Rebecca got one of those calls from her mother that everybody dreads. "Is there anything you think you should tell me?" her mother wanted to know. Rebecca's mom got a piece of junk mail with Rebecca's first name and her boyfriend's last name and was under the impression Rebecca had snuck off for a Vegas wedding. She hadn't. After Rebecca calmed her mother down, she tried to figure out how Rite-Aid, where both had worked for a time, had merged her name and her boyfriend's. When Rite-Aid gave her the run around, we advised Rebecca to try an EECB to get some answers. Read her email, inside.

To The Board of Directors:

Good Morning. I am sure you can help me with a little problem that I am having with your company.

Last Friday, my mother received a piece of mail from your company's current promotion regarding the "gas giveaway" if I switched my prescriptions to you. Annoying as any other piece of junk mail is, this one was particularly disturbing. It was addressed as:

Rebecca J*****
[redacted]
[redacted] CT

My mother called me where I live, in Vermont, and told me of the mail that I had gotten. It turns out, my last name isn't J*******, it's F*******. My boyfriend's last name is J*****, though. When she called me, she was extremely agitated and excited (and not in a good way), over the fact that I had gotten married behind their backs. My mother had just gotten out of the hospital with congestive heart failure and a massive infection, and the last thing that she needed was to be excited.

I spoke with one of your customer service representatives on Monday, and she assured me that I would get a call with someone from "corporate" yesterday. I waited all day without a call. She told me that the marketing comes from the pharmacy division. My boyfriend hasn't had a prescription filled at a Rite-Aid in two and a half years, the time we've been together.

We both worked together at Rite-Aid, but never once marked myself as being "connected" to him, except by address.

I cannot figure out how my first name got linked with my boyfriend's last name. Simply what I am asking for help with is to find out where this came from.

If you could help me, it would be greatly appreciated. I simply want to know where this name came from, so I can get it removed, and make sure it doesn't happen again.

And about the piece of mail? If your pharmacy can't even get my name right, and is linking me to other people I'm not even related to (yet), how can I trust them to get my prescriptions right? More than likely, I will never do anything personally identifiable with Rite-Aid again. I was once a loyal shopper, but if this problem cannot be solved, I may never shop there again.

Thank you for your time, and for reading my email.

Looking forward to your response,

Rebecca

It's one thing if a customer loyalty program gets confused about your name. Irritating, but unlikely to actually hurt you. It's another thing completely if the pharmacy decides you'd be better off married and starts sending junk mail to your mother's house in another state. If the pharmacy makes such an appalling, counter-intuitive mistake about what name to use on annoying junk mail, how badly are they going to screw up your prescription? If you're having trouble with Rite-Aid, the link with tips for sleuthing corporate contact information is here.

(photo: Clean Wal-Mart)

A year ago I bought two suits after graduating college. That being known, after 4 years of college-style binge drinking and fast food I had plumped up a bit. Upon purchasing the suits from Men's Wearhouse I was told free alterations for life. One year later and 35 less pounds (which isn't a lot, but a decent chunk) Men's Wearhouse wants to charge me $50 per pant alteration because I lost "too much weight" and they will have to "cut" the pants, whatever the hell that means, and "cutting" is not included in free alterations. On top of it all, they would need more than a week to do the alterations. You would think I went from morbidly obese to extremely thin as big of a deal they were making it. Nevertheless, I took my pants and left. Forget that.

I'll definitely never shop at Men's Wearhouse, or even return for alterations. Especially the location in Topeka, Kans, who initially exploited my lack of suit knowledge to tack on many unnecessary additions to my purchase with guilt trips and more ("Anybody interviewing for a position HAS to have...[product]") and the location in Addison, Texas for telling me I've lost too much weight over the past year.

Travis

The Men's Wearhouse website has this to say about their free alterations program:

We re-alter any previously altered seam free of charge. Because you never know when you're going to gain or lose a few pounds.

So what's the definition of a few pounds? If you brought the pants in during the weight loss, say every week or so for several months, would it be covered? Anyone know?

