Limit on funds, unable to renew

Veeee · 29 Sep 2015, 10:26 PM

Does anyone know why FastMail limits the amount of funds you can add to your account? My renewal amount is higher than the limit, so I'm unable to renew. I have opened up a ticket to increase the limit, but it's been 24 hours, and other than being escalated to tier 2, it remains unanswered. In the meantime, I continue to receive overdue payment notifications that threaten to begin disabling accounts. Does anyone know how long from when an account is expired/overdue until accounts are disabled, and then how long until everything is deleted? I'm a little frustrated that I'm having such a hard time handing over my money, but mostly worried about email accounts being shut down.

BritTim · 29 Sep 2015, 11:34 PM

I know you can only add $2000 at a time, but I thought you could run add funds several times to build your balance up to the necessary amount. Have you tried this?

Veeee · 29 Sep 2015, 11:58 PM

I have tried adding funds in several smaller increments, but cannot seem to add anything beyond the $2,000. I have gotten the following errors:

"You cannot have an account balance over $2000. Please enter a smaller amount to add to your account."

"You cannot add $2000 to your account in a week. Please enter a smaller amount to add to your account."

"Sorry, the required payment, cost or credit card amount for this transaction is greater than the limit currently allowed for your account. Please contact support with your account details to have the limit on your account raised."

There doesn't seem to be a way to apply the $2,000 to the bill. It seems to want all or nothing.

BritTim · 30 Sep 2015, 05:11 AM

Tricky ... only other thing I can think of

Switch to 3-month renewal
Renew
Switch to 12 month newal cycle
Manual renewal

I think the cost is small to do this, as the manual renewal gives credit for the unused time. Thus, a $1000 3-month renewal replaced by a 12-month renewal a couple of hours later might cost $30 or so.

Can anyone confirm my assumptions on this?

robn · 30 Sep 2015, 07:49 AM

Can you please give me a ticket number and I'll make sure someone looks at it. Thanks!

Veeee · 30 Sep 2015, 11:18 PM

I had tried to switch to the three-month renewal, but the amount due was still greater than the limit. However, there has been some progress. Last night, FastMail assured me they would not let our account expire, and today I see they have accepted the renewal. They received the $2,000 I was able to add, and left a deficit for the remainder due. I am still unable to add additional funds to cover the rest of what is owed. Getting the error: "You cannot add $2000 to your account in a week."

I'm incredibly relieved that the immediate issues are resolved. No accounts will be disabled, and we were able to renew. Based on the error, I'm assuming I'll be able to pay off the remainder next week. Why they don't allow large payments, I don't know. Maybe it has something to do with banking fees or laws? But the problem will present itself again the next time we need to renew, unless FastMail will raise the limit on funds we are allowed to add or can pull directly from the information on file without me needing to add funds. Bit of a conundrum.

Robn, it is ticket 867481. Thanks!

Veeee · 5 Oct 2015, 10:59 PM

I haven't heard from FastMail since last Tuesday afternoon when they assured me my account would not be disabled. I wasn't even informed when the renewal went through, I just happened to notice the deficit in the billing section. I still can't pay enough to cover the deficit, but by attempting to add continuously smaller amounts, I was able to add $4. While relieved that the existing accounts are good for another six months, this is incredibly frustrating that I am trying to hand over money and FastMail won't or can't take it. In the meantime, once my spare accounts are used up, I won't be able to create new email accounts. And this whole fiasco is due to repeat in another six months.

Their error message of "Please contact support with your account details to have
the limit on your account raised" suggests that this is not an original issue and should be a simple fix, but I am not getting any answers from tech support.

I am wondering if perhaps mine is the first large business client they have. Are there any other business users on this forum? I'd love to hear your thoughts and experiences.

BritTim · 6 Oct 2015, 01:17 AM

I have medium sized business clients on Fastmail but, so far, they have not been big enough to require more than $2000 for a renewal.

