Are you gonna eat that? No? Mind if it just stick in this here bucket, let it sit for a bit and then dump it on my garden? That’s what we call composting (in a nut shell) and it’s been on the mind of New York City’s Mayor Michael Bloomberg lately. His administration tested out a pilot program recently and is now looking at requiring all city dwellers to take part eventually. [More]
NYC May Eventually Require Residents To Compost Food Scraps In Citywide Program
By June 18, 2013
Want Only The Best Toilet Papers? Go To Walmart, Apparently
By June 18, 2013
Toilet paper: almost everyone uses it, but do you put much thought into which brands you buy? Do you have a brand preference, or just pick up the biggest and cheapest package available at Walmart or Costco? Our colleagues down the hall at Consumer Reports put on their 2-ply lab coats and got to work stirring, pulling, and caressing various brands of toilet paper to find out which brands really are the best. [More]
You Can Make Your LinkedIn Profile Stalker-Proof, But Then You Might As Well Not Have A Profile
By June 18, 2013
On Facebook, you can make your profile very private so that no one outside of your network can see anything other than your name. You can also block individuals from contacting you. Twitter allows you to make your feed private so that you pick and choose who can follow your Tweets. Meanwhile, LinkedIn allows you to limit who can see your profile, but does not give you the ability to block individuals, so it’s kind of an all or nothing. [More]
Chrysler Finally Agrees To Recall 2.7 Million Jeeps, Insists Vehicles Are Safe
By June 18, 2013
Earlier this month Chrysler responded with a big fat “No” to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s request that it formally recall 2.7 million older model Jeeps, over regulator concerns that the vehicles could catch on fire when hit from behind. Today the car company announced that it’s relenting, and will in fact, institute the recall the NHTSA wanted. [More]
SunTrust Denies Taking Automatic HELOC Payments, Then Stops Taking Them
By June 18, 2013
Steven opened a free checking account with SunTrust, the bank that holds his mortgage, because it was free and convenient. But something strange started to happen: payments to his home equity line of credit began to magically disappear. His local bank staff denied that this was happening or that it was even possible, but it kept happening. It was convenient, so he didn’t look too far into it. Until the auto-payments that never existed stopped. [More]
Are You Really Saving Money When You Get A Room From Airbnb?
By June 18, 2013
Some people prefer home-sharing services like Airbnb over hotels because they would rather stay in a cozy apartment than in a sealed-up room with of a chain hotel. Others choose these services because they feel they are saving money over the cost of a traditional hotel, but how much you save — or if you’re saving at all — depends on where you stay and how you book your hotels. [More]
Only In The United States Of America Is It Necessary To Legally Define A Hot Dog
By June 18, 2013
While there are some cities whose denizens will shoot you quite the stinkeye for misidentifying their tubed meats — a Polish sausage is not the same as bratwurst, people — most of us probably know our hot dogs. But despite Americans’ collective familiarity with the city street corner staples, California is taking things a step further with legislation that seeks to come up with a legal definition for “hot dog.” [More]
June Food And Drug Recall Roundup – Sulfites, Plastic Fragments, And Salmonella
By June 18, 2013
Our monthly Recall Roundups have grown so expansive that we’ve had to separate them into two separate roundups: one for consumer goods, and one for consumables. In this edition of the Food and Drug roundup, dangers lurk everywhere, from coconut candy bars to sugary cereals. [More]
Is Verizon Deliberately Slowing Down Netflix Streaming To Customers?
By June 18, 2013
One of the companies that provides bandwidth to Netflix claims that Verizon is allowing a traffic jam of data to build up at its connection points to the huge telecom company, resulting in a degraded connection for customers. [More]
Waitress Celebrates Father’s Day With Special “F&$*#n Needy Kids” Item On Customer’s Bill
By June 18, 2013
We understand that there are plenty of businesses out there with specific policies — for example, a restaurant not allowing kids — so when a customer is accommodated outside those rules, it’s great. But you know what takes the shine off stretching the rules for a customer? Forgetting to take off a complaint about said customer’s kid on a restaurant check. [More]
USPS Gets Express Mail Package To Post Office At 11:45, Says ‘Good Enough’
By June 18, 2013
U.S. Postal Service Express Mail carries a guarantee: your package will arrive by noon the next day after it’s accepted at the post office, depending on what time you hand it over to a clerk in person. Okay. The problem, as Consumerist readers have learned, comes in when your package arrives late and you actually try to cash in this guarantee. [More]
Amazon Cancels My $6,000 Order Because It Doesn’t Know How To Use A Fax Machine
By June 18, 2013
A few weeks back, Consumerist reader K. placed an order on Amazon for $6,000 worth of computer equipment. The online retailer was unable to immediately process her order because it needed additional documentation, which K. faxed over right away… and then re-faxed when Amazon requested a second time… and then eight additional times because Amazon kept asking for it, all before the company cancelled K’s order, claiming she never faxed the documents. [More]
United’s “Fly By The Tips Of Your Fingers” Slogan Takes On New Meaning When TP Runs Out
By June 18, 2013
Listen, we’ve got to hand it to whichever enterprising United Airlines employee took it upon themselves to make the best out of what is a totally ridiculous situation. Sure, cocktail napkins aren’t quite as comfy when it comes to wiping your bum — but who wouldn’t chuckle at a MacGyvered duct tape holder filled with messages to “Fly by the tips of your fingers” when faced with a shortage of toilet paper? [More]
Should I Also Be Picking Up Insurance And Mortgages When I Shop At Costco Or BJ’s?
By June 18, 2013
Warehouse stores sell more than just huge sacks of flour, vats of ketchup, and enough toilet paper to clean an army. You can also use a membership at places like Costco or BJ’s to buy everything from auto insurance to credit cards to home mortgages. But should you? [More]
Flannel-Wearing Teen Claims TSA Told Her “You’re Only 15, Cover Yourself”
By June 18, 2013
While I’m not totally down with what the kids are wearing these days, I do remember quite well being asked if I honestly thought I was “going out of the house dressed like that.” And from the photo one dad has posted of what his daughter was wearing when she says a Transportation Security Administration agent humiliated her and told her “You’re only 15, cover yourself,” a flannel shirt and stretch pants would likely never have elicited that parental reaction. [More]
Are You Okay With Comcast Sharing Your Home Wi-Fi With Everyone?
By June 18, 2013
As a child, how were you at sharing your toys with other kids, friends and strangers alike? If you rent Xfinity equipment from Comcast, you’re going to have to share your toys–and by “toys” we mean “wireless router”–with everyone in Kabletown. Understandably, some people do not like this idea. [More]
Losing Your House To Foreclosure Doesn’t Necessarily Mean You No Longer Owe Money To The Bank
By June 18, 2013
There’s a commonly held notion that losing one’s home to foreclosure is the final act in a sad drama, that the homeowner has hit bottom and has nowhere to go but up. But thousands of foreclosed-upon homeowners are finding out, years after turning their keys over to the bank, that they may still be on the hook — sometimes for hundreds of thousands of dollars. [More]
Time To Face The Mochafrappuchocalatte Music: Starbucks To Post Calorie Counts
By June 18, 2013
Like avoiding eye contact with that vague acquaintance from work — the one you have absolutely nothing to say to — who ends up in your train car on the way home, it’s inevitable. You’re going to probably end up looking at Starbucks’ new calorie count postings because they’re there, you know they’re there, and it’s better to just get it over with. Say hello to the future. [More]
