Outrage: A Runaround for Magazine Refunds

Michael Grantham is having a hard time getting magazine refunds. Photo by Preston Mack/Redux

When Michael Grantham, of Tallahassee, Fla., cleaned out his late father’s home earlier this year, magazines were everywhere. And little did he know that they’d keep piling up.

Grantham, 56, soon learned that his dad, who lived to be 93, paid for a subscription to TV Guide through October 2017. And U.S. News & World Report was scheduled to arrive until July 2023. Grantham’s father would have been 108 years old by then.

When Grantham called the magazines to cancel, he was told they could stop delivery but neither could offer a refund for the remaining issues. The reason: Grantham’s father purchased them through contracting companies, not directly from the magazines.

So Grantham called the contracting company for each magazine. Again he was given new parties to call, which he found exasperating. “They just keep giving you a runaround,” he says. “You can stop getting the magazine but it’s next to impossible to get a refund.”

Grantham canceled both subscriptions and is filing a complaint with the state of Florida. He wants a refund for a total of about 350 to 400 issues.

For their part, a representative at Regal Publishers Service, one of the contractors selling subscriptions over the phone, insists that Grantham will get a refund after the number of remaining issues is confirmed, but she doesn’t know how long that will take.

Interestingly, Grantham was able to get a $52 refund right away from Newsweek magazine. No contracting company was involved in that subscription sale.

Michelle Diament is a freelance writer based in Memphis, Tenn.