Sirius Lifetime Sub BEWARE!

[madpb]

I just got off the phone with Sirius.... then i sent them an email. Here it is:

Sirius,

I was considering your service but,
I was told by my satellite radio company, XM, that the lifetime $499.00 was not transferable to a new unit. Example: I buy a new car , I put a new radio in my new car and I cannot transfer my so called " Lifetime " subscription over to my new car ??
I just got off the phone with your customer support and she verified this! WOW!
I hope all your customers are aware of this before they pay $499.00 because I would be extremely upset to find this out later.
Seems to me this is a big time SCAM!! Now I know I must stick with XMRADIO…. Who wants to sign up with SCAMMERS!!
Sincerely,
Super High tech. guy
Daytona Beach Florida

Sirius also informed me the 'lifetime' subscription only lasts until the radio breaks, then its finished!

 

[Juan]

lets see 12.95 x 12 months is 155.40 2Years of service is 310.80 3 years of service is466.20.....So in 3.5 years you break even!!! Not much of a scam to me!!! Most people own their cars for 5years or more. I would think that most radio's wont have a problem lasting 3.5 years. Not to mention a second subscription rate would apply to a second unit if you were to buy the lifetime plan.

 

[charper1]

You might not be able to transfer from radio to radio but you can transfer the radio to the new car. This is just a hater look to pick a fight with Sirius. I need to read the fine print on an lifetime contract because on the XM site it doesn't even show they offer "lifetime" any more, but you can buy bulk years at a discount which are just like Sirius. Sirius clearly says "lifetime of the radio" and as of 6/2005 their lifetime offer may cease.

 

[korsjs]

it is basically a prepaid three and half year subscription. if your unit doesn't break or get stolen, then this is a bonus for you.

 

[rad]

This was in the agreement with Sirius when I signed up so what's the problem/surprise?

 

[Juan]

You might not be able to transfer from radio to radio but you can transfer the radio to the new car. This is just a hater look to pick a fight with Sirius. I need to read the fine print on an lifetime contract because on the XM site it doesn't even show they offer "lifetime" any more, but you can buy bulk years at a discount which are just like Sirius. Sirius clearly says "lifetime of the radio" and as of 6/2005 their lifetime offer may cease.

The Life subscription thing has expired in the past..They always seem to renew it

 

[Sirius_Rich]

A Note From The Moderator

This forum's purpose is to provide/share information regarding satellite radio and discuss the same. If the threads start to be a bashing contest for either Sirius or XM, I will take a more active role in moderating this forum. There are numerous forums/boards for that elsewhere. Since Scott asked me to help out on this forum last year, I have only deleted a portion of one post and I asked permission first. Legitimate complaints and praise about either service are welcomed.

Having said that, let's get to posting useful information and your impressions of XM and/or Sirius. I welcome any thoughts on improving this small portion of SatelliteGuys.us. Drop me a PM.

 

[madpb]

This was in the agreement with Sirius when I signed up so what's the problem/surprise?

Here is exactly what they told me:
Quote: I have a Sirius radio now..if i sign up using this radio and it breaks tommorrow then I loose my $499.00?

Quote: Yes sir, that is correct!

I would have to say some one, maybe not you, but someone who lost $499 for a few days of radio would definatly be surprised.

 

[Sirius_Rich]

Here is exactly what they told me:
Quote: I have a Sirius radio now..if i sign up using this radio and it breaks tommorrow then I loose my $499.00?

Quote: Yes sir, that is correct!

I would have to say some one, maybe not you, but someone who lost $499 for a few days of radio would definatly be surprised.

There is a manufacturer's warranty to be considered and even the extended warranties available. Personally, I have one lifetime subscribtion on my Kenwood DT 7000S home unit. I also have a 5 year renewable warranty on the Kenwood. I plan on dying with that Kenwood playing Sirius for me.

I don't recommend a lifetime for a plug and play tuner and maybe for factory installed radio in a vehicle that you think you will own and drive for a minimum of 3.5 years.

If you had read the agreement on the lifetime subscription, we would not be typing here today. It is not for everybody. This should be the end of this story.

 

[lostcause]

Just my opinion, but if this is true, it's ridiculous. I subscribe to XM and have also just ordered a Sirius system to compare the two. I have been able to transfer my one year prepaid XM subscription from one radio to another with absolutely no problems. A 5 minute phone call is all it took.

I wasn't aware of this sirius policy, but now that I am, I will certainly keep that in mind when deciding which service to keep. As a person who likes playing with electronic gadgets, I can definitely see myself buying new receivers if a new one comes out that catches my attention. Given this absurd policy, a prepaid sirius subscription is definitely not for someone like me.