And Travis, there's no shame in learning how to wield a needle and thread. Doing your own repairs and minor alterations could save you a lot of money, and some chicks dig a guy who's good with his hands!

(photo:stirwise)

Today I read yet another despicable story about the ineptitude of U-Haul and its local representatives. I had a similar experience during my last move.

Like many others, I chose to use a rented truck and perform the move myself. I made an online reservation about 3 weeks in advance, and surprisingly was scheduled for a truck pickup at a store more than 20 miles away (even though there are at least 3 U-Haul reservation centers within 5 miles of my old home). This was annoying right off the bat since I was obviously going to be paying for this imposed mileage. I accepted the possibility that these other centers had no trucks available and decided to move forward.

On the day of the pickup, I arrived at the store with a printout of my reservation and stood in line at the counter. Upon being called forward and presenting my reservation, I was bluntly told that no trucks were available, reservation or no. I made it clear that this was unacceptable, but the "manager" to whom I was speaking simply waved me away and began helping the next customer.

I stepped out into the parking lot and called U-Haul corporate to get this resolved. I spoke to a very helpful woman (whose name I unfortunately can't recall) and explained the situation. She said that she would call the store and get me a truck.

About five minutes later, I received a call back and told that there was a truck available for me now. I walked back in and immediately received a stare of disdain from the manager with whom I dealt previously. It was obvious that he wasn't too happy with the situation, but at this point I really couldn't care less!

He slid the paperwork across the counter for me to complete, and began telling me how much of an inconvenience I was causing. "Corporate called me and is making me give you a one-way truck," he said. My reservation was local; that is, picking up and returning to the same location. Apparently, he had a separate inventory of trucks intended for renters who pickup up in one location and return to another, and the corporate response to my complaint was to require him to rent me one of those trucks for my local use. What's the big deal?

So, fast-forward to the day after my move is completed. I drove the truck to the rental center, pulled into the parking lot, and stepped out. I walked into the office, but no employees were inside. Walking back out, I saw — sadly — the same manager from before, standing outside. I call over to him that I am returning a truck, and his response is, "Just leave the keys in the drop box and leave the truck where it is." Sounds good to me; I drop off the keys wrapped in a copy of my contract, and I head home.

Three days later, I'm at work. During my lunch break, I decide to check my home voicemail and am surprised to hear an angry message from U-Haul: "This is Alexandria U-Haul Rentals. Your rental truck was due three days ago and you haven't returned it. If you don't return our truck today I will call the police." *click*

Imagine my surprise.

I immediately start by calling the rental center and explaining exactly what happened. The gentleman on the other end explains that the manager (humph) personally walked the entire lot and my truck was not there. I explain that the manager personally saw me there on the day of my return and instructed me to place the keys in the dropbox. I am told that there is nothing he can do, and he hangs up.

I then placed a call to U-Haul corporate again, and get escalated to corporate security. I explain the situation again, and the agent I'm working with agrees to call and speak to the store, and get back to me. Remarkably, I receive a call from him about 20 minutes later... but nothing has been resolved. I tell the agent that although I didn't know the name of the manager I saw that day, I could describe him. "6 feet tall, brownish-blond hair, shoulder-length. Very slight build, and a smoker." The response: "Huh. Sounds like Tom, the assistant manager. Let me call the store again, and I'll get back to you."

Less than 10 minutes later, the agent calls back again. "I spoke with Tom. He walked the lot again and found your truck. Sorry for the inconvenience."

What a surprise. Suffice it to say that U-Haul won't be getting any of my business in the future.

It's a good day when reader complaints can be resolved without police involvement. U-Haul recently settled a class action suit over their broken reservation system, so honoring his original reservation saved them $50. Unfortunately, the manager's malice or incompetence cost them more in the long run. If you get stuck with a U-Haul problem and the normal channels aren't working, don't forget CEO Joe Shoen gave out his number on Inside Edition, and says he wants to help.

