I have addressed this briefly in othe posts but I think it deserves it’s own post. The expiration of a domain is not a secret. There is no government group hiding in the shadows or behind concrete doors coming up with new and innovative ways to make your domain expire without your knowledge. You may scream and yell and tell the world how your host or registrar tricked you and made your domain expire. I know that it’s so much easier in life if you’re the victim but in this case stupidity is the only thing you’re a victim of. I know it sounds harsh but think about how angry you get because you think someone else caused you to lose your domain. Only YOU are responsible for the renewal of your domain. If auto renew is turned off you will get 4 customer courtesy emails letting you know that your domain needs to be renewed. The first starts 30 days before your domain expires, then one at two weeks, one week, then a two day final notice. It is entirely up to YOU to make sure your email address is updated. If your domain and business are important to you then you will do this. If auto renew is turned on, you will receive an email 2 weeks before your account is charged. This gives you the chance to transfer the domain if you don’t want to stay with your registrar and or update your credit card information.
Another thing, all domains renew 30 days prior to expiration. This is not a cheap shot to get your money early , or lock you in. This happenes to protect your website from going down in the event that your credit card has expired, or your financial institution declines the charge for some reason. 30 days to get everything fixed. I don’t know why this is so complicated but people freak out. Look at it this way, if your domain was renewed on the day of expiration then you stand the chance of your website failure due to credit card issues. Even two weeks is not enough time so you’re given 30 days. It’s a courtesy not a ploy.
“Ignorance cannot be out-run, but it can be avoided”