 

[Juan]

I guess you didnt read the warnity info very well.. You could buy an extended warrenty and still do better than the xm deal

 

[rad]

Just my opinion, but if this is true, it's ridiculous. I subscribe to XM and have also just ordered a Sirius system to compare the two. I have been able to transfer my one year prepaid XM subscription from one radio to another with absolutely no problems. A 5 minute phone call is all it took.

I wasn't aware of this sirius policy, but now that I am, I will certainly keep that in mind when deciding which service to keep. As a person who likes playing with electronic gadgets, I can definitely see myself buying new receivers if a new one comes out that catches my attention. Given this absurd policy, a prepaid sirius subscription is definitely not for someone like me.

I had no problem trading a 1 year pre-paid subscription from one car to another, that was a different radio. I decided to make that a lifetime subscription and they credited the balance that I had left on my 1 year towards the lifetime.

 

[lostcause]

rad, was that with XM or sirius? I had no problems swapping equipment with XM. According to this thread, sirius won't let you do that though.

 

[rad]

rad, was that with XM or sirius? I had no problems swapping equipment with XM. According to this thread, sirius won't let you do that though.

It was with Sirius. Yes, Sirius won't let you swap receivers that are on a lifetime plan. However you can swap receivers that are on annual plans. From http://www.sirius.com/servlet/ContentServer?pagename=Sirius/CachedPage&c=Page&cid=1019257316747

4. Transfer Fee: If you wish to transfer your Subscription to a different Sirius Receiver during the term of a prepaid subscription or committed subscription period, we may charge you a transfer fee of up to $75.00. You may not transfer a lifetime Subscription to a different Sirius Receiver.



I mentioned this since in your post you were worried about transferring an annual plan on Sirius since XM allowed you to, which you can with Sirius.

 

[lostcause]

so sirius will charge you a 75.00 fee to transfer a regular prepaid account that's not a lifetime account? Still kinda crappy if you ask me.

 

[Sirius_Rich]

so sirius will charge you a 75.00 fee to transfer a regular prepaid account that's not a lifetime account? Still kinda crappy if you ask me.

These radios are still subsidized by Sirius, similar to DISH. DISH will give a new customer a receiver box or discount heavily on a HD-DVR box. Try and get a free one or a free upgrade if you are already a subscriber of DISH. I'm not familiar with D-TV, but assume their business model is the same.

If you are a monthly subscriber to Sirius, there is no cancellation fee for any reason.

 

[jeslevine]

When you buy a product, the waranty is on THAT product NOT a different product. Like someone else mentioned you can transfer the unit to a different car

 

[jeslevine]

These radios are still subsidized by Sirius, similar to DISH. DISH will give a new customer a receiver box or discount heavily on a HD-DVR box. Try and get a free one or a free upgrade if you are already a subscriber of DISH. I'm not familiar with D-TV, but assume their business model is the same.

If you are a monthly subscriber to Sirius, there is no cancellation fee for any reason.

same with XM

if people do not want to pay, then they should listen to regular radio and stop complaining

 

[lostcause]

Sorry but I don't see how sirius or XM are subsidizing anything if I paid 129.00 for my own receiver which I in turn own outright.

As for Dish and Directv, I was a directv sub for almost 5 years. In those 5 years I went through about 7 or 8 different receivers. I got a couple for free or very discounted, and NEVER had to pay a ridiculous fee of any type to transfer my account from one box to another. As a matter of fact, one week in particular I went through 3 different receivers. No big deal..I just called, let them know I got a new box, and 3 minutes later the old one was dead and the new one had all my account info. No BS of any kind.

As for jeslevine saying "if people don't want to pay...", WTF are you talking about?? I am gladly paying XM a monthly fee. When I get sirius I will gladly pay them a monthly fee too. I don't hear anyone saying "give it to me for free."

BTW, I'm not talking about transferring warranties...I realize the warranty is on the specific piece of hardware. The programming subscription is another matter though. Just like cellphones. I can buy a new phone every week and cingular will just change my account from one phone to the other with absolutely no problems.

 

[mcamden]

The people at Sirius are a lot more "human" about enforcing this policy than some are making them out to seem. My Sirius tuner was recently stolen from my car. Sirius told me that all I had to do was fax them a police report, and they would transfer my annual subscription to my new tuner (when I bought it) with no fees. The call took all of 5 minutes, and the fax number was toll-free; I found Sirius very reasonable to deal with during this whole situation.

Mike