Renewing Sirius Radio & Travel Link after initial 6 month trial

[CoalMiner]

The free six month of free Sirius Radio and TravelLink on my 09 MMH is about over. I called today to renew, after endless tele-calls to renew in the past weeks.

 

Footnote: When you purchase a new vehicle, be wary of the phone number you give to Ford, or more specifically the one your dealer records on file for you. Ford passes this on to Sirius, and you get lots of calls to renew. In my case I gave them my daytime work number. Calls sometimes twice a day. Although now that I'm within a week of the renewal date, all the calls have stopped.

I decided I was going to renew, but I was wary of doing do for one reason. All the stuff Sirius sends you states 'you agree to automatic renewal for additional period of the same length as the plan you choose, at the current standard rate'.

 

Also, they cannot bill for the Radio and TravelLink together, they need to do it in two separate charges. And you cannot renew both online, after a few minutes trying to do so using the online billing screens, I see this message, "If your SIRIUS service also includes SIRIUS Travel Link call 1-866-889-7474 to renew."

 

And so I called, asked for prices, which I already knew from answering one of the tele-calls, and state I do not want automatic renewal.

 

And the friendly person says, the only way we can set you up to not automatically renew is to put your CC info in after the trial period expires. I think, that sounds like a subtle way for Sirius to throw up roadblocks to do this. I say, OK, I'll wait. Sirius person evidently is reading from a script, and the script anticipates that a hangup means a possible lost subscription, Sirius person they says, well we can also mail you an invoice 6-10 days after your renewal data.

 

I say OK, and ask if there are any additional charges for this. She says $2, but she'll waive that fee. I say OK, and will await the invoices in the mail.

 

This is part report of my experience, and a few questions for anyone who has renewed after an initial 6 month free trial.

 

Q1: Do you accept the automatic renewal, and just let 'me bill you every period? It sounds like the majority of people do this.

 

Q2: Has anyone ever gone the paper invoice route? Thus avoiding automatic renewal? Q2b) Did you have uninterrupted service?

 

Q3: For those setup for automatic renewal, have you ever canceled, and was it a clean process? Based on their relentless tele-calling to go beyond the first six months, I'll guess they hound you?

 

Comment: It was their relentless and constant tele-calling that raises the a caution flag with me on this.

Edited August 23, 2009 by CoalMiner

[wptski]

The free six month of free Sirius Radio and TravelLink on my 09 MMH is about over. I called today to renew, after endless tele-calls to renew in the past weeks.

 

Footnote: When you purchase a new vehicle, be wary of the phone number you give to Ford, or more specifically the one your dealer records on file for you. Ford passes this on to Sirius, and you get lots of calls to renew. In my case I gave them my daytime work number. Calls sometimes twice a day. Although now that I'm within a week of the renewal date, all the calls have stopped.

I decided I was going to renew, but I was wary of doing do for one reason. All the stuff Sirius sends you states 'you agree to automatic renewal for additional period of the same length as the plan you choose, at the current standard rate'.

 

Also, they cannot bill for the Radio and TravelLink together, they need to do it in two separate charges. And you cannot renew both online, after a few minutes trying to do so using the online billing screens, I see this message, "If your SIRIUS service also includes SIRIUS Travel Link call 1-866-889-7474 to renew."

 

And so I called, asked for prices, which I already knew from answering one of the tele-calls, and state I do not want automatic renewal.

 

And the friendly person says, the only way we can set you up to not automatically renew is to put your CC info in after the trial period expires. I think, that sounds like a subtle way for Sirius to throw up roadblocks to do this. I say, OK, I'll wait. Sirius person evidently is reading from a script, and the script anticipates that a hangup means a possible lost subscription, Sirius person they says, well we can also mail you an invoice 6-10 days after your renewal data.

 

I say OK, and ask if there are any additional charges for this. She says $2, but she'll waive that fee. I say OK, and will await the invoices in the mail.

 

This is part report of my experience, and a few questions for anyone who has renewed after an initial 6 month free trial.

 

Q1: Do you accept the automatic renewal, and just let 'me bill you every period? It sounds like the majority of people do this.

 

Q2: Has anyone ever gone the paper invoice route? Thus avoiding automatic renewal? Q2b) Did you have uninterrupted service?

 

Q3: For those setup for automatic renewal, have you ever canceled, and was it a clean process? Based on their relentless tele-calling to go beyond the first six months, I'll guess they hound you?

 

Comment: It was their relentless and constant tele-calling that raises the a caution flag with me on this.

I've never received any calls from SIRIUS! One mailing at about four months and another just before the six month period.

[fordmantpw]

I can't really answer your questions as we didn't renew our Sirius (wife doesn't listen to it and didn't want it). But, if you wait until a couple weeks after it expires, you will be able to renew for about half price. At least that is what they offered us.

[scottfisher]

I did a 400 dollar lifetime renew, I hope it pans out for me, one more reason not to swap vehicles so freely.

[matsharris]

I did renew my Sirius subscription when the 6 month trial expired and I will tell you that the service people were some of the slimest sales reps. I've ever dealt with for purchasing any product. They shifted the plans and made it very difficult to follow what they were offering. It would have been a lot easier to renew over the Internet.

 

I kept asking if a long-term commitment would equate to any sort of savings and they kept hedging their response. On a couple of occasions I simply hung up, and called back with the hopes of getting a less aggressive saleswomen. I like the product, but the sales people are a true pain in the rear.

[wptski]

I did renew my Sirius subscription when the 6 month trial expired and I will tell you that the service people were some of the slimest sales reps. I've ever dealt with for purchasing any product. They shifted the plans and made it very difficult to follow what they were offering. It would have been a lot easier to renew over the Internet.

