Domestika Sneaky Subscriptions Exposed 🚨 BUYER BEWARE!

UPDATE 3/27/24: Domestika now has a support page where you can request a refund for the Plus subscription support.domest...
Online e-learning platform Domestika is under fire, as many customers reported being charged for an annual premium subscription - even though they did not sign up for a membership. Domestika offers a wide range of creative courses for individuals looking to develop skills in various artistic fields including sewing and crafts.
Domestika has a business model enticing prospective customers with low pricing to purchase individual courses, but many who did just that are claiming the platform later charged them the full price ($99.99) for a Domestika Plus subscription without their authorization or knowledge. Angry customers are review bombing Trustpilot and the Better Business Bureau, as well as leaving comments on social media platforms like Instagram. There is also now a public Facebook group called "Domestika scam!" for customers to share their grievances and pool insight on how to get refunds.
Note that customers are saying this issue seems to be a new one, and that it only started happening this year (2024).
When I checked out the Domestika website, courses were "on sale" for $5.99 and when I put one in my cart and went to checkout, it did not give me any indication that I was also signing up for a Plus membership subscription. Customer service support seemed to be lacking, with no email or contact form anywhere. I did DM Domestika on both of the company Instagram accounts to ask for an explanation & response, and will update you if I get any new information.
Some customers have claimed that Domestika is removing their comments on social media, and even blocking them on Instagram.
Be cautious with any online platform with this type of business model, where it entices you with a low introductory price and/or "free trial" as they are banking on you forgetting about it and not noticing the credit card charge. These subscription memberships are often difficult to cancel.
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[@sewingreportlive]

*While I was unable to find an email contact for Domestika, I sent DMs to both company Instagram accounts to ask for an explanation & response, and will update you if I get any new information.* UPDATE 3/27/24: 3:09PM - Domestika now has a support page where you can request a refund for the Plus subscription support.domestika.org/hc/en-us/articles/23641984541457-Refunds-Domestika-Plus UPDATE 3/26/24 2:16PM - earlier today I left public comments on Domestika's most recent posts on both accounts, and the main Domestika account removed my comment. All I said was that I was looking into customers reporting that there were unauthorized charges for the Plus subscription and I wanted to give them a chance to explain/respond. Note that customers are saying this issue seems to be a new one, and that it only started happening this year (2024). www.reddit.com/r/craftsnark/comments/1bmk1j7/domestika_scam/ www.trustpilot.com/review/domestika.org?sort=recency www.bbb.org/us/ca/san-francisco/profile/art-and-culture/domestika-inc-1116-953820/complaints facebook.com/groups/923159682678749 instagram.com/domestika/ instagram.com/domestika_en/ Yes, companies CAN get your new/updated credit card info without you providing it… finance.yahoo.com/news/companies-know-credit-card-number-103020762.html www.credit.com/blog/how-companies-know-your-new-credit-card-number-before-you-give-it-to-them-151126/

[@Libellenmaedchen]

I just posted an update but I can't find my comment. They updated their support page. You can file for a refund now!

[@sewingreportlive]

@@Libellenmaedchen Just updated with the link to that page

[@thactotum]

@@sewingreportlive they are not offering refunds to anyone after the first 14 days after the free trial you never signed up for expires.

[@marianaromero4538]

yes, they only let you cancel for the next year subscription. Paypal refused my payment back but just appeal again. I bought so many courses before with them. Not ever again

[@dfflorida1694]

The refund page sends you in circles. You can't get a refund once they charge you and you realize you somehow signed up for this.

[@elizabethmckenzie3033]

I filed fraud through my bank. I have my money back. It was a big hassle. I will NEVER buy from Domestika again. Your warning is spot on!!!

[@eo7994]

Glad for you! I’m waiting for my card issuer and PayPal response

[@RebelSouls]

Me also :(

[@louisegalletly6844]

I did too. I tried to recover my money from PayPal first but got nowhere. They claimed they had evidence that Domestika had sent me fair warning the money would be taken. I never received any communication from Domestika, either about my signing up for Domestika Plus or about the upcoming subscription charge. It is OUTRAGEOUS. Domestika offers NO CUSTOMER SERVICE

[@marianaromero4538]

They just told me no from paypal. I appealed again

[@dfflorida1694]

@@marianaromero4538 Same here. Seems the company has learned the terminology the banks/paypal look for - I just deleted my account and left a message why.

