Problem getting birth certificate from service

[Nocta]

Hello all - I'm a newbie, so forgive me if this issue has already been adressed and I missed it. On August 2 I paid (via PayPal) ICGS (www.myitaliancitizenship.com) for two copies of my grandfather's birth certificate from Polla (Provencia di Solerno).

On Sept. 11 I received a note saying that I had overpaid by $7.00 and a refund would be forthcoming.

In October I wrote again asking about any progress. I received a courteous note stating that they were dealing with a heavy order flow, but that they would get on it since my order had passed the 10 week mark.

I contacted them again on November 6 and received a reply stating that they had contacted vital records by telephone, but that vital records requested that the request be resubmitted by fax. I sent ICGS a scan of a copy of my grandfather's birth certificate in the hope that it might help move things along.

I haven't heard from them since November 7th. I don't know what to do - they were very courteous and professional in their previous correspondence, but they have not answered the last several emails I have sent. I already had to cancel one appointment at the NY Consulate, and my next one is in March. It is now six months since I submitted the order. I know things move slowly, but this is a lot of time, especially since I provided my grandfather's birth date and commune information.

Is anyone else having this problem? Any advice/suggestions/alternatives would be greatly appreciated.

Note: I'm not interested in badmouthing anyone - I just want to get what I paid for, and I don't want to have to cancel another consulate appointment and lose another four months. I tried contacting ICGS again today, and if they respond I will post the outcome here right away.

[VaDeb]

Have you tried contacting the commune directly? Since you have a copy of the birth record, you can provide it and they shouldn't have any trouble locating the record to provide you with two offical copies.

Debbie

[john_dominic]

The comunes can be a pain in the ass. Be patient.

[Nocta]

VaDeb, john_dominic and Julie- thanks very much for your advice. Coincidentally, I received this message this morning:

"My apologies for the length of time it has taken for me to respond. We did contact the the comune by telephone, and they asked for the application to be faxed. However, there has been no further response. I have asked Anna, our researcher in Italy, to contact the comune again, probably tomorrow, and see if we can't get this document for you as soon as possible. I will let you know what she finds out."

Perhaps I got lucky, or perhaps someone saw my posting . At any rate, I will see what happens and post the results here.