Steam refusing to refund my EA plus subsription

[76561199128498165]

I recently bought EA plus from Steam as a first time customer and downloaded A Way Out, a game that can only be played collaboratively. I have spent two afternoons trying to link and have been unable to make it work with his guest pass on Origin.

As well as this, when my brother tried to download EA Superhot on Steam it did not have it available under the EA play. I expected it would after seeing it advertised elsewhere under EA play.

Overall I have spent £20 and received nothing for it, in spite of a lot of effort invested; my only time on the game has been finding out i can't play with my friend.

I requested a refund two days after the purchase having spent zero time playing games, my refund request has been declined but i believe it should be completed. Does anyone have any suggestions on how i should take this forward?

[Cathulhu]

Subscriptions are not refundable.

edit: I partially stand corrected, it can be refunded within 48 hours of subscribung but not using it.

[The Giving One]

Could this be why ?

Renewable Subscriptions

For some content and services, Steam offers periodic (e.g. monthly, yearly) access that you pay for on a recurring basis. If a renewable subscription has not been used during the current billing cycle, you may request a refund within 48 hours of the initial purchase or within 48 hours of any automatic renewal. Content is considered used if any games within the subscription have been played during the current billing cycle or if any benefits or discounts included with the subscription have been used, consumed, modified or transferred.

Please note that you can cancel an active subscription at any time by going to your account details. Once cancelled, your subscription will no longer automatically renew but you will retain access to the content and benefits of the subscription through the end of your current billing cycle.

https://store.steampowered.com/steam_refunds/

[Dr.Shadowds 🐉]

You had 48hrs to request a refund, as long you didn't use, which you did used it when you played "a way out".

You can try to refund if you want, visit purchase history, select product, and choose "I have question about this purchase." but do note you're outside the refund policy on it.

I will suggest cancel subscription, if you do not plan to remain sub to the plan, if it wasn't to your likely.

[76561199128498165]

I made the refund request 24 hours after purchase, during which time I downloaded 1 game, only to discover i could not use it.

Terms and conditions aside, Steam have taken my saved-up pocket money and hours of my time and then given me nothing with no support in return. As a first-time user, this leaves a bitter taste and I would expect to find better customer service.

Is this a case of Steam taking my £20 for me to learn the lesson of who not to deal with in the future?

[The Giving One]

Originally posted by eddie.kittoe:

I made the refund request 24 hours after purchase, during which time I downloaded 1 game, only to discover i could not use it.

Seems a bit different than what you said above :

Originally posted by eddie.kittoe:

I requested a refund two days after the purchase having spent zero time playing games, my refund request has been declined but i believe it should be completed.

[Tev]

Originally posted by eddie.kittoe:

I made the refund request 24 hours after purchase, during which time I downloaded 1 game, only to discover i could not use it.

Terms and conditions aside, Steam have taken my saved-up pocket money and hours of my time and then given me nothing with no support in return. As a first-time user, this leaves a bitter taste and I would expect to find better customer service.

Is this a case of Steam taking my £20 for me to learn the lesson of who not to deal with in the future?

Form it however you want, but refunds have limitations and you could've checked what's included in the Steam version of EA Play before subscribing to it for a whole year.

I'm surprised A Way Out wouldn't work though, your friend did download A Way Out's Guest Pass on Origin and then attempted to join your lobby in-game, correct?

[rawWwRrr]

Originally posted by eddie.kittoe:

I made the refund request 24 hours after purchase, during which time I downloaded 1 game, only to discover i could not use it.

Terms and conditions aside, Steam have taken my saved-up pocket money and hours of my time and then given me nothing with no support in return. As a first-time user, this leaves a bitter taste and I would expect to find better customer service.

Is this a case of Steam taking my £20 for me to learn the lesson of who not to deal with in the future?

You seem to be ignoring one fact in your story:

Originally posted by The Giving One:

Could this be why ?

Renewable Subscriptions

For some content and services, Steam offers periodic (e.g. monthly, yearly) access that you pay for on a recurring basis. If a renewable subscription...

has not been used...

during the current billing cycle, you may request a refund within 48 hours of the initial purchase or within 48 hours of any automatic renewal. Content is considered used...

if any games within the subscription have been played during the current billing cycle...

or if any benefits or discounts included with the subscription have been used, consumed, modified or transferred.

Please note that you can cancel an active subscription at any time by going to your account details. Once cancelled, your subscription will no longer automatically renew but you will retain access to the content and benefits of the subscription through the end of your current billing cycle.

https://store.steampowered.com/steam_refunds/

[Dr.Shadowds 🐉]

Originally posted by eddie.kittoe:

I made the refund request 24 hours after purchase, during which time I downloaded 1 game, only to discover i could not use it.

Terms and conditions aside, Steam have taken my saved-up pocket money and hours of my time and then given me nothing with no support in return. As a first-time user, this leaves a bitter taste and I would expect to find better customer service.

Is this a case of Steam taking my £20 for me to learn the lesson of who not to deal with in the future?

Your story not matching up at all, first you started using service for two days, and requested refund after two days, now you're saying it's one day you requested.

As I said above you can try request a refund if you want, click on purchases history, click on the product, click on "I have questions about this purchase" and explain why you want a refund.