[@Dfreecity]

Same issue. Bought individual courses, just charged 99.99 without my consent. I am working with PayPal, my credit card company and I am going to write to the attorney general's office in California to investigate. I encourage everyone to do so.

[@rosalee5900]

Good advice, I should do that soon

[@wakeupuk3860]

@@rosalee5900 Good idea, we all should do this.

[@marianaromero4538]

Did you got your refund? Paypal said no to me :(

[@EuridiceMartin]

Same problem with me, I never sign up for the subscription, yet pay pal will not stand by me because I don't have a PDF document proof that I didn't subscribe . How is this possible?

[@paulacarter374]

I thought that was the reason to have PayPal. So PayPal is useless

[@inkypunk]

Domestika are still advertising individual course prices on social media, but when I click them, it takes you to the annual subscription which felt really suspicious. It's a shame, I really liked just buying one course every now and then.

[@dfflorida1694]

I just deleted my account. Even though I have classes and just got charged for the plus. Can't do business with such an unethical company.

[@JohnnyQuanSW]

Yikes! What a shame they use such shady practices, since the courses do look attractive. Thanks for making this video.

[@karenreynolds5960]

Hi...Thank you for creating this video. I am from the UK and they have taken £94 from my account even though I just bought a course for £5.99. At no point did they mention that I had to pay a subscription fee, it was a complete suprise. No customer service after sending many emails and messages, still no response. Absolutely despicable behaviour 😢

[@lacopello]

It's craY that so far this is the only video I have found regarding this issue. Thanks for talking about it, I hooe more people do it, I got scammed too.

[@agnieszkatomczuk6384]

I have never signed even for a trial nit to mention for a full subscription. I just bought 1 course in the beginning of 2024. And in April I was charged 95 euros...A pure scam.

[@alexdnce]

same here

[@exincident]

Thank you. I just canceled the Plus subscription after watching your video. A few days ago, I purchased four courses at a 93% discount with a free Plus subscription. The catch is that most likely, you'll forget to cancel it in your busy life, and they'll charge your card for it.

[@ernovanchannel]

I'm curious, do you keep your discounted course at 93%, or do they charge you the rest of the full price?

[@EuridiceMartin]

Thank you for this ! I wish I would have know about it sooner, now just found my self $99 more poor and frustrated for a useless customer service. What a scam!!

[@zeraimebrahtuhabtu226]

Hi...Thank you for creating this video. I am from the Germany .they have taken 108 Euro from my paypal account without my consent although I bought a course for 5.99. Literally scamed me . At no point did they mention that I had to pay a subscription fee, it was a complete surprise. Absolutely despicable behaviour

[@chunjansson]

The same happened to me so now I´m forced to do the one course that I was interested in.

[@doubando]

UPDATE 22-JUL-2024 the claimed Support page for requesting a refund it AI powered response email, and it will guide you to request a refund but this option doesn't exist at all, and when you try to communicate back there is no response at all, they provided an option that do NOTHING !

[@daxxydog5777]

One thing I will suggest when signing up for "auto-renewing" subscriptions, one way to control it is to use a virtual card number for each online merchant. You can set the card up to disallow any charges past a certain date, so once your trial charge goes through, you can set it so any new charges will be rejected. The merchant would then contact you to tell you your payment did not go through and you can decide to renew or not.

[@MaryanneLeavey]

The thing is we didn’t even sign up for any subscription (not even a trial one). This is fraud.

[@jutta3378]

Thank you so much for raising awareness about the scam tactics from Domestika! Messing with customers like this will do serious damage to their credibility and I hope that your video will save other people the grief of being robbed. This is scandalous.

[@roand9981]

Thanks for making this. Managed to get my money back via PayPal but Domestika were absolutely awful.

[@MrMangaDrawer]

how did you manage to get your money back, Paypal wont help me?

[@veradahnert8233]

Thank you for sharing this information. Could you please describe how you managed to get the refund from paypal? When I look at the categories in the Paypal buyer protection, this case does not fit into any category. I would be grateful.

