days left. Today it still works.

 

[Dan I]

I have the same problem, and am on my third email account (and second attempted renewal, with corresponding CC charge). My problem, too, seemed to start when the CC used for a monthly subscription expired. Not that there is anyway to modify the CC on file.

Irritatingly, CS won't (claims it can't) clear the pending charges for the as-yet undelivered subscriptions. Or to simply roll the undelivered subscription over to the new account. Or perhaps (heaven forbid) to offer a free month while trying to resolve their problem. Without LIVE services, my $400 unit is about as useful as (though less user-friendly than) a $100 Garmin. Not to mention paying for services I haven't received.

If this goes on long enough, it's tempting to consider the "nuclear option" of an FTC complaint. If a company charges your CC, then fails to deliver within 30 days, it can mean Big Trouble. Many years ago, missing these deadlines even slightly put a little mail-order company I liked out of business, under a barrage of FTC scrutiny. The relevant site for complaints is ftc.gov/complaint. That might get TomTom's attention.

 

[Michael Quinlan]

I'm actually having the opposite problem. They charge me for the first month, and provide the service. Their system renews the service for a second month, and they again provide the service. But their system never actually bills me or charges me, and they don't seem to have any way to accept payment for the second month. So when the second month ends without the services being paid for, the subscription expires.

My subscription was apparently valid through yesterday. So today, when I go to Live Services, My Services, and click on any of the services, I get a message telling me that:

Your TomTom LIVE Services have expired. Do you want to renew for USD 9.95 per month?

I selected YES and it asked me to enter my email address. Why it didn't use the email address that it was using before the services expired is beyond me. But when I try to enter me email address, I discover that there is a limit of 35 characters in the address (it won't let me enter any more than that). Seeing this as a possible avenue of renewing the subscription, I go to my mail server and setup a shorter email address. Now when I select YES, it tells me:

Script error. An error occurred. Do you want to try again?

This error has persisted for several hours, despite many reboots of the device.

They really are lucky to be selling their devices in retail stores. If they had to rely on their internal sales and support mechanisms for selling devices, so many new customers would walk away without a sale that TomTom would go out of business in no time.

 

[Dan I]

Ok, I suppose my problem is only similar to yours ;-). Although my email address is mercifully short, I do get the same responses you see from the unit itself, though, telling me that my services have expired, and then that a script error has occurred.

In an update, however, I just received a call from TomTom, who offered me a replacement unit. They admitted that this doesn't solve the problem, per se, but only postpones it. That is, the new unit will come with three months free service, and they're just hoping they can fix the server problem before then.

I'm guessing that I got the call because I followed up on my existing (unresolved) trouble ticket, through their online system (as opposed to calling). It might also have had something to do with threatening the nuclear option in that follow-up ...

 

[dhn]

To Michael.......

Try calling support at 866-486-6866 and see if you can get satisfaction.

 

[Michael Quinlan]

Calling support is how I got the problem (temporarily) resolved last time.

Today I called support and I explained the problem with the too-long email address, subsequent script error, and inability to purchase/renew via Home. The support rep asked for my newly created shorter email address and setup an account using that address. I then logged in to that account on the device "My TomTom Account" (or something similar - I don't have the device in front of me) on page 7 of the menu, which completed successfully. After another brief period on hold, I checked my LIVE services on the device and was told they were valid for the next 30 days, and was asked if I wanted to renew. I opted to renew, accepted the already-typed-in shorter email address, and was told that the services were extended and I would receive an email with payment instructions. After following the payment instructions, my device now tells me that my services are valid until 6/25/2010 (3-1/2 months from now?).

Things seem to be good for now but fully expect I'll be back in the same position on 6/26/2010. If I'm lucky I'll get the same support rep when I have the problem again.

 

[mvl]

Yikes... my 740's coming in a few days... I guess I'll buy the annual option...

I'd rather not have the hassle vs getting Mike's $5/month free.

 

[Michael Quinlan]

You'll get 3 months for free to start with anyway. My original purchase and second purchase were both done via Home. My most recent purchase was initiated through the device, resulting in an email with a link to pay for the service. So I'm keeping my fingers crossed that it works this time.

But weird problems like this, that seem like the should never occur or could be easily corrected, appear to plague TomTom and linger for what seems like an eternity.