(photo:elisharene)

At a local trip to the CVS by Rancho Bernardo High School I was appalled to discover the low regard for customer service. When you walk in there is a line where they segregate teens from adults. They allow the adults to just walk in while teenagers have to wait in a long line where only two can go in at a time. The whole time this lady and a security guard stand there while they sneer at teens. When asked about the policy and they commented that it was to prevent shoplifting and that it was legal because it wasn't excluding customers it was just dividing them by age. To me it seems to be blatant ageism, which I'm appalled at. To think that you can be discriminated against by a factor you can not control angers me deeply. Bad customer service doesn't prevent shoplifting. If anything it encourages it. It's a horrible policy on their part seeing how about 50% of their customers are students. Not just that it's an unfair bias to place on high school students, as if they are the only ones who shoplift. In addition it isn't even an effective means to prevent shoplifting, monitors at door would be a more effective option that doesn't infringe upon customer service. It's unfair for teenagers to be treated as second class citizens. When a student asked an adult, who was more than willing, if she would mind purchasing an item for him the lady at the door said to "please not disturb the customers". As if discriminating against your customers isn't disturbing the customers. The local CVS has lost my business.

It's not completely unheard of for stores to restrict the after school crowd, but it's unreasonable to think that only minors shoplift. Clearly none of these teens are Consumerist readers, or they'd already be outside the store with signs proclaiming "CVS Hates Teens!" Would you shop at this store, or are you grateful for CVS keeping the teen scourge at bay? Let us know, in the comments.

(photo:foundphotoslj)

Emmanuel wrote in to share with us an appalling exchange he had with a CSR for Sunwave Communications, the hosting company for his website. After days of no visible progress on an open support ticket, he asked online support for more information. The first time he admitted to not knowing something, he was met with sarcasm. In a fairly short chat session the CSR became increasingly belligerent, until a stunned Emmanuel commented he was at a loss for words. The CSR's reply? “You are at a loss for knowledge.” Emmanuel is no longer a customer. Read their chat, inside.

info: Please wait for a site operator to respond.
info: You are now chatting with 'Online Support'
Online Support: Hello :) How can I help you?
Emanuel: Hi, any status on my PHP4 to PHP5 upgrade on [redacted].
Online Support: i'm not the one doing that job, so i can't give you any information right now
Online Support: i know that it's underway
Emanuel: can you give me anything?
Online Support: but that's all i know
Emanuel: its been about 4 days now
Online Support: did you ever check whether your server already had php5?
Online Support: about half of them do
Emanuel: yes
Emanuel: its running php 4.4.7
Online Support: but did you look to see if php5 is also on it
Emanuel: no i didnt
Emanuel: not even quite sure how i would test that
Emanuel: i don't have a shell
Online Support: umm
Emanuel: php5 at the top of the script?
Online Support: it's always terrifying to me that people who have no idea what they are doing are ready to install and run scripts
Emanuel: heh
Online Support: there is NOTHING that you can do with a shell that can't be done without a shell
Online Support: nothing
Emanuel: alrighty, well enough sarcasm
Online Support: your websites all have cgi ability
Online Support: that means you can run any command
Online Support: this is not sarcasm
Emanuel: yeah i could install a php shell and do all kinds of nasty things
Online Support: this is education :)
Emanuel: but why when i pay you for hosting
Emanuel: i dont really need to be educated
Emanuel: i see php4 in the headers
Emanuel: i assume php4 is on the server
Online Support: yes, you really do
Emanuel: wow
Emanuel: you have to be kidding me?
Online Support: the webserver has mod_php 4.x
Emanuel: this is how you treat customers with valid complaints?
Emanuel: er requests
Online Support: it's not a valid request if you haven't checked yet whether the software you want is already on the server
Emanuel: look
Emanuel: im at a loss for words
Emanuel: i see php4 in the installation thats what i assume it has
Online Support: you are at a loss for knowledge
Emanuel: why would i think otherwise when you've told me twice now that "someone is on the job"
Emanuel: ok
Emanuel: ill take my business elsewhere

Well, at least we can be reasonably sure Online Support isn't manned by a bot. It takes a real live human to be so snarky. Even if the CSR thought the question was stupid, behaving like a troll only makes things worse. Tech support jobs aren't easy, but being a jerk only makes life difficult for everyone.

