I have used GoDaddy as a registrar practically since they appeared. I have recommended that all my clients own their own domain names, and that they register them with GoDaddy.

There isn't a lot that a domain registrar should be able to do wrong; and you really aren't getting much of anything from a registrar either.

But when things go awry, you find how damaging obstructive registrars can be.

It was the worst kinds of experiences with Network Solutions which compelled moving to GoDaddy, but I now have a case that just beats all for stubbornness, incompetence, and just plain outright, "I don't give a damn about you 'service.'"

As I always recommend that clients own their own domains, this does require that they maintain their account information. But we all know that data can be lost. Many clients using Windows for instance will maintain the emails they receive from a registrar as their means of retrieving account information.

But should a hard drive go down or a system be upgraded, how many "technicians" do you know who bring all their mail rules and data (records/mails) forward from the previous drive or system?

Very few.

So the next thing you know, just for upgrading a system or suffering destruction under a new Vista system... things which are not at all a client's fault, they lose their data.

Now, would you ever think they should never be able to restore access to their domain again?


Well, this appears to be the case at GoDaddy. I have about $1,500 worth of time trying to restore a customer's access to their GoDaddy account; and I have never seen such incompetence and beligerance anywhere.

I have literally hours on the phone with them over several days; I have been hung up on by support personnel twice -- who just couldn't handle being explained to yet again that the recourse they were recommending only led to the same dead end again and again for which the present call was made.

We have faxed business documents and ID. They have lost it; they have claimed that a former employee actually owns the account -- while their very own emails state quite the contrary, that my customer's business is the legal owner of the domain.

Their internet presence has been down now for days; and of course they have no email through their domain (which OF COURSE, WAS THEIR PRINCIPAL EMAIL).

This has been such a ridiculous fiasco I still can't believe it. I'm utterly outright flabergastedly astonished.

Oh, right... you might say, well it's my client's fault.

Well here's the deal: I had to move a mess of clients to a new server -- a different host. ALL OF THEM had lost their account access information.

Yep. "Just happens."

So, guess what?

ALL THE REST, were on Network Solutions; and their software allowed me as a technical contact to make the necessary DNS changes.

ONLY GODADDY is irresponsive; ONLY GODADDY CONTINUES TO OBSTRUCT MY CLIENT'S USE OF *****MY CLIENT'S***** DOMAIN!

Yep, I've written Bob Parsons already and the whole works. If the GoDaddy crew worked for me, they'd all be down the road already.

TWO PEOPLE HAVE BEEN FIGHTING THIS BATTLE FOR DAYS WITH THEM... AND WE'RE NOWHERE *YET*.

THIS IS PATHETIC. IT'S ABUSIVE. IT'S NEGLIGENT. IT'S JUST ABOUT IMPOSSIBLE EVEN TO BELIEVE.

AND IT'S A GOOD THING THEY'RE PLENTY FAR AWAY RIGHT NOW.

I DON'T GET PEEVED OFTEN; BUT MY BLOOD PRESSURE IS ABOUT 500,000 RIGHT NOW -- AND I DON'T EVEN SEE HOW I HAVE A SHOT AT GETTING THESE PEOPLE BACK THEIR DOMAIN.

NOT A SHOT.