Need advice about a domain of mine

[motivez]

Alright, I've owned this domain since 2001, and have renewed it through a friends company every year since then.

This year I decided I'd rather have the renewal at half price somewhere else, and have been trying to get the thing transfered to a new registrar..

Since I stopped doing my hosting through him and moved it to Dreamhost, I don't have access to a full featured control panel, really I can only change the name servers and contact support and update my billing information..

So, I contacted support asking for the password to transfer the domain. And I never heard back. I emailed several times and finally contacted my friend directly over AIM, something I know he doesn't like people doing to discuss business stuff, but the domain expires today and I'm running (ran) out of time.

He gave me what he said was the password, and I tried 2x over the course of 2 days to get it to transfer, but the password kept coming back as invalid.

I talked to him again today and asked said it wasn't the correct one, and he gave me a different one.. which worked.. but I got an email saying the domain is "locked" at the host and I'd have to unlock it for them to be able to transfer..

He said there's nothing he can do because the registrar he uses put a lock on it since it's technically already expired, and unless I renew it through him (more than double what I'll pay at the other place), there's nothing he can do..

If I don't renew it through him, the registrar will put it into something they call "redemption" which will cost me $150+ to get it back..

So my question is, what do I do?

I've asked him to contact the registrar and explain the situation, but my feeling is that they aren't going to care and wont give an inch (why would they? it's not really their fault, it's my friends for not giving me the right password and unlocking it, and not giving me access to do it myself)

[JaJae]

It's out of everyone's hands. I doubt your friend can get the cost to him reimbursed and it doesn't sound like he's a good enough friend/businessman to eat the cost. Sounds like you'll be out the $10 or whatever it is to renew through him.