In your position, I would also be frustrated. Since its inception, Fastmail has overall been better on the technical side than the business side. This has been especially the case since Jeremy Howard left the scene about five years ago. Their periodic support woes reflect this.

In my opinion, Fastmail is still an acceptable risk. When critical issues arise, they are both competent and motivated to respond. It does not stop me having niggling doubts.

n5bb · 6 Oct 2015, 09:17 AM

Did you contact robn (a FastMail staff member)? You should directly communicate with him via PM here at EMD or email. I sent Rob an email on Sept 29 about your problem, which is probably why he posted here asking for the ticket number.

Bill

Veeee · 6 Oct 2015, 10:15 PM

Issue resolved. Our limit was drastically increased, which should prevent any issues with future renewals. I'm still not sure why there was a limit or why it took so long to increase it, but I'm happy with the outcome. I'm very happy with the email platform. It's intuitive for both the user and the admin, and I've been satisfied with the tech support for minor issues and how-to questions. But for something like this, I really wish they had phone support, or were at least a little more responsive. And on the topic of business accounts, I also wish there was a way to export data to better manage domains/users/levels. I agree with you, BritTim. Overall, satisfied, but there are a few things that I have concerns with.

Thanks everyone for your input!

Berenburger · 6 Oct 2015, 10:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Veeee

[..] Overall, satisfied, but there are a few things that I have concerns with.

Thanks everyone for your input!

Reading this discussion, I'm surprised that such a large customer is so neglected.

BritTim · 6 Oct 2015, 11:08 PM

Happy to hear all is now well. In the end, while it cost you some time and aggravation, the users were not impacted. I always believe that is the most important thing.

29 Sep 2015, 10:26 PM	#1
Veeee Junior Member Join Date: Aug 2014 Posts: 26	Limit on funds, unable to renew Does anyone know why FastMail limits the amount of funds you can add to your account? My renewal amount is higher than the limit, so I'm unable to renew. I have opened up a ticket to increase the limit, but it's been 24 hours, and other than being escalated to tier 2, it remains unanswered. In the meantime, I continue to receive overdue payment notifications that threaten to begin disabling accounts. Does anyone know how long from when an account is expired/overdue until accounts are disabled, and then how long until everything is deleted? I'm a little frustrated that I'm having such a hard time handing over my money, but mostly worried about email accounts being shut down.

30 Sep 2015, 05:11 AM	#4
BritTim The "e" in e-mail Join Date: May 2003 Location: mostly in Thailand Posts: 3,095	Tricky ... only other thing I can think of Switch to 3-month renewal Renew Switch to 12 month newal cycle Manual renewal I think the cost is small to do this, as the manual renewal gives credit for the unused time. Thus, a $1000 3-month renewal replaced by a 12-month renewal a couple of hours later might cost $30 or so. Can anyone confirm my assumptions on this?

29 Sep 2015, 11:34 PM	#2
BritTim The "e" in e-mail Join Date: May 2003 Location: mostly in Thailand Posts: 3,095	I know you can only add $2000 at a time, but I thought you could run add funds several times to build your balance up to the necessary amount. Have you tried this?

29 Sep 2015, 11:58 PM	#3
Veeee Junior Member Join Date: Aug 2014 Posts: 26	I have tried adding funds in several smaller increments, but cannot seem to add anything beyond the $2,000. I have gotten the following errors: "You cannot have an account balance over $2000. Please enter a smaller amount to add to your account." "You cannot add $2000 to your account in a week. Please enter a smaller amount to add to your account." "Sorry, the required payment, cost or credit card amount for this transaction is greater than the limit currently allowed for your account. Please contact support with your account details to have the limit on your account raised." There doesn't seem to be a way to apply the $2,000 to the bill. It seems to want all or nothing.

30 Sep 2015, 07:49 AM	#5
robn Master of the @ Join Date: May 2012 Location: Melbourne, Australia Posts: 1,007 Representative of: Fastmail.fm	Can you please give me a ticket number and I'll make sure someone looks at it. Thanks!