Whether my LIVE subscription works beyond June or not, my first issue will more likely be that they (most likely) failed to properly transfer my maps subscription to the newly created email address. I'll know for sure then the next new maps are released.

I'm also curious about their pricing - $9.95 per month, $59.95 per 6 months ($9.99+ per month), or $119.95 per year ($9.995+ per month). The longer you pay in advance, the more you pay per month. Most vendors offer a discounted price when committing to a longer term, but not TomTom - we do things differently here. I would bring this up with support, but knowing that Verizon Didn't Know Difference Between $.002 and $.00002, I think I'll just let it be.

 

[canderson]

Yikes... my 740's coming in a few days... I guess I'll buy the annual option...

I'd rather not have the hassle vs getting Mike's $5/month free.

Here's hoping you don't. Sam's has the 740 for $199.46 at the moment. Decent deal!

 

[Midd1994]

Guess I'm not the only one

I've had the exact same problem with my LIVE services every time I've tried to renew. I bought my 740 in April 2009, shortly after it was released, so I've gone through the renewal drill at least 3 times so far. I'm both glad and sad that I'm not the only one. Each time I've called customer support, they've had a different explanation about the problem. The last time I had to contact them, they made the same suggestion about re-registering under a new e-mail address, but the explanation they gave was that "some accounts had been registered as outside the U.S." - whatever that's supposed to mean.

Anyhow, I'm done with trying to renew my LIVE services and will NEVER buy another TomTom product, which I've clearly stated that on the revised review I posted on Amazon. This isn't rocket science - renewing a subscription to an on-line product shouldn't require assistance from customer support.

 

[Michael Quinlan]

...This isn't rocket science - renewing a subscription to an on-line product shouldn't require assistance from customer support.

When compared to TomTom's demonstrated abilities, many common things (like customers being able to buy your products) have indeed risen to the level of rocket science. Unfortunately, they don't seem to employ any rocket scientists.

Even worse for me, the credit card number that I last used to purchase my LIVE services was stolen from an on-line vendor, and I had to have it canceled and replaced with a new one (a new number). So now when LIVE services reaches the point of renewal, it will surely fail, even if it would have otherwise been successful.

 

[trident]

Same is happening to me. I only buy month at a time. Might get the yearly one but I will see. They advised me to make a new email addy and account.
Gets annoying though.

 

[davidalan99]

OK I just got the e-mail from TomTom to renew my subscription, the 9.95, 59.95, or 119.95 one. When I check my services on the 740 it tells me I have 30 days left:
1) Do I re-new now?
2) Do I use 9.95, 59.95, or 119.95? It is not a price issue, but which way will work?
3) Do I do it from the e-mail, From TomTom Home, or from my 740, again which way is the most successful?

OK any and all help is welcome.Thanks in advance.

 

[Ed Detlie]

740 won't ask me to renew Live Services

I was told by support to connect to the computer, and that it would prompt me to renew the Live Services. I have connected maybe ten times, and it doesn't ask anything about renewing. I have updated the software, but when I try to connect to Live Services from my TomTom Go 740, it says that I can't at this time. That's all.
Any suggestions?

 

[mvl]

I was told by support to connect to the computer, and that it would prompt me to renew the Live Services. I have connected maybe ten times, and it doesn't ask anything about renewing. I have updated the software, but when I try to connect to Live Services from my TomTom Go 740, it says that I can't at this time. That's all.
Any suggestions?

There are two parts to a LIVE services subscription: your Jaspar sim card, and your server activation

To check the server activation:
Go to "Update my GO" in HOME, and see if LIVE subscriptions are being offered in the bottom of the update screen. If they are offerred, then you don't have an active server activation. If they are not offered, then your server activation is active

To check the SIM card:
On the Tomtom, tap the satellite bars, then tap the application button (eg 8.371). Then on the next screen tap network. If the status doesn't say "connected" then you're either out of cellular range, or most likely your SIM card is deactivated

Usually, problems are caused by valid server activation, but a disabled SIM card. If that is the case (by looking at the steps above), call back Tomtom support and ask them to reactivate your Jaspar SIM card. If they don't know what that means, ask to speak to a manager.

 

[Michael Quinlan]

I've discovered a new side effect to setting up a new email address to solve this renewal problem. TomTom is now sending me emails to all my previously used addresses, asking me if I miss my LIVE services. It seems the only thing at TomTom that works reliably is their spam generator.