We use cookies to give users the best content and online experience. By clicking “Accept All Cookies”, you agree to allow us to use all cookies. Visit our Privacy Policy to learn more.

Manage Cookies
Resources for Businesses My BBB
Share
Business Profile

Publishers Periodicals

Lee Enterprises Incorporated

Headquarters

This business is NOT BBB Accredited.

Find BBB Accredited Businesses in Publishers Periodicals.

Complaints

This profile includes complaints for Lee Enterprises Incorporated's headquarters and its corporate-owned locations. To view all corporate locations, see

Find a Location

Lee Enterprises Incorporated has 24 locations, listed below.

*This company may be headquartered in or have additional locations in another country. Please click on the country abbreviation in the search box below to change to a different country location.

    Please enter a valid location.

    Customer Complaints Summary

    • 129 total complaints in the last 3 years.
    • 58 complaints closed in the last 12 months.

    If you've experienced an issue

    Submit a Complaint

    The complaint text that is displayed might not represent all complaints filed with BBB. Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business.

    Sort by

    Complaint status

    Complaint type

    • Initial Complaint

      Date:03/17/2025

      Type:Billing Issues
      Status:
      Resolved
      Resolved:
      The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.
      Unresolved:
      The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.
      Answered:
      The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.
      Unanswered:
      The business failed to respond to the dispute.
      Unpursuable:
      BBB is unable to locate the business.
      I have been trying to cancel my subscription to this paper since February. I have cancelled it 3 times on their website and again numerous times via email. Only to be told they cannot process cancellations. However they are able to bill my credit card with no problem. Which they have done twice now since I requested my account be cancelled. I seem to be getting nowhere with this cancellation but continue to be billed. I just want my account cancelled and the money they charged me be refunded

      Business Response

      Date: 03/17/2025

      We've cancelled the account. 

      There two $26.99 payments were made, one on 02/28/25 which was disputed by the customer and the chargeback posted on 03/14/25. The other payment was made on 03/14/25. We've submitted a refund for this payment. If payment is determined to be a charge back, there will be refund no due. 

      Customer Answer

      Date: 03/18/2025

       
      Complaint: 23072681

      I am rejecting this response because:   I don't know what a charge back is but all I know is that they charged me twice for $26.99 after I cancelled and I want both of those charges refunded.  As of now nothing has been refunded.     To begin with I was originally paying $17 a month not $26.99!!

      Sincerely,

      ****** *****

      Business Response

      Date: 03/19/2025

      Ms. ***** - a chargeback occurs when a credit card payment is disputed by the card holder. Your 2/25 payment of $26.99 appears to have been disputed and refunded to your credit card. We show the chargeback was 3/14. The refund should appear on your credit card shortly. We will refund your other $26.99 payment by check.

       

      Customer Answer

      Date: 03/19/2025

       
      Better Business Bureau:

      I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.

      Sincerely,

      ****** *****

    • Initial Complaint

      Date:03/17/2025

      Type:Billing Issues
      Status:
      Resolved
      Resolved:
      The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.
      Unresolved:
      The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.
      Answered:
      The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.
      Unanswered:
      The business failed to respond to the dispute.
      Unpursuable:
      BBB is unable to locate the business.
      They upcharged my subscriptions without notice. I have been trying to cancel my subscription for three months but you cant do it online and when I call I get put on hold for hours.

      Business Response

      Date: 03/17/2025

      We've terminated the account and processed refund of $29.98 for the last two $14.99 payments made. Refunds back to credit cards take 2-4 weeks to be processed.

    • Initial Complaint

      Date:03/14/2025

      Type:Billing Issues
      Status:
      Answered
      Resolved:
      The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.
      Unresolved:
      The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.
      Answered:
      The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.
      Unanswered:
      The business failed to respond to the dispute.
      Unpursuable:
      BBB is unable to locate the business.
      I emailed to cancel my subscription on Feb. 19, 2025. I got a reply that the subscription was cancelled on Feb 19. I followed up to confirm that they would not charge my card again. On Feb. 19 they replied that my card would not be charged again. My card was charged on March 11. I tried both email and phone support, but I have not yet gotten a refund.

      Business Response

      Date: 03/24/2025

      The refund of $38 was finalized 3/24/25 and will go back to the **** card.Please allow 2-4 weeks for processing.

      Customer Answer

      Date: 03/26/2025

       
      Complaint: 23066052

      I am rejecting this response because:

      It does not take 2-4 weeks to reverse a credit card charge, therefore I believe that this communication is a lie, just as previous promises to reverse the charge "within ***** hours" were lies. If you were going to reverse the charge, I would see it happening on my credit card by now.