About two weeks ago I called around my neighborhood in Brooklyn looking for new tires. I called Sears Auto, and since they had the lowest price on what they called a "good, reliable" tire, I drove to the store in Elmhurst, Queens, nervously, with a bum tire.

After waiting to speak with a customer representative, I told him that someone had put a screw in the sidewall of my tire, that I knew it was unstable to drive on, and that I wanted to buy four new tires. I told the rep what price I was looking to spend, but I was sad to see on his computer screen I was pretty much getting the poorest quality but cheapest tires in the place. After walking around a bit, I noticed that there were all sorts of sales going on, and after I asked if it was possible to get a better set for the same price, he looked, and I could.

Two hours later I received a call that they couldn't get one of the bolts off of my tire. Again, after some discussion, I told them that I would rather just have the one dangerous tire replaced, and that I would have another dealer take off the "renegade bolt-" Sears Auto didn't want to be responsible, which I guess I can understand. Although I never got a call to let me know if that one tire was changed, I wandered back to the shop after an hour and saw my car was ready. However, after I paid $99 for a new tire, I noticed, in the pouring rain, that it was much bigger than my other tires. I heard the mechanics in the garage saying something to the extent of "just drive off," and pointing at me. When I saw a nearby mechanic, I grabbed him in the rain, and he agreed that they had installed the wrong size tire.

Although they never apologized, they said that they would "take care of the problem," and thirty minutes later, when I was in the Sears Auto waiting area, the customer rep came to me and told me that they didn't have my size in stock (what a surprise), but they could put a different speed-rated tire than the ones I had already on the car. When I told him that the thought of different-rated tires on my car made me uncomfortable, he told me that he did have a Bridgestone, but that now I would have to pay $115. I told him that they should eat the $16 for putting the wrong tire on my car, and I begrudgingly told him to put the Bridgestone on.

When they were finished, the rep asked for my credit card to bill me an additional $40- bringing the total to $139. Turns out the $115 he quoted me didn't include service. What made my jaw drop was that when I protested the higher price, rather than apologize or bargain with me or do anything to remedy the situation, the manager said, "If he doesn't want to pay it, put the old (dangerous) tire back on." All I said was that I thought I was being taken advantage of. There was literally no discussion between anyone at Sears and I. They put my old, broken tire back on, and they handed my keys back to me with an attitude.

I wouldn't believe it if it didn't happen to me. Just to give your readers a head up that big auto chains can seriously mess up. I've read putting the wrong size tire on a car is a serious violation.

Best,

R

First order of business, R, is to make sure you didn't get charged at all by Sears Auto. You left with your original damaged tire, so no money for them. Second order of business is to learn how to change a tire to the spare. WikiHow has an easy to read article here. It'll suck to change a tire in the rain, but less than it sucks to waste three hours of your life having Sears Auto screw around and screw up.

(photo: madmolecule)

Dear Bank of America:

I have been a credit card customer with you for six years but today closed my account as a result of the rudeness of your customer service people.

I received an email last night telling me that the fraud department wanted to confirm some recent charges on my account. The email said I could either use your Web site to confirm the charges or I could call you. I chose the online option, answered the fraud prevention questions, and figured that was that. However, this morning, I received a call asking me to verify the same questions at 8:30 a.m. — which woke me up.

I don't appreciate being woken up before 9:00 in the morning on a weekend, especially when I had already handled the matter online last night after you offered me the choice of doing so.

I called your company to complain about this and spoke with a woman who I can only characterize as belligerent. When I told her that I don't want to be called before 9 a.m., she told me that there's no way to prevent that and they might call even earlier in the future. She said that you have offices all over the country and they can't account for time zones. I pointed out that this makes no sense, since I'm on the east coast — if they're not in my time zone, then they're in an earlier one. Furthermore, that's just ridiculous; are you waking up customers on the west coast at 6 a.m. then? I highly doubt it, so her answer makes no sense.