As policy state, even on Origin as well not refundable.
https://help.ea.com/en-us/help/ea-play/manage-your-ea-play-membership/#cancellation

On Steam as long haven't use it, can get refund just do it before 48hrs passed. Origin likely have same deal as well.

[pauldiazberrio]

Originally posted by eddie.kittoe:

I recently bought EA plus from Steam as a first time customer and downloaded A Way Out, a game that can only be played collaboratively. I have spent two afternoons trying to link and have been unable to make it work with his guest pass on Origin.

As well as this, when my brother tried to download EA Superhot on Steam it did not have it available under the EA play. I expected it would after seeing it advertised elsewhere under EA play.

Overall I have spent £20 and received nothing for it, in spite of a lot of effort invested; my only time on the game has been finding out i can't play with my friend.

I requested a refund two days after the purchase having spent zero time playing games, my refund request has been declined but i believe it should be completed. Does anyone have any suggestions on how i should take this forward?

Why are all these threads about refund problems being posted? Do digital platforms not explain their policies well enough? For some reason, there's been a flood of inquiries about refunds on the forums and everyone explains, sometimes verbatim, why money can't be given back.

[Brian9824]

No one bothers to read and then expects companies to bend over backwards and make exceptions for them because they are special.

[76561199128498165]

Originally posted by brian9824:

No one bothers to read and then expects companies to bend over backwards and make exceptions for them because they are special.

HOnestly, I am not trying to win an argument with you here, but to explain a disappointing experience for £20 which I do not expect Steam would be pleased with, and neither am I.

"no one bothers to read..." Well in no text is it at all obvious that that the game I wish to play collaboratively with a friend will not work. This knowledge is based on experience ( a negative experience in this case) which can only happen after the purchase - not in advance.

My issue is one of imperfect information - as with a restaurant, for example. If the food is not good, you can only tell afterwards, and therefore it is enshrined in law that you should only pay what is fair. In this case it is my experience of trying to consume the product which has provided nothing but frustration and not one minute of game play.

Originally posted by pauldiazberrio:

Why are all these threads about refund problems being posted? Do digital platforms not explain their policies well enough? For some reason, there's been a flood of inquiries about refunds on the forums and everyone explains, sometimes verbatim, why money can't be given back.

Quite... this seems to me to underline the issue above - if refunds are a big problem, it does seem to indicate that there is a meaningful gap between what people think they are paying for and what they actually get.

[Crazy Tiger]

Have you tried playing the game through the Remote Play Together feature of Steam, as the store page clearly lists?

[Washell]

Originally posted by onihR_norI:

Is this a case of Steam taking my £20 for me to learn the lesson of who not to deal with in the future?

That will leave you unable to shop anywhere in the long run. It's actually a lesson in learning to read refund policies before you buy stuff. To ask questions instead of making assumptions. To think before you act. If you're the victim at all here, it's self-inflicted.

Anyway, since you're stuck with EA Play for a year, there's plenty of content in there to spend hundreds of hours. Just the Mass Effect and Dragon Age series can keep you occupied for the next 6 months.

All games are listed here: https://store.steampowered.com/subscriptions/ea

And as Crazy Tiger pointed out, A Way Out can be played with remote play together.

[Brian9824]

Originally posted by onihR_norI:

Originally posted by brian9824:

No one bothers to read and then expects companies to bend over backwards and make exceptions for them because they are special.

HOnestly, I am not trying to win an argument with you here, but to explain a disappointing experience for £20 which I do not expect Steam would be pleased with, and neither am I.

"no one bothers to read..." Well in no text is it at all obvious that that the game I wish to play collaboratively with a friend will not work. This knowledge is based on experience ( a negative experience in this case) which can only happen after the purchase - not in advance.

My issue is one of imperfect information - as with a restaurant, for example. If the food is not good, you can only tell afterwards, and therefore it is enshrined in law that you should only pay what is fair. In this case it is my experience of trying to consume the product which has provided nothing but frustration and not one minute of game play.

Originally posted by pauldiazberrio:

Why are all these threads about refund problems being posted? Do digital platforms not explain their policies well enough? For some reason, there's been a flood of inquiries about refunds on the forums and everyone explains, sometimes verbatim, why money can't be given back.

Quite... this seems to me to underline the issue above - if refunds are a big problem, it does seem to indicate that there is a meaningful gap between what people think they are paying for and what they actually get.

None of which has anything to do with not knowing about the refund process. The issue is with people who think rules don't apply to them and then getting mad when steam treats them the same as everyone else, despite the fact that steam's refund policy is more generous or equal to 90% of other stores both retail and digital.

People are entitled, and will whine. Considering Steam processes over 100,000 refunds a day there is no issue at all with the process, just a handful of clueless people.

[crunchyfrog]

Bear in mind the following (in addition to the good advice offered by those above about you not being eligible for a refund).

When buy buy a subscription like this your wanting to play two particular games is utterly irrelevant to the point. You bought a SUBSCRIPTION TO A SERVICE, not a subscription to play those two games only.

Does the subscription still work? Yup.
Do other games work? Yup.

So you cannot ever hope to use any sort of argument in this vein, even if subscriptions WERE eligible for refunds (which they are not).