Home / consumerist.com rss archive / September-16-2007


Above And Beyond: Netflix Restores Confidence, Bank Account
Reader Josh sent us an account of Netflix's pro-consumer, 'just-say-yes' customer service that we have lauded in the past. Josh had asked to suspend his account until September 18, but Netflix unexpectedly reactivated his account on September 11, sending his bank account into overdraft. Josh called customer service to ask for an explanation and a refund. He writes:In August I put my Netflix account on hold, my wife was starting back to school and things were *very* tight for that month. I arranged for the subscription to resume on September 18th, 3 days after payday, so that I could cover the $18.35 fee.With the dollar$ in short supply I was carefully managing my savings account to keep it in the black. Well, imagine my surprise on September 11th when I discovered my account was overdrawn by $11.45. How could that have happened?Oh I see ...And then to add to my woes, the bank had to charge me a $22 insufficient funds fee ...So I called up Netflix and explained the situation....

Principles: New Hampshire Jails 68-Year-Old Man For Paying Toll With Tokens
Meet Thomas Jensen. The state that boasts "Live Free Or Die" jailed him for three days for trying to pay a fifty-cent toll with two tokens. Jensen believes the tokens represent a contract with New Hampshire that was illegally violated last January when the state began exclusively using E-Z Pass. A toll worker refused to accept the tokens and directed Jensen to a state tropper, who issued a citation for theft of services. A judge gave Jensen three choices: pay a $150 fine, perform community service, or spend three days in jail. Jensen chose jail.Jensen never told his wife he was in jail. Beverly Jensen said she only found out when asked by a television news reporter.After being set free Thursday, Jensen said he's considering a lawsuit. He said the state should just accept tokens until they're all used up.''I just get offended by people trying to do me wrong,'' he said. ''They stole the value of these tokens from me.''Braintree man jailed over 50 [The Patriot Ledger]

Complaints: Sears Left Me Without A Refrigerator For 18 Days
Sears needlessly left William and his insulin-dependent wife and daughter without a working refrigerator for eighteen days. For three weeks, William chilled his food and life-saving medication with bags of ice, waiting for Sears to send a part that their intolerably rude repairman insisted would take at least ten business days to deliver. When a second repair team arrived to install the part, they found leaky copper tubing - a problem the first repairman could have easily fixed.William sent a letter to Aylwin Lewis, CEO of Sears:Dear Mr. Lewis,In the summer of 2003 I purchased a Kenmore Refrigerator from the Sears store in Brooklyn, New York. Since that time this refrigerator has needed to be repaired three times the last time being August 23, 2007. I have a service contract with Sears. I called to have the refrigerator repaired and on August 28th a repairman came to my apartment. After examining the refrigerator he determined the part that was needed had to be ordered....

Monitoring: Are Bundled Packages A Threat To Privacy?
The L.A. Times read the privacy policies of several bundled service providers and found that they are feverishly monitoring their subscriber's activities. With the ability to monitor internet, phone, and television preferences, bundled service providers are able to track nearly every aspect of their subscriber's digital lives. While Google retains personally identifiable for less than two years, some ISPs like Time Warner cling to your data for an astounding fifteen years in order to "comply with tax and accounting requirements." It gets worse.There are red flags to be found in each telecom provider's privacy policy. A close reading of Time Warner's policy reveals:Along with knowing juicy details of your calling and viewing habits -- those 900 numbers, say, or that subscription to the Playboy Channel -- the company keeps track of "Internet addresses you contact and the duration of your visits to such addresses."Time Warner not only compiles "information about how often and how...

How To: Make Credit Card Companies Your Bitch
Blueprint for Financial Prosperity reminds us that savvy consumers can take advantage of credit card companies hellbent on turning a profit. Most credit card companies will go to great lengths to keep their customers happily spending away. Use these tips to make them cater to your every financial desire:Ask: Most companies will waive or reduce fees upon request.Consolidate Credit Lines: If you have several cards with one provider, boost your credit score by asking to consolidate your charges and credit limits onto one or two cards.Boost Your Credit Limit: Creditors will usually increase the credit limit of loyal customers with good credit without harming their credit score by requesting a credit report. Wait at least a year before making the request.Escape Foreign Transaction Fees: If you are planning a hop across the pond, ditch your Visa and Mastercard in favor of Discover or Capitol One. Neither levies a foreign transaction fee of 1% or more.Switch Rewards Programs: Stuck...

Shrinkage: CellHut Can't Understand That You Didn't Order The iPhone, Thieves Did
Last Friday, I arrived home from work to discover a mysterious package waiting for me. Upon opening it, I found... trash bags. Lots of them. Puzzled, I rifled through the box and discovered, to my amazement, that they had been used as packing material for a brand new 4 Gb Apple iPhone!At first I assumed that it was a gift from a particularly generous friend. As much as I would love to own an iPhone, I am not generally an early adopter and had no immediate plans to buy one.Further exploration of the box revealed an invoice from a company I had never heard of called Cellhut.com. To my shock, the phone had been charged to my Chase Visa card to the sum of $663!The credit card was one I rarely used, usually only for places that didn't accept American Express. I had used it exactly twice at restaurants the previous weekend while on vacation in Montauk, Long Island. Someone had obviously gotten hold of my credit card number.I immediately called Chase's Credit Card department. They...