Webroot Auto-Renewal thru Amazon

Nothing is simple, they say. Since my auto-renew was thru Amazon, I had ‘turned off’ the auto-renew within the Webroot app. I did this because it was going to cost $59 to renew but only $25 to renew thru Amazon.

I had received an email from Amazon on 08-Nov-2021 indicating that my subscription was set to auto-renew on 07-December-2021 for $24.99.

I kept getting prompts from the Webroot app on my laptop to renew because my ‘subscription was running out’. I had turned off auto-renew in Webroot. When I checked on the cost, it showed $59.95 to renew for one year.

I received an email today from Amazon stating that my subscription had been cancelled. I chatted with their Support who told me it had cancelled because ‘auto-renew was turned off’. They could not reverse the cancellation and didn’t offer to do anything but tell me to buy it again. 

So I went back on Amazon and bought another new ‘two-year subscription, including a new keycode’ for $39.95. I received the email with the link to download my new purchase. I had to register the new keycode and then Webroot began a scan.

I imagine if I left auto-renew on within the Webroot app, I probably would have been charged $59.95 by Webroot and $24.95 by Amazon and the run around in circles trying to get a refund from one of the companies.

I’m not sure my explanation will help anyone in the future and I’m also not sure the lesson learned is to leave auto-renew on.

Hello @lostandconfused 

Please look for a personal message from me!

Thanks,

I will never understand why Webroot does this. If I auto renew, it’s like $79.99. If I go online I can get it for $29.99. I have done this maybe 8 times. Why wouldn't Webroot better support it’s returning customers? Shameful.

For example https://www.webroot.com/us/en/home/affiliates/wsc-29

Welcome to the world of Marketing. Mostly all companies do it.

That’s an outdated model used by electricity companies, insurance companies, and cable companies. That type of gouging catches up with companies. Just look at cable companies. They have lost a majority of their programming giving it up to companies like YouTube TV, Hulu, and others who charge everyone the same.

Like lostandconfused, I’m battling the Webroot/Amazon monster. Been a Webroot subscriber for many years, always disliked that I had to buy a new license through Amazon in order to pay half what the renewal rate was through the app. So I was quite happy to see that I could now get Webroot through the Amazon Subscriptions route and get an automatic renewal next year at $29. So I bought it, got the instruction email from Amazon, and followed the instructions. But the pop-up to link my Webroot account to Amazon wouldn’t accept my Webroot user ID/password. Fine, I thought, I’ll create a new account. My first attempt failed because the password has to contain three numerals. Resubmitted but was rejected. Just a guess, but perhaps Amazon burned my license on the failed new account creation and Webroot failed the second attempt as there was no license. I know that Webroot won’t allow me to log in under the new account, Amazon says that the license has been used, and I’m sitting with no working Webroot as my sub has expired.

I submitted a ticket last night and updated it this morning but so far crickets from Webroot. Extremely frustrating. Maybe the only way out is to return the Amazon-purchased subscription and move to another company?

In my experience Webroot is very good at getting back to it’s customers. Of course all of this is caused by them gouging their existing customers.