CompuServe Internet Services billing a closed account

I am glad that there is an online organization like this to help end-customers with their genuine issues. I had signed up for a CompuServe dial-in internet access account around March/April last year (2000). After two months (March,April, May) of using their service, I phoned up and terminated service because my employer gave me a free dial-in service.

After a few months, I noticed from my credit card bill that CompuServe still charged me. I phoned up and told them I had already canceled my account, to which they said that their records still showed that I was a customer. I requested them to cancel the account.

It has been over 8 months since then, and I happened to glance through my Visa statement yesterday, only to find that I am still paying CompuServe for an account that I terminated last year. I have been trying to get in touch with their customer service so far ithout much luck.

I feel that companies like CompuServe are taking advantage of customers such as me who use automatic payment options and do not notice for a long time that they have been dripping hard-earned money into a service which they thought they had long-forsaken. I wish I knew how to approach this case with more legal clarity and an assurance that (a) CompuServe will not promise me yet another time that they will cancel charges on my card but end up charging me again (b) CompuServe will compensate me by at least returning the money that they had billed my non-extant account (c) I will have legal recourse in case (a) and (b) fail.

Thanks again,
Ragavan Manian.