[@simonemichiels5123]

Could you explain how you got the money back? I tried via PayPal a few days ago and Paypal rejected my claim. Thank you.

[@brenoklamas]

Thank you for showing it ! I lost 100 US$ as well 😪

[@dorisw2507]

This is horrible! I am a loyal ongoing customer and they have no customer service. I'm so upset.

[@CovekBezSluha92]

If you buy a course for $7, they add a $99 subscription along the way. Dirty business!

[@fileors]

Super scummy!

[@NYtalk60]

Thank you so much! I just started filling out info to join Domestika today! Before paying anything, I wanted to see KZbin comments. So thank goodness I did not pay. I will block them as a scam! 😓

[@todayipaint4667]

Domestica has good courses, but the annual subscription trick has put me off. Thanks to this video, I was able to ask for a refund. Very sneaky tactics.

[@gabit0-265]

@@todayipaint4667 how did you request a refund? They don’t answer to my emails!!

[@digitalsketchguy7844]

It's possible that when you purchase a single course, you are also unwittingly signing up for a FREE trial which will then bill you after a certain date of which you are unaware. This info could be buried in small print. There are legal grey areas where these people operate. I'm assuming they would not get away with malpractice on such a large scale. But I could be wrong.

[@tracygreene859]

This just happened to me today, I purchased a class - which I've done many times before - and they bundled an annual membership with it without my knowledge and I just got charged today. I've taken so many good courses with them, but damn if I'm buying another.

[@tracygreene859]

And I did submit for a refund, and got a notification from Paypal that a refund was on its way immediately. Nuts.

[@georgiaroughley6698]

SAME!!! I payed for a 6.99$ course for gouache a few days ago then got an annual payment of 140$ just today!!! I didn’t even sign up for an annual payment!

[@sonyaj66]

I just bought a new course a few days ago, and CAUGHT this before I hit "buy"; they had added the yearly membership on there, with the $0.00 intro" fee. I saw there was a trash can next to it, so I deleted it, and only got charged for the single class. So, if you aren't paying attention to "opt out" of that and delete it, you'll get charged. That is a REALLY bad way to do business, and I'm not sure how they thought by tricking customers like that it would be a good idea, and that somehow people wouldn't notice. This is clearly something new they've done, because the courses I bought a few months ago didn't have this option show up.

[@jutta3378]

@@sonyaj66 I'm very disappointed that Domestika decided to become scammers. I wonder if there was a changeover in the running of this company in recent months. I won't be buying from them again that's for sure.

[@brandonpope646]

Happened to me last month as well when they offered some courses for .99 cents. I bought 10 courses but clearly that was just bait to sneak the subscription it

[@angela-cm2xf]

Just saw yesterday I was charged 109 euro. I'm trying to go through PayPal to get this money back. If you are going through this don't give up.

[@debbyr3559]

Very sneaky of them. It looks like now they've added wording below the price (discounted amount) saying "Promotion subject to Plus subscription". Don't know if this shows for everyone. You can't buy an individual course for the discounted amount now. Glad I bought some courses before this happened but I don't think I will buy again! Anyone who has an account with courses they bought a while back should delete their card details so they can't randomly charge you a subscription. Also they've now limited comments on their Instagram account!

[@coutopraze]

I got scammed too.

[@Nozipho.Mhlanga]

I have cancelled my card now because wow! I am so scared that they'll charge my card at the end of the month even though I also unchecked my subscription. Thank you for this.

[@ElenaPhaces]

So whatvis to be done? How are they allowed to do this? Can they be sut down? I am down to go all the way. How can someone be allowed to do this, keep doing it despite the complaints and the awareness being raised, not have a customer service. There must be a eay to shut the down

[@dfflorida1694]

Seems the only way to get a message to them is to delete your account. I just did even though I am now out $109. I was able to leave a message on why I am leaving them. Do a search and you will see they have been losing money and firing people. They are going down especially if we don't support them anymore.

[@natalymarin2183]

They are still doing the scam. I have been blocked they didn't answer

[@Listenmore-e5q]

These scums scammed me too. I actually cancelled my free trial on the day I signed up, that's how quickly I didn't like their platform. A month later, these scums illegally charged me. I have all the email screenshots confirming my cancellation and I provided Domestika these screenshots. Their answer? copy and paste answer about auto renewal, completely igorning my screenshots. This company is a fraud.

