Consumerist
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success stories
Executive Email Carpet Bomb Pounds DirecTV Into Submission
Reader Jesse was having an awful time explaining a simple problem to DirecTV. Thankfully, the EECB (Executive Email Carpet Bomb) was just the thing. More » -
how to
Prod Unemployment Office To Action With Your Local State Rep
Aaron has gotten a busy signal from the Pennsylvania unemployment office call center for a month. He started filing his claim online, which was fine, until he started getting automated emails saying there were problems with the online system, and instructed him to call the toll-free call center number. That's right, the one that's a constant busy signal. So, he got in touch with his local state representative, and got results! More » -
jawbone
Aliph Quickly Replaces Melted Jawbone
Marc is happy to report that Aliph really came through for him after he complained about Jawbone smoking and melting after he plugged it into his computer: More » -
eecb
EECB / BBB Complaint Solves $500 Dispute With TMobile
Bill says that an EECB (executive email carpet bomb) follow up to a BBB complaint solved his $500 billing dispute with TMobile, and he couldn't be happier. More » -
apple
Error-Ridden MacBook Gets Free Replacement After Nice Letter To Steve Jobs
After umpteen attempts to have his multiple MacBook Pro problems fixed, only to be told each time the laptop was working perfectly fine, Jordan wrote a polite email to Steve Jobs. He affirmed his Apple loyalty, laid out what happened to him, and asked for help. A couple of emails later and he was able to walk into an Apple store and swap his jalopy for one of the brand new MacBook Pros that just came out. You might analyze how the letter was written for clues to his success but really what it came down to was that he had gone in for repairs of the same problem more than three times, qualifying him for a refund or replacement under what is known as "lemon law," and he got his issue under the nose of the guy at the top. Or at least the assistant who opens his email. Same difference. Jordan's success story, inside... More » -
accolades
Sam's Club Lets You Swap Out RedRinged Xbox Hassle-Free
Virg's Xbox360 got the dread Red Ring of Death. He bought it in Feb '07, and it started failing this Nov '08. He figured it would be months before he would get it back and expected to have to pay somewhere. Much to his surprise, Sam's Club let him swap it out for a new one for free. More » -
best buy
EECB Convinces Best Buy To Pay For Damage To Car
Here's a good example of how to write an effective Executive Email Carpet Bomb, or EECB, to break through the "please hold" purgatory of the company's phone system. Alicia's car's bumper was scratched by a Best Buy employee, and calling consumer relations as directed proved fruitless. Now she's got a check in her hands from Best Buy to pay for the repairs.
We have quite a few stories now about Best Buy responding favorably to EECBs, which goes to show that if you can find a way to reach the company's executives—and you write a good EECB—your odds of having your problem favorably resolved improves considerably. More »
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success stories
Reader Talks Citibank Down To A Lower Interest Rate On Her Credit Card
Nicole was hit with a surprise 6 point interest rate increase on her Citicard, so she fought back. Her story is a good reminder that you should look at all of your options and be prepared to argue on your behalf, even if you're not in a position where you can just pay off the entire balance and walk away. More » -
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enterprise
Enterprise EECB Saves Man From Unjustly Paying $560 For Bumper Scratch
Enterprise Car Rental charged Mike $560 for a scratch on the bumper he felt was unfair, but after he followed The Consumerist's instructions on sending an Executive Email Carpet Bomb (EECB), all that changed. "Long story short," he writes, "Within ONE DAY, that email was forward with highlights , such as URGENT -PLEASE RESOLVE, and ultimately reached the northeast manager, who called me and apologized profusely for their poor handling of the situation, and WAIVED ALL charges ($560 for repairs). done..all wiped... GONE!!! THANK you for publishing that thread.. it absolutely positively works!!!"
So, if the low-level peons are ripping you off, try appealing to the higher authorities, en-masse, via EECB.
(Photo: Alexis Deadly) -
fedex
FedEx Rep Steps Up, Makes Buying Car 1000% Easier
Jeff has a big sweaty hug to give FedEx after their customer service rep Leslie personaly intervened and saved his car-buying transaction from getting 1000% harder. Read his happy tale, and another addition to the "ABOVE AND BEYOND" files, inside... More » -
att
Threatening To Cancel Saves Man $65.52 On AT&T Phone Bill
Here's how with a little patience, persistence and pricematching, reader Scott is saving $65.52 on his phone and internet service with AT&T: More » -
circuit city
Man Finally Gets His $130 Back From Circuit City
In an update and conclusion, reader Sean let us know he finally got satisfaction regarding his story that we posted, "Circuit City Credits Wrong Card For $130 Return, Sends You Away With Nothing." More » -
lenovo
Opposite Of EECB Gets Delayed Lenovo Laptop Order Expedited, Plus $5000 Loaner
When the Lenovo laptop Rick ordered for his college-bound daughter was super-duper delayed in arriving and he hadn't heard anything from the company, he did the opposite of an EECB (executive email carpet bomb). Instead of blasting his complaint to every single executive he could find, he wrote a well-crafted letter laser-targeted at a single individual, the SVP of operations. The result? An email from the Chief of Staff in the CEO's office. His order was expedited, and, in the meantime, they got a $5000 "Reserve Edition" leather-wrapped laptop as a loaner. Here's his letter that got him the fix: More » -
casio
Casio Stops Claiming Fingerprint Found Inside New Camera, Repairs Fully
Update on "Casio Voids Warranty, Claims There's A Fingerprint Inside New Camera": After Sam's story went live on Consumerist and he got escalated at Casio, they repaired his camera fully under warranty, acknowledged their mistake, and gave him a free 8 Gig Class III SD card. Sam writes, "Once the right people found out things moved around quickly."
PREVIOUSLY: Casio Voids Warranty, Claims There's A Fingerprint Inside New Camera
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verizon
When 9 Phone Calls Can't Get Your FiOS Installed, Email The CEO
Reader Bill was getting the run around from Verizon— but he wasn't even a customer yet! His dramatic ordeal started on October 9th, and by the 16th he'd taken a full day off of work, called Verizon nine times and still he was without FiOS. More » -
success stories
Letter To Bank of America CEO Results In Waived Overdraft Fees, Joy
Luisa accidentally overdrafted her checking account with Bank of America, but found that no matter how much money she put in — it was being eaten up by the fee monster that lurks at the bottom of her account. It has big yellow teeth and glowing eyes and only the CEO can control it... Rrraaawwwrrrr........ More » -
comcast
Threatening To Cancel Comcast Saves Man $238.92 Per Year
David used the classic Threaten To Cancel method to save big time on his cable bill, $238.92 per year. Better yet, he did it in the face of Comcast trying to raise his bill. Granted, it was by less than a dollar. But why pay more if you don't have to? Here's how he did it. More » -
opportunities credit union
EECB Gets Credit Union To Pay Up $125
Rick has been trying for months to get his his credit union, Opportunities Credit Union of Vermont, to pay up for a $125 home inspection, and now, a week after sending his EECB, he prevailed. As we wrote last week, his credit union was supposed to pay for a home inspection but said they didn't have to because the bill was never sent. However, the home inspector uses an electronic billing system and it showed that the credit union rep had in fact read the sent bill. Emails and phone calls between Rick and his credit union rep led to a stalemate. Then Jim sent off an executive email carpet bomb and got the following back from the credit union president: More »
success stories
New York, 7:44 AM
Fri Jan 9
26 posts in the last 24 hours
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