I then said to her, "Like many people, I work all week and I use the weekends to sleep in." Her reply was: "Well, I have to be at work at 7 in the morning, ma'am." I don't know how that's in the least bit relevant — should I expect Bank of America may call me at 7 a.m. then too? When I asked her this, she told me she would transfer me and then simply hung up on me.

I have just closed my account as a result of this — both the waking me up before 9 a.m. on a Saturday and the rudeness of your employee. There are plenty of other companies who value my business enough not to be gratuitously rude.

Sincerely,
Alison

8:30 in the morning isn't standard business hours, so there's no reason to call you that early. And Alison raises a good point, BOA isn't calling their Cali customers at 6:00 AM, so clearly there's a method for controlling what time calls are made. If the CSR assigned to her call took a few minutes to work with Alison, BOA would still be able to charge Alison senseless overdraft fees for another few months. Instead, her early morning cranky pants routine lost the company a customer. You'd think her own displeasure at being up so early on the weekend would make her empathize more with Alison.

(photo:metavariable)

Hi Consumerist,

I just noticed The 10 Most Annoying Airline Fees and I had to tell you about Northwest Coach Choice Seats. You think United Economy Plus is bad? I personally am ok with it. You pay some extra money and they give you some extra legroom. It's kind of like how fare classes have always worked. But check this out: Northwest has such a program and it's a genius idea: you pay extra money, and they give you NOTHING THAT YOU DIDN'T REALLY ALREADY HAVE.

That's right! They'll sell you seat assignments (mine were $30 each, $60 for the pair) for which no extra investment has been made! No more legroom! No extra width! No better service! Hell, they're not even at the front of the cabin! (Mine were row 28).

The trick is, they tell you the program is "designed to provide added choice and comfort!" That's a laugh. And then the other trick is that by the time you discover that "added comfort" is a meaningless phrase and they are not exchanging anything in return for your fee, they tell you that whatever you paid is non-refundable.

Ok, fool me once. Correspondence with NWA Customer Care below.

Chris

While Chris bears some responsibility for assuming he knew what he was buying instead of making sure, it looks like "Coach Choice" is NWA's way of pocketing an additional fare in exchange for nothing. In the airline's words,

I am truly sorry that you found these seats to be the same as the other seats, however, these domestic Coach Choice seats are primarily a combination of exit row and aisle seats and are preferred by most of our customers not necessarily meaning that they have more leg room.

Chris went back and forth with the airline for a while, attempting to get his money back. Here's another excerpt from near the end of the exchange:

I am very sorry you did not understand what you were purchasing at the time you agreed to these terms.

That said, we must again decline your request for refund of the purchased seats. The choice and comfort that most of our customers (that were surveyed) deem as important is aisle seats and exit rows. I am truly sorry to disappoint you, as I understand this was not the answer you were expecting.

For the record, customer response for Coach Choice seats at Northwest has been strong and has exceeded our expectations. It is clear that many customers value this choice, especially late booking business travelers. As a result of customer feedback, we introduced many enhancements in 2007.
We are looking at other modifications as well and appreciate your input. Keep in mind, only about 5% of domestic coach seat assignments are saved for Coach Choice; however, this program is an important revenue stream for our company and we are glad that you allowed us the opportunity to further explain our position.

As a gesture of apology for your disappointment, I have added 5000 WorldPerks bonus miles to your account. Please allow three business days for the miles to appear as deposited.

So NWA thinks what the consumer really wants in the opportunity to pay an additional fee for an aisle or exit row seat, though a certain number of people have already been assigned an aisle or exit row seat for free. Is the "choice and comfort" worth your cash? Leave your thoughts in the comments.

(photo:JohnKit)

Doris wanted to start 2008 off on the right foot, so she made the resolution to lose weight. She ordered a free trail of Wu Yi Tea, "Hollywood's Hottest Diet", and decided well before her two weeks were up to cancel her order and stick to old fashioned eating right and exercise. That was in January. Four months later, Wu-Yi's parent company Living Lean in Las Vegas is giving Doris the run around about canceling her order. Oddly, Wu Yi has this to say about fad diets on their website, "all the diet formulas have been, at best, disappointing, at worst, outright frauds." Pot, this is kettle. You're black. Hear more from Doris, inside.

