You're a paying Platinum Member. Name changes are part of Platinum Member benefits. If EF is offering the service with a glitch in it, it shouldn't be a "favor" to get it fixed. Admins are only hesitant with fixing name changes when people screw around with the function knowing it's problematic, and then whine about losing their posts.
I don't know if the glitch is an easy fix or not, but EF should be happy to reinstate lost karma/posts/whatever for Plat Members using a privilege that's part of thier membership. (I'd fix it for you, but I don't have that kind of power.)