[@paulacarter374]

I got charged 109.99. I just thought i was purchasing the courses

[@milanteechan6081]

Now I encountered the same problem. and want to cancel a course in domestika. I don't know what to do to cancel this course.

[@leneva2way270]

I’ve bought individual courses for a few years. I haven’t had a problem. But I will check my account carefully to make sure they don’t start charging for a subscription. The courses are very high quality. Many are not in English. They have subtitles.

[@Krizz139]

Same for me, I have bought individual courses for a few years and I have never had a problem. I found the courses amazing. This must be very new.

[@SalimSikder-ek3ww]

@@leneva2way270 can i buy courses individually? Without subscription?

[@cempaaxochitl]

They charged me for the plus subscription with out my consent and not pay pay closed the report and don’t accept the refund. I never ask for that.

[@saschasoteriou4792]

Same here!!! Hopping mad! Will NEVER EVER buy again

[@almaramos6096]

This also happened to me 😭 I'm from Argentina and it is way more expensive with taxes. I can barely pay my bills as it is

[@jennmc4611]

same to me. And i have been writing them and get no response.

[@user-yd9fg4ve2q]

This happened to me too. I bought figma course for my UI/UX class. The description is buy a course for 66 baht 90 discount. I bought it later they charge huge anount 2400 baht from me. The contact support is AI powered auto reply. there is no customer service at all

[@LaurikaMyers]

how does it work to get this company in court. Does it have to be in america and with american citizens. Which countries rules apply? who took over this company to prey on the creators and clients. Latest victim asking and not understanding why this is still a ongoing problem. they are o blatantly stealing from people all over the world.

[@ritu0p681]

thats why my bank was not approving the payment for the domestika

[@lynnwilkinson5206]

Domestika now have a support page and I have an email from them saying they will refund if I go to my Orders and Course Management Page and request Refund........there is NO Request Refund option on this page. It seems to be an automatically sent generic message...another scam?!

[@JesseLeeves]

they charged me 130 without my consent, what a scam

[@kabronette]

Another one scammed here. I am asking my bank to cancel the payment because there is no way to contact them. I will use your video as reference. And as you said, there is no way to delete your card info. People offering their courses should discover what are they participating into.

[@roofoofighter]

This is still going on, I hate that it’s not getting any media coverage. And Domestika is very quick to silence any critics on social media so potential customers aren’t aware. Many KZbin content creators are Domestika affiliates so they don’t let you comment about the scam on their videos.

[@dfflorida1694]

Seems the only way to get a message to them is to delete your account. I was able to leave a message on why I am leaving them. Do a search and you will see they have been losing money and firing people. They are going down especially if we don't support them anymore.

[@LaurikaMyers]

latest victim. this is still happening

[@chujanzdesigns]

I feel very much scammed too, can we protest in front their offices, as this needs more attention.

[@trilliand]

I‘m using Domestika, buying individual courses and not having a subscription. Works like a charm. No charges you don’t sign up for.

[@Libellenmaedchen]

I've done that in the past, too. Over the years I've bought many courses without any issues and suddenly I was charged (while sleeping) for the annual subscription.

[@cheezwiz7010]

@@Libellenmaedchen Sadly the same thing just happened to me. I was always happy in the past with courses I bought, but now I've been scammed with a bogus annual subscription I did not authorize. I'm very worried about them having my credit card on file, but I don't want to lose access to the courses I've already purchased. I'm concerned that crooks have taken over the company since a lot of these complaints seem very recent.

[@Libellenmaedchen]

​@@cheezwiz7010hey, they have updated their support page and you can now file for a refund! 😊

[@stiras1]

@@Libellenmaedchen Me too. I woke up to being charged a lot of money. I used their help section to fill out a form for a refund. I hope they give it to me. I needed that money! If not I will contact PayPal and try to get a refund.

[@noeliaalijo]

Claro todo iba de maravilla hasta que te hacen el cargo sin tu conocimiento, tuviste suerte pero podría pasarte ya que no tienes forma de anular tu forma de pago cosa ilegal, tampoco puedes volver atrás si te lo cobran por error otra cosa ilegal. Así que la ilegalidad estás por todas partes aunque no te haya pasado.