Hi Editors,

As part of my new year’s resolution I made a pledge to lose weight like 90% of Americans do. On January 18, I ordered the Wu –Yi teas to help with my weight loss program. I was not relying on it being my salvation or miracle diet but I just wanted to try the tea. They offered a free trial on the website and was only suppose to be charged for the shipping and handling fee of $6.95. I DID read the fine print. I had 2 weeks to cancel and if not then I would be charged for subsequent monthly shipments. Well definitely within 2 weeks I canceled! Since I am not someone who balances my checkbook at the end of every month. I just noticed additional charges from Living Lean in Las Vegas for 19.95. Originally, I thought it was fraud and it is! I called the company and they are a cover for WuYI Teas. The customer service person answers the phone and refuses to give the name of the company she works for, she just keeps asking for how she can help and what service that I was calling about. When I asked for a refund (after being on the phone with her for 15 minutes) she pretends that we have a bad connection and that she can’t hear me. Disconnected. It took 4 more phone calls to get to a supervisor who needed to research my account, kept me on the phone for 20 minutes to say that she will refund me within 3-5 business days.

There are many reported cases of scam under Living Lean in Las Vegas and Wu Yi Tea or their other name Easyweightlosstea.com. I really want to bring light the consumerist readers beware of this scam! I have been fighting these charges since February..and it is now end of May. There is nothing free in life. These people cost me time and aggravation.

Doris, it's chargeback time. You've tried working with Wu Yi, it's time to let your credit card company work for you.

Diet programs, beauty regimens, and herbal supplements aren't regulated industries, so researching the company before handing over your credit card information is essential. Searching for "Wu Yi" and "scam" yields enough scary results to make you think twice about the product.

Reader Eric was having some problems with his Samsung TV, so when he found Samsung had a firmware update for his LCD TV he did what any reasonable person might and applied the update. Bad move, Eric! Samsung is claiming that the update, which he got off their website, voided the warranty on his TV. Now they won't fix it. Read his story, inside.

I have been a long time reader of consumerist and I sadly enough need help with a product that I own. I have a Samsung LN-T4061F LCD TV, I have been trying to hook up my laptop to the TV through the HDMI port. I was able to get a picture but unable to get a sound from the TV.

Seeing this problem I went to my Olivia TV and tried hooking my laptop through the HDMI port. The laptop worked on the HDMI port on the Olivia TV so I figured something was wrong with the Samsung TV. I went to Samsung's website and I noticed that they had a updated firmware available, so I downloaded the update and the instructions. I have flashed the firmware on my Olivia TV and other electronic devices so I figured it wouldn't be a bad thing to do. I followed the instructions, let the TV do its thing, and when it came back up the picture was messed up.

At this point I called Samsung's tech support and told them what happened and why I was flashing the firmware. After placing me hold a couple of times, they came back and told me that because I flashed the TV for a reason that is not approved by Samsung, they considered this physical damage thus voiding the warranty. I asked to speak to a manager and they told me the same story and that because I did this, there was nothing that they could do to help me other than to arrange a service call at my expense.

Like I said earlier, I have flashed many devices, and I have done done a bad firmware update before and know to follow the instructions step by step. The firmware update did complete successfully and I did not see anything that specifically said what the firmware fixed.

I will try calling the executive support number I found on the site when they are open. But does anyone have any advice on what I can do to get my TV fixed? I don't think a company should offer firmware updates on their website if they don't intend to have customers running these updates.

Please Help!

A quick perusal of Samsung's website didn't seem to have much in the way of giant warning signs informing you that installing the update will void your warranty. In fact, the little disclaimer at the top of the page informing you that Samsung isn't liable if you install the wrong software or install it incorrectly seems to indicate that if you do it right, your warranty remains intact. Try calling Samsung Customer Care at 1-800-747-5618, and if that doesn't work it's time for the dreaded Executive Email Carpet Bomb.

