Was immediately charged $40 for Musescore 7 day free trial
So, I wanted to play some music on here, but I really only wanted to play one piece, so I went to start a free trial for 7 days. Upon starting the free trial after entering my PayPal information, I immediately received an email from PayPal saying that $39.99 had been charged from my account, which I did not in any way agree to. I sent an email to Musescore support and have so far received no response other than the useless auto generated response. I have submitted a dispute through PayPal as well, and so far no response on that either. I immediately cancelled the subscription, and did not use it for anything, so I have not used any subscription benefits. I would like to see a refund as soon as possible, as I did not use the service, and was led to believe that I was receiving a free trial, and not a paid annual subscription. If this could be resolved soon, that would be great, and if anyone on here has any insight as to why this may have happened, that would be welcome as well.
Thanks.
Comments
By the way, I know 95% of the replies in here are going to be saying "oh go complain to musescore.com for payment issues" but when I click forum support on the musescore.com website, it immediately redirects me to musescore.com forums, so if you are going to say that, I suggest you don't waste your time.
In reply to By the way, I know 95% of… by ajszarpa
Better don't waste Your nor out time here but see https://musescore.org/en/faq#faq-314712
In reply to Better don't waste Your time… by Jojo-Schmitz
If you've ever been to musescore.com, you'll know that it does not have a support forum, and you're redirected here for support.
In reply to If you've ever been to… by ajszarpa
Simply contact support@musescore.com - that's the place where billing and refunds are controlled.
Not here on musescore.org - this is purely a support forum for the free MuseScore desktop notation program.
In reply to If you've ever been to… by ajszarpa
I've been to musescore.com many times, and I know there is a "Contact us" link in the footer of every page that gives you an explicit way to contact their support team, also an "Improving musescore.com" that is useful for general bug reports but isn't so relevant when asking for help changing your mind about which type of account you want to create.
In reply to If you've ever been to… by ajszarpa
If you've ever been to musescore.org to complain about musescore.com you'd know that you are on the wrong site and wasting your time.
In reply to If you've ever been to… by Jojo-Schmitz
I hardly see how it's a waste of time when at least here it's possible to connect with other people who have had the same issue. I've submitted a refund request, and also gone to musescore.com and filled out the contact form, both with no luck.
In reply to I hardly see how it's a… by adamosmianski
You could also possibly connect with other people at the local coffeeshop. But, that's the wrong place if the goal is to reach users of the score-sharing website musescore. And so is this forum. If you want to reach other users of the score-sharing website musescore.com, better to just go over there to that site and post to one of their community groups. It still wont accomplish anything - only talking to that website's support team - but at least you'd be connecting with the people you want to connect with.
In reply to You could also possibly… by Marc Sabatella
Not sure that's a great analogy, as everyone here is a Musescore user and far more likely to have had a similar experience than any number of random people at a coffee shop. And despite the unhelpful comments from yourself and Jojo, I actually did find these threads helpful. I've always found Musescore.ORG to be very helpful and welcoming place, so I struggle to why's there's so much angst towards this particular thread and others like it. But, hey ho, enjoy your day.
In reply to Not sure that's a great… by adamosmianski
Our comments are meant to be helpful, as most people who post here simply don't know they are in the wrong place to receive any actual assistance. So we perform the important service of letting them know the proper place to go instead, because without our comments they would never realize they haven't managed to contact the right people yet. Most people simply appreciate our assistance and get the help they need by going to following our advice and simply thank us for the directions. Every once in a while someone chooses to argue instead, as is their right.
Anyhow, if we can be of any further service, let us know, but we've already provided you with all the information we have available.
In reply to I hardly see how it's a… by adamosmianski
You're wasting not just your time, but also that of the entire community
In reply to You're wasting not just your… by Jojo-Schmitz
I can't speak for the entire community, but it certainly wasn't a waste of my time. I got what I was looking for in the thread and won't need to spend any more time with it. If you think it's such a waste of time then I'm not sure why you continue to post dozens of responses over YEARS to this thread and others like it. If you feel that way then maybe just ignore said posts. ¯_(ツ)_/¯
In reply to I can't speak for the entire… by adamosmianski
You could have found what you're looking for without replying
In reply to I hardly see how it's a… by adamosmianski
I fell for the same MuseScore scam. I applied for a 1-week FREE TRIAL and was immediately charged $39.99. I wonder how many people they get on a daily basis with this bait and switch. I've filed a report with PayPal. Thank you for alerting people about this scam. Hopefully we can get MuseScore to stop scamming and start doing honest business.
