Morgan Pace was attempting to connect his 70-year-old father, who lives on a cattle ranch in Northern California, to the internet. Pace signed up for Starlink, SpaceX’s rapidly expanding satellite internet network, in February and paid a $100 deposit two months later to secure the service. “Months passed with no word,” he told Insider.
Pace claimed he checked his account and saw that if he returned his deposit, he would forfeit his place in line. According to him, there was no phone number for Starlink customer support on SpaceX’s website. He wanted a refund for his payment after ten months of waiting for the internet. “I think Elon is a brilliant man and wish him all the best,” Pace added, “but I believe his customer service for Starlink was non-existent.”
Pace claimed he checked his account and saw that if he returned his deposit, he would forfeit his place in line. According to him, there was no phone number for Starlink customer support on SpaceX’s website. He wanted a refund for his payment after ten months of waiting for the internet. “I think Elon is a brilliant man and wish him all the best,” Pace added, “but I believe his customer service for Starlink was non-existent.”
Jason Kirkpatrick, a Michigan resident, told Insider that he paid $100 to secure Starlink in March but requested a refund in December after receiving no communication from SpaceX. When Kirkpatrick logs onto his Starlink account, he sees that his deposit has been reimbursed. He claims, however, that he never received the money and that he is unable to contact SpaceX to inform them of the problem. He felt “cheated” out of his deposit, he said. “I’m not sure how a corporation can just take the money and leave without providing the service,” he remarked.
Scott Alexander, another Starlink customer, told Insider that he has been waiting for his Starlink kit for about a year. “Since then, I’ve just received the generic excuse email that we’ve all received, citing pandemic and supply chain concerns,” he explained. Last year, SpaceX sent emails to Starlink presale customers apologizing for shipping delays and explaining that silicon shortages had hindered manufacturing.
Alexander claims that his neighbor, who placed an order three weeks before him, has already gotten his Starlink kit.In August, Starlink announced that a global chip shortage was causing delays in the production of user terminals. Keith Bosse, who put a deposit for Starlink on February 25, said his order was moved back from mid to late 2021 to the first quarter of 2022.
“Isn’t it possible that if they can go to space, they could at least send me an email?” Bosse remarked.Meanwhile, Troy Dubé, a Canadian who paid 129 Canadian dollars for a Starlink deposit in late February, has yet to hear from SpaceX. “It’ll be a question of who provides me the quicker service first,” he told Insider. Bell Canada is now available in his area, so “it’ll be a matter of who gets me the faster service first.”
Dubé suggested contacting SpaceX, especially because other persons on the same latitudinal line as him have received their Starlink kits eight months after he placed his purchase.
“Right now, I don’t have much of a choice but to wait it out,” Dubé said. After preordering Starlink, more than five other customers contacted Insider to say they had experienced the same silence. Customers were frustrated in September when they couldn’t figure out when their kits would arrive, according to Insider. Musk just tweeted that Starlink has over 1,400 active satellites in orbit.