Now that the airline with the fuzzy animals on their planes has also declared bankruptcy, you might be in the same position as reader Scott. Scott had Frontier cancel his flight and send him an email with a link to get a refund. While it's nice that Frontier made the refund option easy, a refund doesn't get Scott any closer to his destination, and a second ticket would cost Scott a bit more than he initially paid. Thanks to a little bit of research and 35 minutes on the phone, Scott was able to get Frontier to rebook him on a different airline. Find out how, inside.

I thought that you guys might be interested in this. In April, we booked a flight to Missoula, MT for June on Frontier Airlines. Now, we get this e-mail telling us that the service from Denver to Missoula has been canceled. Note, the e-mail offers a weblink where you can get a refund.

Here's the problem. First, most travelers (including myself) don't want a refund for a flight ticket, they want to get to their destination. Second, I checked the "Contract of Carriage" (http://www.frontierairlines.com/frontier/pdf/Contract_of_Carriage.pdf) which includes Rule 240 that lists the policy for flights that have been discontinued. The hierarchy of options for a traveler is: 1) get another flight on Frontier, 2) get a similar flight on another airline or 3) get a refund.

Seems like Frontier was trying to avoid having to rebook thousands of passengers on other airlines by simply providing a refund. For most goods and services refunds are fine, but airline tickets rise in price as the travel date gets closer. I searched for comparable flights and found that the cheapest ticket I could get was 75% more than what I paid in April.

Anyway, the e-mail also indicated that "should I need to contact customer service" I could call the 800 number. There was NO mention of possible rebooking. Of course I called the number, held for about 18 minutes then actually talked to a person! After another 35 minutes I was rebooked on United. No complaints there. However, I think that most people will simply click the e-mail, get a refund and be forced to pay exorbitant fees for late fares. I think this is pretty tricky by Frontier. They should have at least mentioned the fact that the flights could be rebooked.

Nice one, Scott. The airline provided the solution most advantageous to them and least helpful to you and you got what you wanted by being informed, proactive, and polite. And it just took half an hour! Having problems with any of the many failing airlines? If Scott's approach doesn't work for you, you can check out some different tactics here.

(photo: ATIS547)

Hello all at Consumerist! I have been reading your blog daily for the last couple of years now. I love how informative this website has been to all walks of consumerists. I have never felt compelled to write to you until now:

I have been banking with Citi Bank since 2005. I know that is not very long to be with a financial center. My Citi Bank Debit/MasterCard expired in April of this year. I was under the impression that they would automatically send me the replacement card. Just as a hunch, I called Citi Bank's 800 number to find out when I should get my replacement card. I made this phone call in late March. I was told that I should receive my card by the 2nd week of April and that if I did not receive said card, I should call back. Some time past and I nearly forgot about the 2 weeks period on when I should get my card. I called Citi Bank on one of the last days of April (possibly the 28th) & I was told that I would receive my new card on May 2nd. May 2nd came, and there was no card. I waited for the weekend, thinking that maybe I would get it in the mail May 3rd or May 5th. Still no card. Mind you, I can not access my account online with out an active card.

I called on May 5th and was told by one of the customer service representatives that he would over night the card to me and I should get it May 7th. That did not happen. On May 7th, I finally asked to speak to a supervisor and he said that that order was never placed and that the card would be sent to me May 12th. I told him that I need to pay bills, I want to access my account online and I get paid this Friday. I need an active card to do all those things. He then ordered a card for me to be sent over night, UPS, to the financial center near my work to be picked up May 9th (tomorrow).

But here is the kicker: Today, May 8th, I received the replacement card that the supervisor said was never sent out from May 5th that was over nighted. I went to UPS to pick it up. I decided to call Citi Bank to find out if I can activate this card. I was then told that this card was blocked and that I have to go to the financial center to get the card that was overnighted.

I am at my wits end with the scenario. I have been ON them to send me my replacement card. Please correct me if I'm wrong, but shouldn't this be an automatic thing on their end? Or is it up to me to be chasing them for this card?

