I had to call the L.A.Times call center in the Phillipines to cancel my digital subscription. 2020 started out with more bills than expected and the extra $16 per month I was paying the L.A. Times isn’t worth the lack of use being given the daily paper delivered to my handset’s doorstep since I’m a constant free news consumer via Facebook and my Google app’s feed. Alright. Then, less than 24 hours later, I see ANOTHER $16 debit on my digital bank statement. The charge was shown as pending so I called 213-283-2274 which as the number listed on last month’s debit from December 16 — there was no service number on the pending transaction — and told the female service rep, “Lola”, that I called yesterday to cancel and “John” assured me (after reading through an annoying script of questions designed to data mine and dissuade subscribers from cancelling by offering them a cheaper temporary rate) there would be no more monthly charges. Pretty sneaky of the mighty LA. Times to try and jack one more monthly debut from my account, I told Lola. I asked her if this was normal practice: when a customer calls to cancel their L.A. Times subscription will it typically sneak in one more month’s billing less than 24 hours later? The subscription fee wasn’t due until the middle of the month. She dryly apologised again and again and avoided answering directly, finally telling me no. I asked, “Okay why was I chosen for this scam then? What makes me so special?” She couldn’t tell me and her Phillipino accent got thicker. Lola continued to apologise mechanically and said the money would be credited back “in 3 to 5 business days.” We’ll see. If the LA Times cares so much about the community they supposedly serve they’d hire locally and maybe a customer wouldn’t have to speak Tagalog to ensure proper service. #latimes #subscription #cancellation #phillipinessweatshop #refund @ L.A. Times