In reply to I fell for the same… by andresenasac
Here’s the problem: enabling the discount disables the trial.
![IMG_0802.jpeg]( "IMG_0802.jpeg")
![IMG_0801.jpeg]( "IMG_0801.jpeg")
I can’t deny that this is a dishonest way of putting this, with the small text at the bottom containing the difference (my guess is you’d only read it once), and they sure could make it more visible, but that’s not musescore.org’s job. Musescore.org doesn’t trick people into paying immediately for a subscription service they thought had a trial. And the MuseScore Studio app is entirely free. That’s what makes it so great. Although both part of Muse Group, they’re practically different teams. On the support forum there (https://musescore.com/groups/improving-musescore-com/ ), they get plenty of mislead reports about the MuseScore Studio software. And, as you can see, here, vice versa.
Thanks to Karol - Composer for pointing this out, he has made a big contribution to the musescore.com community. Not like that’s we’re supposed to discuss here. 😉
In reply to Here’s the problem: enabling… by Asher S.
Yes, that )reading the fine print) seems to be a problem, but no, it is none of musescore.org
This same exact situation occurred to me. I was prompted with starting a free trial that would then charge me after 7 days, however, I was charged immediately to my Paypal.
I’m just confused as to how this is lawful if they purposefully are using the ruse of a “Free 7-day trial” to get members to pay $40. Canceled the subscription right after noticing it charged me (less than 30 mins later), and didn’t use any features.
In reply to This same exact situation… by leomateomusic
Same situation for me. I started a free trial but i have charged yet .
And the support team refuse to refund me ...
In reply to Same situation for me. I… by telea7800
Please read the already given answers from JoJo-Schmitz, DanielR and Marc Sabatella above
I wonder why you give your credit card details if you only intend to do a free trial?
In reply to Please read the already… by HildeK
I think that giving payment details is a requirement for getting the free trial. Maybe the user didn't necessarily "only intend to do a free trial" but, having started a free trial, decided that a pro subscription was not for them.
I also think that the fact that payment details are required for a free trial should set alarm bells ringing in the minds of prospective trialees but it appears that there are still plenty of people prepared to take a punt.
In reply to I think that giving payment… by yonah_ag
Yes, I agree with that.
A free trial should be free and for testing whether the offer is useful for me or not.
If it is useful for me, then I pay at or after the trial period. And if not, I just can't use the service anymore. Otherwise, what's the point of it?
If it is as many report, then it is in my eyes a rip-off, a subscription trap or whatever you want to call it! In any case, you can not call it 'free trial offer'!
But it is still not an issue of musescore.org.
In reply to Yes, I agree with that. A… by HildeK
Exactly. It should really be called a "money back 7-day trial" but then it doesn't sound so attractive. (I wonder if there's any legal requirement for a "free trial" not to be allowed to ask for payment details).
In reply to Exactly. It should really be… by yonah_ag
I guess you have to pay close attention. There is the expensive, normal offer (80$) with a 7-days trial period. And there is the much cheaper summer offer (40$), but that has no trial period!
If you read all of the order page carefully (including the small print!), you can see it.
See the post by Karol-Composer in that thread: https://musescore.org/en/node/350879
In reply to This same exact situation… by leomateomusic
the same situation happened to me!!! trying to find answers on how to get my refund back
In reply to the same situation happened… by yigewang1008
Then read further up and follow the link to the FAQ
In reply to Then read further up and… by Jojo-Schmitz
I followed the link to request for a refund. First, the support team refused to refund me ... I argued that this situation happened to many people on that thread. Endly, they refunded me 30€.
In the future I will never give my bank details again although most free trial offers ask for it
In reply to I followed the link to… by telea7800
Please see my comment from here: https://musescore.org/en/node/350879
As an active paying Pro user myself, hopefully this clarifies where and what exactly went wrong.