I know that I should have written down the name of every person that I spoke to, but I did not know I would have this run around for a replacement card. What advice can you give a consumerist who is angry,confused, and frustrated? Would it do me any good to complain about this to Citi Bank? What would they do? Apologize for the inconvenience? Any advice is greatly appreciated

Thank you,

Tammy

Next time, Tammy, when you've discovered that you've been lied to and you need help, call the offices of CEO William Rhodes. Follow the steps outlined in the link, and someone should be able to help you.

(photo:Jenna Belle)

Hi Editors,

As part of my new year’s resolution I made a pledge to lose weight like 90% of Americans do. On January 18, I ordered the Wu –Yi teas to help with my weight loss program. I was not relying on it being my salvation or miracle diet but I just wanted to try the tea. They offered a free trial on the website and was only suppose to be charged for the shipping and handling fee of $6.95. I DID read the fine print. I had 2 weeks to cancel and if not then I would be charged for subsequent monthly shipments. Well definitely within 2 weeks I canceled! Since I am not someone who balances my checkbook at the end of every month, I just noticed additional charges from Living Lean in Las Vegas for 19.95. Originally, I thought it was fraud and it is! I called the company and they are a cover for Wu Yi Teas. The customer service person answers the phone and refuses to give the name of the company she works for. She just keeps asking for how she can help and what service that I was calling about. When I asked for a refund (after being on the phone with her for 15 minutes) she pretends that we have a bad connection and that she can’t hear me. Disconnected. It took 4 more phone calls to get to a supervisor who needed to research my account, kept me on the phone for 20 minutes to say that she will refund me within 3-5 business days.

There are many reported cases of scam under Living Lean in Las Vegas and Wu Yi Tea or their other name Easyweightlosstea.com. I really want to bring light. Consumerist readers beware of this scam! I have been fighting these charges since February..and it is now end of May. There is nothing free in life. These people cost me time and aggravation.

Doris, you're long overdue to start a chargeback. These people clearly aren't interested in dealing with you honestly. A quick search for "Wu Yi Tea" and "scam" gives plenty of reasons to steer clear of these guys. Their website alone, (www.wu-yisource.com), is cause for concern, with it's claim that the medical industrial complex and gyms conspire to keep you fat in order to prop up the fashion industry. Seriously.

"Firstly, let’s look at the world of fashion; it would absolutely crumble if everyone was thin and beautiful. There would be no one to buy the magazines and expensive, "stylish" clothing in a continuous, desperate attempt to live up to the standards set out there by these media moguls, because we would all be living on a relatively level playing field in the first place."

Maybe next year's resolution should be to checking out online vendors before handing over your credit card?

Good Evening:

I'd like a little bit of advice regarding a call I received from ProLine Solutions Group, LLC. But first, a little history. I had gotten into some credit card debt in college (including some with the Discover Card). I hadn't kept current with the debt, and the debt was sold to a debt management company (Financial Credit Services-FCS). Eventually I went to a non-profit debt management company, and I paid off all my debt, including the debt that was originally owed to Discover.

Today I get a call from ProLine Solutions Group, LLC saying they bought the debt from Discover. The man on the phone has my SSN#. I say the account was sold to FCS, and was paid in full. The man on the phone tells me to fax him the letter that says that I paid it in full, and I'll be good to go.

I'm just worried that this is some sort of phishing scheme. I do a google search on the company name and the fax number he gave me (716.695.8712) and no official company website comes up, but this does: http://www.ripoffreport.com/reports/0/172/RipOff0172427.htm

My questions are: Is it safe to fax this letter to a company I know little about? Will it hurt my rebuilt credit history/score if I don't? They already have my SSN, phone #, address & credit history, would one letter make much change?

Thanks!
Matt

Given the problem with zombie debt, maybe you shouldn't give ProLine Solutions Group, LLC the benefit of the doubt and chalk this up as an honest mistake. If you're not comfortable faxing strangers your personal information to get them to stop trying to collect a bogus debt, why not make them prove they own the debt? Have a suggestion for Matt? Leave it in the comments.