All How To

Can I Use A Chargeback On A No-Show Electrician?
Penelope and her husband hired a licensed electrician/handyman she had worked with before to replace the breaker in her house. Miscommunication and what looks like laziness on the electrician's part meant that he missed several scheduled appointments-stopping by but not calling, then just not showing up at all. Now he's charged their credit card, but is ducking their calls and won't come out without being paid for another service visit. So Penelope and Mr. Penelope did what any sensible person would do: installed the breaker themselves, and requested a chargeback. More »

Does 'No Outside Food' Discriminate Against People With Food Allergies?
Domenica is gluten intolerant, and there are a number of other foods she can't eat as well. During a recent visit to the movies, she was caught bringing in outside food and argued with the manager. There isn't anything available at the concession stand that she can eat without becoming ill. Sure, a private business can set their own rules. But is it discriminatory? In spite of what theater owners might tell you, buying snacks at the cinema isn't mandatory, and no one's going to go hungry after a few hours. More »

How Hard Should I Try To Give Back Someone Else's Tablet?
Last week, Brian received a package from the ASUS repair center. It was a freshly repaired tablet, the same model that he owns. Except he hadn't sent his in for repair lately. Someone else's address appeared on the return merchandise authorization (RMA) form inside the box, but the label on the outside had Brian's information. He wonders: how much time and money should he invest in getting this package home when Asus doesn't particularly seem to care? More »

The Supermarket Tricks You Need To Avoid To Save While Shopping
You might have a good set of tactics while shopping at your local supermarket. But are you savvy to the subtle ways food stores (and other retailers) get you to buy more? There might be a few tricks you've fallen prey to in the past. More »

Making An Early Retirement Work
Some people are so obsessed with their work that they can never envision chucking everything to begin a life of leisure, while others have spent most of their work lives counting the days until they no longer have to clock in. If you opt to jump the gun and call it a career before you hit your golden years, you're taking a calculated risk, hoping to make your savings stretch out longer rather than spending more time to build it up before you take the plunge. More »

Determining The Value Of Your Free Time
Unless you're a salaried employee or business owner who's expected to work excessively for the good of the company, the more hours you work usually determines how much you'll make. The prospect of working overtime or taking on a side job can be compelling, helping you save by having less time to go out and spend the money you're piling up. More »

T-Mobile Customer Demands Refund For Two Years Of Too-Slow Data... And Gets It
When Sam was having problems with his T-Mobile smartphone, he did what he thought he was supposed to do: call up support. The agent on the phone couldn't restore his phone's Internet connectivity, but they did try to upsell him on some new services. He'd rather have the services he was already paying for working, thanks. When he took the phone to a retail store for help, he learned the real cause of his problems: he'd been wandering around for two years with an old 2G SIM in his 4G phone. He thought that he should have the extra cost of a 4G data plan refunded to him, and T-Mobile acquiesced... but only after he launched an executive e-mail carpet bomb. More »

EECB To Amazon's Jeff Bezos Results In A Very Happy Ending
The first step in resolving a customer service issue isn't to email the CEO of a company, but if nothing else works, why not? Lia used Consumerist's Executive Email Carpet Bomb listings to get in touch with Jeff Bezos of Amazon and lo and behold, success! More »

Save Money By Taking Choice Out Of The Equation
If you struggle to put money away, it helps to eliminate personal choice by taking money out of your hands before you allow yourself to spend it. Getting saving to seem like something you have no control over makes it easier to set the funds aside and adapt your spending habits accordingly. More »

How To Make A Lowball Offer With A Straight Face
In a tortured housing market filled with sellers desperate to unload their homes, today's lowball offers are next month's listing prices. If you're in the market for a house, you have nothing to lose by disregarding the sticker price and putting in a comically low bid for the property. Doing so as a way to start negotiations is probably the best way to see just how low the owner is willing to go. More »

The Supermarket Tricks You Need To Avoid To Save While Shopping
You might have a good set of tactics while shopping at your local supermarket. But are you savvy to the subtle ways food stores (and other retailers) get you to buy more? There might be a few tricks you've fallen prey to in the past. More »

An Example Of When Buying A Generic Drug Can Save You 72%
Yeah, buying generics drugs instead of their snazzy brand name versions could stifle an allergy, calm a nasty cough or banish that throb on the cheap. But at more than half the price? More »

A Rebuttal To Important News Regarding How Much Money Is In Scrooge McDuck's Vault
Here at Consumerist, we don't take vaults filled with riches lightly. So when a recent story claimed to have finally calculated how much money it would take to fill Scrooge McDuck's swimmable vault of gold, our childhood selves were all atwitter. But then, we started talking about it amongst ourselves. More »

How Being Too Competent Can Get You Fired
Being the weakest performer in the company or performing a service that's utterly dispensable is dangerous to your continued employment, especially in a weak job market. But working hard and being good at what you do is potentially dangerous as well, especially if your bosses are insecure, paranoid, and just not a good as you are. To people who think this way, having a bright future within the company makes you a threat. Your future endangers theirs. More »