[@user-vy2oq4ck2r]

I git an e receipt for £90 i don't know how. They git my bank details so mucj for bank secury i keep battling with.

[@karinezenda6869]

Has anyone managed to get a refund ? If you did how did you proceed ?

[@jennmc4611]

I clicked to request refund and NOBODY gets back to you no matter where you write to. I have waited for them and can no longer get any refund from my credit card. By now the page has no longer a request refund button (which i have previously clicked) I really want to remove my credit card details from that page and will no longer ever patronise them.

[@alexdnce]

Anyone got a refund or positive result after this? just happened to me today.

[@MinglingwithSherlin]

This happened to me as well what a scam and I actually liked their content, before this happened. I couldn't reach their costumor support.

[@darcdemon]

Don't give them the benefit of the doubt, the link they have given you just goes around in circles, there is no way to get refunded directly from Domestikas page, the refund now box does not appear on most peoples Order and Course Management page.

[@janaforsythart5745]

They scammed me too. No refund, they don't respond and blocked me on social media. PayPal doesn't help either.

[@ernovanchannel]

today I got ad about the discount version. they add the 'free trial' for 0$ for every purchase that will be 1$ per course. it seems so cheap I know. but when I tried to remove the 'free trial' from my checkout, I have to pay full price again, which is around 15-20$ per course in my country. So, they make the subscription as a way to discount the single course. If we don't want the subscription, they remove the discount. Seems like a weird strategy tbh. But I'm curious if I remove the subscription before 14 days, can I keep the course I bought for 1$ each? or they will charge me back the rest of the price, which is 14-19$. I don't want to do it to find out.

[@lucasfesta]

same question i have

[@paulacarter374]

Thank you for sharing

[@THEPEONYCANDLES]

How to have this company con players arrested and get their business domains and apps get blocked from US soil?

[@magiclife1998]

... I don't get it... I purchased multiple domestika courses over a few years, and checked their page (french, german and english version) a couple of times since I started seeing people complain, and the shopping cart always had a very clear 'discount subject to subscription obligation' and the sub listed as item in the basket?

[@margaretderen2082]

I got ripped off by a watercolor teacher (not with Domestika). When I bought “one” class, they enrolled me in a monthly subscription. When I cancelled, I lost access to all the classes - even the ones I had paid for. THANK YOU for this warning!

[@kyleashley]

yip, i lost $100 us today and i really didnt need to be scammed right now.

[@fazylashaykh5323]

Does deleting my account help? I had gotten a free trial. I hope they don't charge me next month 😞

[@dfflorida1694]

Seems the only way to get a message to them is to delete your account. I was able to leave a message on why I am leaving them. Do a search and you will see they have been losing money and firing people. They are going down especially if we don't support them anymore.

[@KarinBecker2442]

A mí también me estafaron, estoy esperando mi reembolso

[@dorisw2507]

They still aren't doing anything

[@akifguler3546]

they charged yearly subs damn!!!!

[@aureliensooukian]

Thank you for this video! I just checked my bank account today, where these mf happily stole $99 for an annual subscription without any consent. It's been 31 days..... My guess is I'll never see the money again, but did anyone manage to get their money back after 31 days?

[@GurwinderSingh-bc8pr]

Totally fraud company . Auto debit from your CC or Debit card

[@ejbermoy4873]

Anyone can help me i also have the same experience!

[@cempaaxochitl]

I’m still fighting for my refund since PayPal don’t care what I said.

[@rozaalicja1]

I do too.

[@coopercottages]

Ive givwn up trying to get my money back

[@wakeupuk3860]

Could not agree more, happened to me, only specially looking found s very 'hidden' away box on my profile that had the word 'Refund' which I clicked onto and did gte my money back. But this compsmy sre CROOKS and those arttists of which three I did purchase from, I contacted to ask their opinion and thoughts, not one answered me. STAY WELL AWAY - DO NOT GIVE YOUR CREDIT CARD DETAILS. I and it was some faff, cancel my bank card and got a new one.

[@user-cx9rk4iu8r]

Hey, where have you found this button I cannot see any

[@karinezenda6869]

Could you explain more in details how you’ve done it ?