 

I kept asking if a long-term commitment would equate to any sort of savings and they kept hedging their response. On a couple of occasions I simply hung up, and called back with the hopes of getting a less aggressive saleswomen. I like the product, but the sales people are a true pain in the rear.

The times that I called, no problem at all. I was even told to wait closer to my 6 month expire date as I'd receive better deals in the mail. I was also told with the Lifetime Plan after three years, it's free. Although 6 months later the Lifetime Plan price went up a bit and now is free after 3 1/2 years.

[CoalMiner]

I heard the lifetime subscription is only good for the time that you own the vehicle, i.e., it is does not transfer to a new vehicle?

 

I also had a few surprises when I got the hardcopy renewal bills, so I thought I'd update the original post. Contrary to what they told me, they did bill the Travel Link and the station/channel fee in one bill. But the bill was very unclear what the charges were for. Had I not known ahead of time what the 6 mo. fee for Travel Link was going to be, I'd have never guessed what line item it was on the bill, it was labeled as "Sirius Service", nothing more, not Data or Travel Link Info, just Sirius Service.

 

There also was a Music Royalty fee, $11.89 for six months, that they never told me about in the never-ending tele marketing calls (nor when I called to ask about pricing, and I do remember asking specifically for the final total cost...).

 

And more, the billing period dates on the bills didn't make any sense. For example on the bill for six months of service, the bill showed Account Summary from 8/23/09 to 8/23/09. I guess you're supposed to infer the coverage period of time from the prices?

 

And it got worse, a few days after I send in a payment by check, I got another bill, obviously (it seemed obvious to me, anyway) sent before they received the check for payment. This bill said it was for 8/11/09 to 9/11/09, and it did not have the line item for the Travel Link service, but the fee was for six months of service. It makes you wonder just how mixed up Sirius really is.

 

In any case, they have cashed the payment check, and as of yesterday both the radio channels and the Travel Link still work. I'm hoping it stays that way, from what I've read, if the billing or payments get screwed up, it's a major hassle to get it straighten out.

[vanman628]

I did a 400 dollar lifetime renew, I hope it pans out for me, one more reason not to swap vehicles so freely.

I did the same. In one more year, I will break even and have Sirius for free the rest of the time I have my Escape.

[DaveJ]

My subscription ended a few weeks ago, and I didn't renew. I couldn't stand the Sirius telemarketers repeatedly calling my wife and I at home. Then, after the renewal date passed, they started call us again. I told them to take our name of their call list. They said they would.

 

One of the reasons I didn't renew was because of the sound quality. Too me, the compressed audio sounded like Lo-Fi radio. The FM Stereo radio sounds better.

[CoalMiner]

I can't really answer your questions as we didn't renew our Sirius (wife doesn't listen to it and didn't want it). But, if you wait until a couple weeks after it expires, you will be able to renew for about half price. At least that is what they offered us.

Re-opening this to ask if anyone else got a half price offer? And if yes, did they come by snail mail, or a tele-marketing call? And how long did you have to wait past the renewal date to get this?

 

I've been sitting on a six-month renewal paper bill, for a few weeks now. And deciding whether or not to renew.

 

Side note: amazingly, no phone/tele-marketing calls at all this time, ... that I was home to answer, maybe they did really take my name/number off their lists last renewal time.

[dwg]

I also did the lifetime subscription when the six month trial is over. Considering I plan to keep my Escape about 8 years I think it will be worth while.

[FordPaul]

We decided we didn't want it due to the royalty fees and threw away all the mail offers we rec'd. The wife listens to the talk stations but not the music and I wouldn't listen to Howard Stern if you paid me to. A day or two after the 6 months expired one of their sleazy telemarketers calls me and I expained I didn't want to pay royalty fees for music I don't listen to. He said no problem, we have a "text" only plan that has no royalties and gives you just talk radio. It was cheap, like 10.00 bucks per month so I bit. I didn't want to give them my CC, due to an issue I had trying to cancel my home subscription a few years ago which was like trying to cancel AOL., so they mailed me an invoice 2.00 charge for that he forgot to tell me about. I mailed a check and a few days later we got some stations, but not very many, and certainly not the numbers I expressly asked were included.

So I call them up figuring it's a mistake and the person trying to help me says there is no such thing as a "text" only plan. The salesman was wrong. Actually he was a lying sleazeball but anyways I asked for my money back. She has to transfer me to the cancel people and I was put on hold 25 minutes. I knew they were trying to get me to hang up but I endured. This next lady did her best to talk me out of cancelling and when I held firm she finally asked if I would ike all the stations turned back on for an additional 6 months to think it over. Thinking I am getting 6 months service for 32.00 bucks sounded good so I agreed. They turned it back on in an hour and when the 6 month period is up I am done with this company. No wonder they are going bankrupt.

I just bought a 2011 Mustang and it has no Sirius and I am glad. Screw them, I'm over them. All my next vehicles will have no Sirius.

[rscalzo]

But, if you wait until a couple weeks after it expires, you will be able to renew for about half price. At least that is what they offered us.

 

I have two Escapes with Sirius. After the 08 sub. ran out I never heard anything nor did I get any half price offers. Never got a call. Now that the 2010 sub. is ending I've been getting calls but I never stayed on the line long enough to hear the offer. Multi sub. deals are only on the top plans making it no deal at all. I'd almost renew with the music only but I'd be paying for two full plans. No multi discount. Plus the service on tree lined side roads sucks.