What is happening with Namecheap?

[Hypersot]

Namecheap used to be, imo, one of the top registrars to have domains with mainly due to the top-notch support that they used to have.

Nowdays, and day by day getting worse, I find myself constantly being frustrated with the slow and terrible to navigate interface, the various problems I experience when trying to transfer out (yes, transfer out.. never when transferring-in) and, generally, trying to manage my domains,
eg. I still have a domain that I transferred-in days-ago showing as being at the previous registrar and I have no idea why (works normally, NS are set correctly, etc.)

The greatest disappointment however, where Namecheap used to shine, is their terrible support. Now, the responses I get are cold, unhelpful and, most of the time, they completely ignore the questions and just reply like an automated responder.

I'm always wary when it comes to services I pay for and, nearly always, I get out before things get bad. That approach has saved me a lot of times in the past.

So, has anything changed, should I worry?

Thanks in advance

 

[Samer]

It has always been this way, imo.
NameCheap was never actually cheap.

Also, had to have too many domains to matter; i feel they are the most overrated.

Spaceship, on the other hand… Although, owned by NameCheap, it’s better. Somehow! Dont ruin Spaceship!! NameCheap owns Spaceship, and the subsidiary is better than its Parent company. (and better name. Spaceship: To the moon!)

 

[Hypersot]

@Samer,
never cared about 'cheap' when it comes to assets that bring food on the table. That is, for services that help me with my work, I always look for:
1. proper customer support
2. robust service (eg. in this case, to know that when I request a transfer out via the UI, I won't have to spend 3 days in emailing) and only after those two are satisfied, only then I look at the price.

At some point I need to check Spaceship however so thanks for that.

 

[Hypersot]

I know that -as expected- this thread got moved to the Mariana Trench of Namepros where few people are going to read it. However, it is important to let people know that Namecheap seems to currently be... a mess.

I have been trying hard to make them understand that an extension that they supposedly got under their management -after register.to abruptly stopped working- doesn't work properly on many levels (I'm obviously talking about the .to extension) but they are completely indifferent.

Auth codes don't work, registrations occasionally fail, domains that are supposed to have been transferred away still show in my account with alerts that they will expire etc. (Transfers-in work normally though)

Again, this is quite unexpected from a registrar that I used to have in high regard. I would appreciate it greatly if anyone can share whether we should be worried with the registrar's current state.

 

[Bob Hawkes]

Auth codes don't work, registrations occasionally fail, domains that are supposed to have been transferred away still show in my account with alerts that they will expire etc. (Transfers-in work normally though)

I am sorry to hear of your issues.

For balance, I just wanted to add that has not been my experience with Namecheap. I have transferred a number out, all without issue and promptly, with auth code provided within a minute, and the approval of expedited transfer promptly and smoothly.

I have not done a ton of registrations at Namecheap in recent months, but have done a few, and they were always fast and smooth.

I honestly can't respond on customer service, as the last time I needed it was many months or maybe even years ago. Long ago my experience with support, the few times I accessed it, was good. Most companies these days have a useless (most of the time) fully bot or scripted human first level help that seldom solves problems, in my experience.

I do agree that @Samer comment that their division Spaceship, being a grounds up new enterprise, works smoothly, although take time to get used to a different structure. And Spaceship pricing is outstanding on the TLDs they handle.

I hope that things become smoother for you at Namecheap, and fully realize that different people can have different experiences.

-Bob

 

[Hypersot]

Bob, a service -any service- shows its quality and trustworthiness when things go wrong and not when things work as they should (although that is important as well). I am referring to how a service treats its customers, how it reacts to the potential problems -which are always expected- and how it can make any problem seem like no problem to the user.

That *was* my experience with Namecheap in the past -same as yours- and that's why I created this thread, ie. why that change now, especially with my current experience with their support which I used to consider one of the best.

Note also that the technical issues I'm experiencing currently are related to the .to extension. However, the degradation of the support quality has started some time now beginning around a year ago (I think).

 

[Bob Hawkes]

Note also that the technical issues I'm experiencing currently are related to the .to extension.

Probably important for those reading the thread to take note of this .

I realize probably outside edit window, but initial post perhaps could have stressed that the issues were predominantly/particularly/or only in one TLD. That makes it critical reading for those considering transferring domains in that TLD, but may, or may not, reflect overall experience at the registrar.

Mine was based on .com, .net, .org, .co, .xyz, .cc and a few other new gTLDs that I hold or recently held at Namecheap.

I hope it gets sorted out for you.

-Bob

EDIT: I see a couple of people disagree that it would have been helpful to know that the problems were in one specific TLD. Fair enough. I respect your view. I just think differently, and was expressing an opinion, nothing more.

PPS I meant to add that I totally agree with this: "Bob, a service -any service- shows its quality and trustworthiness when things go wrong and not when things work as they should"

 

[Hypersot]

I admit, I'm not the best author out there , especially not being an English native speaker, however I think the main point was made, ie.

1. I used to be a happy Namecheap customer in the long past due to their outstanding support where, no matter what issues I encountered, they were beside me always eager to help.

2. Fast forward to the present.
I'm encountering similar issues but what I see now is a bot-like response with a behaviour that borderlines being insulting (yes, when someone I pay repeatedly ignores me I feel insulted).

From my experience, when the connection between the customer and the service degrades, it is an early messenger for bad news in the future. Hence my question: is anything happening that I should be worried?

Thanks for a healthy conversation Bob. I always appreciate it when someone spends time to read and respond.

 

[Bob Hawkes]

From my experience, when the connection between the customer and the service degrades, it is an early messenger for bad news in the future. Hence my question: is anything happening that I should be worried?

Thanks for a healthy conversation Bob. I always appreciate it when someone spends time to read and respond.

Thanks for drawing our attention to the issue, and clearly expressing the issue and change from your previous positive experiences.

Hopefully the message will get through to Namecheap. I am not sure who is best Namecheap contact to tag, but @tamar has been very helpful in resolving issues in the past.

-Bob