30 Sep 2015, 11:18 PM	#6
Veeee Junior Member Join Date: Aug 2014 Posts: 26	I had tried to switch to the three-month renewal, but the amount due was still greater than the limit. However, there has been some progress. Last night, FastMail assured me they would not let our account expire, and today I see they have accepted the renewal. They received the $2,000 I was able to add, and left a deficit for the remainder due. I am still unable to add additional funds to cover the rest of what is owed. Getting the error: "You cannot add $2000 to your account in a week." I'm incredibly relieved that the immediate issues are resolved. No accounts will be disabled, and we were able to renew. Based on the error, I'm assuming I'll be able to pay off the remainder next week. Why they don't allow large payments, I don't know. Maybe it has something to do with banking fees or laws? But the problem will present itself again the next time we need to renew, unless FastMail will raise the limit on funds we are allowed to add or can pull directly from the information on file without me needing to add funds. Bit of a conundrum. Robn, it is ticket 867481. Thanks!

5 Oct 2015, 10:59 PM	#7
Veeee Junior Member Join Date: Aug 2014 Posts: 26	I haven't heard from FastMail since last Tuesday afternoon when they assured me my account would not be disabled. I wasn't even informed when the renewal went through, I just happened to notice the deficit in the billing section. I still can't pay enough to cover the deficit, but by attempting to add continuously smaller amounts, I was able to add $4. While relieved that the existing accounts are good for another six months, this is incredibly frustrating that I am trying to hand over money and FastMail won't or can't take it. In the meantime, once my spare accounts are used up, I won't be able to create new email accounts. And this whole fiasco is due to repeat in another six months. Their error message of "Please contact support with your account details to have the limit on your account raised" suggests that this is not an original issue and should be a simple fix, but I am not getting any answers from tech support. I am wondering if perhaps mine is the first large business client they have. Are there any other business users on this forum? I'd love to hear your thoughts and experiences.

6 Oct 2015, 01:17 AM	#8
BritTim The "e" in e-mail Join Date: May 2003 Location: mostly in Thailand Posts: 3,095	I have medium sized business clients on Fastmail but, so far, they have not been big enough to require more than $2000 for a renewal. In your position, I would also be frustrated. Since its inception, Fastmail has overall been better on the technical side than the business side. This has been especially the case since Jeremy Howard left the scene about five years ago. Their periodic support woes reflect this. In my opinion, Fastmail is still an acceptable risk. When critical issues arise, they are both competent and motivated to respond. It does not stop me having niggling doubts.

6 Oct 2015, 09:17 AM	#9
n5bb Intergalactic Postmaster Join Date: May 2004 Location: Irving, Texas Posts: 8,928	Did you contact robn (a FastMail staff member)? You should directly communicate with him via PM here at EMD or email. I sent Rob an email on Sept 29 about your problem, which is probably why he posted here asking for the ticket number. Bill

6 Oct 2015, 10:15 PM	#10
Veeee Junior Member Join Date: Aug 2014 Posts: 26	Issue resolved. Our limit was drastically increased, which should prevent any issues with future renewals. I'm still not sure why there was a limit or why it took so long to increase it, but I'm happy with the outcome. I'm very happy with the email platform. It's intuitive for both the user and the admin, and I've been satisfied with the tech support for minor issues and how-to questions. But for something like this, I really wish they had phone support, or were at least a little more responsive. And on the topic of business accounts, I also wish there was a way to export data to better manage domains/users/levels. I agree with you, BritTim. Overall, satisfied, but there are a few things that I have concerns with. Thanks everyone for your input!

6 Oct 2015, 11:08 PM	#12
BritTim The "e" in e-mail Join Date: May 2003 Location: mostly in Thailand Posts: 3,095	Happy to hear all is now well. In the end, while it cost you some time and aggravation, the users were not impacted. I always believe that is the most important thing.