In reply to I followed the link to… by telea7800
@telea7800 • Jul 4, 2023 - 13:25
I would recommend never giving bank details for online purchases. If you use a credit card and then something wrong then you have way more protection.
My daughter had the same situation, got charged directly on signing up the free trail. I believe they are always doing that intentionally in some misleading way. And I noticed that musescore.org and musescore.com share the same account information, how can anyone that supporting musescore.org is not related to musecore.com or innocent about misbehaviour of com site?
We are in a process of requesting a refund.
In reply to My daughter had the same… by masterli2000
Nobody claims musescore.org not to be related to musecore.com, but they are not identical. And only the latter has a Pro account, the former is free. And the people in the former (i.e. here) can't help you in any form or shape, other than pointing you the right direction. Tima and time and time again...
In reply to My daughter had the same… by masterli2000
I don't understand what is supposed to be "misleading" if you enter your credit card number for an offer that is described as "free"? I, for one, would be very surprised and would check carefully why a credit card number is required for a supposedly free offer.
Can someone explain this to me?
In reply to I don't understand what is… by HildeK
Please see my post from here for a possible explanation: https://musescore.com/groups/improving-musescore-com/discuss/5225503
And as Jojo-Schmitz mentioned, musescore.org is not able to offer much help as Subscriptions are related to musescore.com. They do not charge for any productors or services on musescore.org.
In reply to I don't understand what is… by HildeK
You wrote:
Can someone explain this to me?
Short answer: an innovative marketing technique.
Longer answer: See my comment about "free trial" here...
https://musescore.org/en/node/300078#comment-1118279
In reply to I don't understand what is… by HildeK
Can someone explain this to me?
A combination of stupidity (huh, credit card number? Reading the fine print? Nah!) and greed (hooray, it is free!) I guess
In reply to A combination of stupidity … by Jojo-Schmitz
Yes, a combination of all of them, including Jm6stringer's answer.
I'm just wondering why this is mentioned so often here ...
In reply to Yes, a combination of all of… by HildeK
Probably because of the confusion between the 2 sites and because a number of people quite reasonably expect that a free trial will be free. But why would you give any website your credit card details for a free offer? Unfortunately people can be too trusting.
It only takes a few seconds to check Trust Pilot to see that MuseScore.com gets a rating of 2.3/5 and comments about the sneaky 'free' trial.
See https://uk.trustpilot.com/review/musescore.com
In reply to Probably because of the… by yonah_ag
That's probably down to the rigid refund policy they employ. Back in the day before Ulitmate Guitar / Muse Group took over, Thomas Bonte hat a 'refund granted, no questions asked' policy, but that's ancient history by now
In reply to Probably because of the… by yonah_ag
The plan with the free trial is free, and it's very common for free trials to require payment info upfront so that you can be charged when the trial expires. The confusion here comes from the fact that there are (at least) two different plans usually being offered, one with a free trial, and one without. People often don't read the offers carefully enough to realize that is the case, and they select the no-trial plan unwittingly.
In reply to The plan with the free trial… by Marc Sabatella
The cheaper no-trial plan. See my other comment above...
In reply to The plan with the free trial… by Marc Sabatella
I think that the 2.3 rating on Trust Pilot, with over 1000 votes, speaks for itself.
In my experience it is uncommon to give payment details for a free trial and I would not trust any company that required it as there are so many other options available these days. For example, the free trial of Pianoteq has limits on how long a session will run and playback of some notes is disabled.
In reply to I think that the 2.3 rating… by yonah_ag
It’s absolutely normal to require entering payment details for subscriptions that include trials. Not sure what sort of your experience you are drawing from, but I assure you, it’s extremely common.
The poor ratings are due more to the “bait and switch” aspect where people don’t realize they are signing up for a plan that has no trial, plus the no refunds policy. These are indeed areas for improvement. But asking for payment info upfront to facilitate the rollover to the paid plan is how most major companies offer trials and isn’t even the slightest bit problematic in itself. Anyone who complains about that is not living in the real world.
In reply to It’s absolutely normal to… by Marc Sabatella
"It’s absolutely normal to require entering payment details for subscriptions that include trials. Not sure what sort of your experience you are drawing from, but I assure you, it’s extremely common."