      Sincerely,

      ****** ********

      Business Response

      Date: 03/27/2025

      We regret Mr. ******** isn't satisfied by our response. The refund is still within the 24-week timeframe allotted for internal finance to work with the credit card company. If the refund isn't received within this timeframe we can revisit. Until that time its a matter of waiting for the refund process to run.

    • Initial Complaint

      Date:03/11/2025

      Type:Service or Repair Issues
      Status:
      Resolved
      Resolved:
      The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.
      Unresolved:
      The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.
      Answered:
      The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.
      Unanswered:
      The business failed to respond to the dispute.
      Unpursuable:
      BBB is unable to locate the business.
      I signed up with the post star and have been trying to cancel my account for over two months. Each time I call they said their service is down and they are unable to cancel my account however I continue to get charged on my credit card for the services. They assured me last time I called that I would not be charged because their subscriptions services are down but I just received a charge.

      Business Response

      Date: 03/12/2025

      We've cancelled this account and processed a refund for the two charges of $14.99; total: $29.98. Since she paid with Apple Pay we'll have to refund by check. The normal turnaround times for these are 45 days plus mailing times.

       

      There is no address listed in the complaint; the address we have on file is: 

      *****************

      ********************-8215

      Customer Answer

      Date: 03/12/2025

       
      Better Business Bureau:

      I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.

      Sincerely,

      ********* *******

    • Initial Complaint

      Date:03/10/2025

      Type:Product Issues
      Status:
      Resolved
      Resolved:
      The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.
      Unresolved:
      The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.
      Answered:
      The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.
      Unanswered:
      The business failed to respond to the dispute.
      Unpursuable:
      BBB is unable to locate the business.
      Cannot contact the ******** Gazette to cancel a ****************** number wait times are over 30 minutes or more;Cannot do on-line;Chat line stops responding;Tried 5 different local numbers and NO ONE would answer any line.

      Business Response

      Date: 03/11/2025

      We cancelled the account. The outstanding balance of $16.44 has been written off with today's cancellation.

      Customer Answer

      Date: 03/11/2025

       
      Better Business Bureau:

      I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.

      Sincerely,

      ****** And ***** Hills

    • Initial Complaint

      Date:03/06/2025

      Type:Product Issues
      Status:
      Resolved
      Resolved:
      The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.
      Unresolved:
      The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.
      Answered:
      The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.
      Unanswered:
      The business failed to respond to the dispute.
      Unpursuable:
      BBB is unable to locate the business.
      I went through the steps online, answered the questions, reached a certain point and then nothing. No indication that the subscription was complete, no additional information was provided. I received no confirmation of the cancellation.I called the phone number provided and was told that I could not cancel at that time because their computer system was down. When I asked how long the system has been down the agent stated that the system has been down since early February 2025.This is a business with 72 locations across ***************** and I am sure that thier system computer has not been down for over a month.

      Business Response

      Date: 03/07/2025

      We have cancelled the account with expiration date 03/29/25.

    • Initial Complaint

      Date:03/06/2025

      Type:Product Issues
      Status:
      Resolved
      Resolved:
      The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.
      Unresolved:
      The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.
      Answered:
      The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.
      Unanswered:
      The business failed to respond to the dispute.
      Unpursuable:
      BBB is unable to locate the business.
      I was charged for an account I was never able to access. I called to cancel and request a refund after the first charge of *****. That was supposed to be sent for review. I asked to cancel all together, they offered to reset my access, charge only $1.99/month going forward, would fix my access, and submit a refund request for the *****. None of this happened. And now Ive been charged another $***** with no access and being told the system has been down since Feb 3rd and still down as of 3/5. They cant access anything regarding my account but yet I continue to be charged. I need all payments refunded and my card info deleted from your system. Unsure how a system is down but still works enough to charge accounts

      Business Response

      Date: 03/10/2025

       

      She has two accounts

      153767 

      Email: ************************************************************************** she signed up for $1/13wks 09/29/24, this turned into a $19.99 subscription. Payments: $19.99 on 12/26/24 and 01/29/25. Weve cancelled this account and processed a refund for both $19.99 payments (total $39.98) back to PayPal.

       

      96031

      Email: ******************************************************************** - She signed up for $1/13 weeks on 11/01/24 - with the same email address. This turned into a $19.99 subscription and two payments were made on 01/30/25 and 03/02/25. Weve terminated this account as well for both $19.99 payments and refunded the $39.98 back to her VISA. 

       

      We've looked for other accounts since she mentioned she was charged $20.99 twice, but were unable to locate one.