Exactly.
Just now, I tried with DeepL (well known...) and well, you also have to enter your credit card details to start the free trial...
In reply to "It’s absolutely normal to… by cadiz1
> *and well, you also have to enter your credit card details to start the free trial...
But there is a note (you highlighted it) that you will not be charged if you cancel your subscription before the trial period ends!
In the heading of this thread it says:
> Was immediately charged $40 for Musescore 7 day free trial
That's a big difference if it's true ...
In reply to > *and well, you also have… by HildeK
Again, as explained multiple times before, that's simply a misunderstanding - there are two plans offered, one with trial, another (usually cheaper) without, and for whatever reason people seem to not notice this and sign up for the trial-less plan expecting a trial.
In reply to It’s absolutely normal to… by Marc Sabatella
As I said, my most recent trial was of Pianoteq's Classical Guitar VST and there was no credit card requirement but this was not a subscription model so maybe that's the difference.
Users need to take responsibility for the trust which they give to online traders and Trust Pilot can be very useful in this respect.
In reply to As I said, my most recent… by yonah_ag
"Trust Pilot can be very useful in this respect."
Hmmm... Deepl: 2.2 rating! (vs. 2.3 MuseScore): https://www.trustpilot.com/review/www.deepl.com
I quote the last comment! 😱
Stay away — it’s s SCAM!
"As soon as you sign up for the ”free trial”, DeepL will immediately collect the annual fee from your credit card — multiple times within 24 hours!! And there is no way to log in and actually use the service (you‘ll find yourself caught in a loop). To reach Support, you’d have to log in. There is no other way to contact Support or anyone else at DeepL. The physical address given in Germany seems to be a mail box — nobody answers mail sent there. Log-in is also required to cancel a subscription. The only way to stop DeepL draining your bank account is by blocking your credit card and getting a new one. Good luck getting your money back — my lawyer has been chasing them through Swiss and German courts for months. All in vain."
Unbelievable!!!
Date of experience: August 02, 2023
In reply to "Trust Pilot can be very… by cadiz1
seems somewhat more common with German companies. i had something similar happen a few years back and it took 6 months before they cancelled. no refunds. so now i use my paypal credit card for German product company subscriptions, and lo and behold, this past year, same thing, enter credit card info, full year charge even though i signed up for monthly, and no login so no option to contact.
fortunately paypal operates differently - so filed a complaint, and shutoff subscription. result - suddenly emails from their sales and support team, offering discounts, free trial, 2 for 1, etc. paypal then 2 months later verified i'm ok, and company is on their watch list, not a dime out of my pocket, and they're going into the spam bucket whenever they get an email through the filters...
oh, and never provide a telephone number. ever. for any reason. nope. (unless you don't like the person whose number you provide ;-) ) i don't ever, but i know some folks who did because they got 10% off... and 5 years later - spamming from international numbers daily... still.
In reply to As I said, my most recent… by yonah_ag
That's one data point out of thousands upon thousands of companies offering free trials. Subscription or not, it's incredibly common to take the payment info up front, for several reasons. One, it helps the company limit the offer to people who are actually serious about considering the service as opposed to merely trying to collect freebies. Two, it gives the user incentive to actually take advantage of the trial to achieve its intended purpose: deciding if the service is right for them. Three, it helps the user receive uninterrupted service after a successful trial - which should normally be the majority of cases - as then there is no worry about not entering the payment info on time, etc. It's really a much better model for everyone in many if not most cases.
That's why services from mobile phone providers to cloud storage to food delivery to music subscription to practically everything else use this type of model more often than not.
In reply to That's one data point out of… by Marc Sabatella
Sure, it's only a couple of data points but it's worth using Trust Pilot to check that you're dealing with one of the thousands of 'good' companies and to avoid getting caught out by a less scrupulous operator.
There may only be a few 'bad eggs' in the basket and therefore you could be deemed unlucky to pick one, but It only takes a minute to check Trust Pilot and it could save a load of hassle.
This is not particular to MuseScore, it just makes sense for digital purchases to check that the supplier has a good reputation. It's just like checking the hygiene rating of establishments where you buy your takeaway from.
Whatever it is, the 40€ offer does not come with a free trial, that'd cost 70€