    • Initial Complaint

      Date:02/26/2025

      Type:Billing Issues
      Status:
      Resolved
      Resolved:
      The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.
      Unresolved:
      The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.
      Answered:
      The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.
      Unanswered:
      The business failed to respond to the dispute.
      Unpursuable:
      BBB is unable to locate the business.
      company charges my credit card every month for $30.99. I have tried to ****** this subscription several times and their website and company continue to charge my card however states that they are doing maintenance in that area of service, so they are unable to cancel the subscription. this is a service that i have tried to cancel for a total of 4 months and I continue to get the run around and they do not cancel it.

      Business Response

      Date: 03/03/2025

      This is a ******************** Account: ****** under ***** ***********. A payment was drafted on 03/02/25.

       

      We've requested a refund for payments made 10/27/24, 11/27/24, and 12/27/24 in the total amount of $72.97. The payment made 1/27/25 has been charged back to the subscriber and we anticipate the 3/2/25 payment will be charged back as well.

    • Initial Complaint

      Date:02/26/2025

      Type:Service or Repair Issues
      Status:
      Resolved
      Resolved:
      The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.
      Unresolved:
      The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.
      Answered:
      The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.
      Unanswered:
      The business failed to respond to the dispute.
      Unpursuable:
      BBB is unable to locate the business.
      I have a charge on my bank statement for $28.99 that I did not do or authorize. I dont even know what this company is nor do I leave in **** or need a news subscription for there.

      Business Response

      Date: 03/03/2025

      This is a ********************* subscription: 50021670362

      We have terminated the account and processed the refund for $28.99.

    • Initial Complaint

      Date:02/25/2025

      Type:Customer Service Issues
      Status:
      Resolved
      Resolved:
      The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.
      Unresolved:
      The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.
      Answered:
      The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.
      Unanswered:
      The business failed to respond to the dispute.
      Unpursuable:
      BBB is unable to locate the business.
      Ive subscribed to the Post Star for 30 years. In the past few years, the quality has degraded; in the past three months, the number of sections has gone from 4 to 2 with no explanation or subscription cost adjustment. Delivery has been very inconsistent for months. I called customer service on Feb. 12 and cancelled my subscription. It was never cancelled. I would like 3 months @$56 a month refunded. Today I went on the website and typed in ****** as I was instructed. I received the following email stating they couldnt cancel my subscription because they couldnt access it! Meanwhile, I continue to be billed $56 a month for a newspaper that rarely arrives, has two sections instead of four, and whose quality has totally degraded. I have spent hours on the phone trying to cancel my subscription, get a refund, etc. The local office closed years ago and the outsourced representatives have no power to do anything. Thanks for you help.******Thank you for contacting Customer Care.I do apologize, but this major system outage has impacted all of our subscriber services and we are unfortunately not able to assist with that request because I can't access your subscription. I know this is extremely frustrating for you and is for us as well, but we do hope to have our systems back up and running in the next day or so.Unfortunately, we do not have an ETA, but be assured, our team is hard at work to resolve the system issues so we can once again serve you. When our systems are back up, we will post a message on our website Contact Us page so be sure to check in there for any updates.Thank you for contacting ******************************** Team From: ********************** Sent: Monday, February 24, 2025 10:25 AM

      Business Response

      Date: 02/28/2025

      This account is under ******* ******* 120162

       

      We've terminated the account and processed a refund for $168 back to the **** Card.

    Lee Enterprises Incorporated is NOT a BBB Accredited Business.

    To become accredited, a business must agree to BBB Standards for Trust and pass BBB's vetting process.

    Why choose a BBB Accredited Business?

    BBB Business Profiles may not be reproduced for sales or promotional purposes.

    BBB Business Profiles are provided solely to assist you in exercising your own best judgment. BBB asks third parties who publish complaints, reviews and/or responses on this website to affirm that the information provided is accurate. However, BBB does not verify the accuracy of information provided by third parties, and does not guarantee the accuracy of any information in Business Profiles.

    When considering complaint information, please take into account the company's size and volume of transactions, and understand that the nature of complaints and a firm's responses to them are often more important than the number of complaints.

    BBB Business Profiles generally cover a three-year reporting period, except for customer reviews. Customer reviews posted prior to July 5, 2024, will no longer be published when they reach three years from their submission date. Customer reviews posted on/after July 5, 2024, will be published indefinitely unless otherwise voluntarily retracted by the user who submitted the content, or BBB no longer believes the review is authentic. BBB Business Profiles are subject to change at any time. If you choose to do business with this company, please let them know that you checked their record with BBB.

    As a matter of policy, BBB does not endorse any product, service or business. Businesses are under no obligation to seek BBB accreditation, and some businesses are not accredited because they have not sought BBB accreditation. BBB charges a fee for BBB Accreditation. This fee supports BBB's efforts to fulfill its mission of advancing marketplace trust.