As we mentioned a few weeks back, the new user agreement for eBay includes one of those lovely little clauses that takes away customers’ right to a lawsuit against the company and locks them into mandatory binding arbitration. Fortunately, it also includes the ability to opt out of that clause, but you have to do it in the form of an actual letter, which has to be postmarked by Nov. 9. [More]
Reminder: Write eBay By Nov. 9 To Opt Out Of Restrictive, Anti-Consumer Clause
By October 5, 2012
Time Warner Cable Tells Customers “Oh, By The Way, You Now Have A Monthly Modem Rental Fee”
By October 3, 2012
Time Warner Cable is irking an awful lot of customers, who recently opened their mail to find out that they are now going to be assessed a $3.95 monthly fee for renting the modem that is already in their home. [More]
This Is Why People Hate Health Insurance Companies
By September 19, 2012
For many people, health insurance premiums take a sizable bite out of their paychecks. Which would be somewhat tolerable if insurance companies did anything to ease the process of actually receiving medical care. Heck, most of us would tolerate the pricey payments if insurers just did the bare minimum of what they are supposed to do and didn’t put up roadblocks to getting the proper care. And yet that simple concept appears to be too complicated for some insurance providers to grasp. [More]
eBay Users Have Until Nov. 9 To Opt Out Of Mandatory Binding Arbitration
By September 17, 2012
In 2011, when AT&T convinced the Supreme Court that the inclusion of a mandatory binding arbitration clause buried deep in a contract effectively precludes customers from filing a class, it was immediately obvious that more and more companies would begin including such clauses in their terms of service. The latest company is eBay, which has given users until Nov. 9 to opt out — in writing — of the clause. [More]
Microsoft Updates Service Agreement To Make It Easier To Read The New Mandatory Binding Arbitration Clause
By August 31, 2012
While we appreciate that Microsoft has made its online services agreement much easier to read, the update comes with a questionable addition: a shiny new mandatory binding arbitration clause with class action waiver. The clause states that you agree to settle any legal disputes (except intellectual property rights disputes) in either the small claims court in your county of residence or Microsoft’s, or through the arbitration procedure outlined in the agreement. Microsoft announced that this change was coming awhile back, and has already added similar language to its XBOX Live service. [More]
Video Game Publisher/Seller Valve Now Forcing Customers Into Mandatory Binding Arbitration
By August 1, 2012
Valve, the makers of popular video game series like Portal, Left 4 Dead, Half-Life, and Team Fortress, as well as the operators of the Steam online marketplace for games, have surprised fans this week by changing the Steam terms of service to effectively pre-empt any class-action lawsuits by forcing customers into mandatory binding arbitration. [More]
JetBlue Getaways Package Lets Company Get Away With $3500 Of My Money
By July 26, 2012
Here’s the problem with scheduling your travel and accommodations as a package deal: if you need to reschedule or change one part of the package, you run the risk of losing other parts of the package deal. Victor used Jetblue Getaways to buy a flight and hotel package, and not a cheap one. When he needed to change his travel dates less than a week before the trip, he called up to cancel the package. Nope, said JetBlue. They wouldn’t let him cancel the stay he had booked through them at the Waldorf. That was weird, because when he called up the Waldorf directly, they were happy to cancel his booking. It’s just that JetBlue won’t give him the money back, even as a credit for future travel. [More]
Turns Out That Forcing Customers Into Arbitration Is Not Good For Consumers
By April 25, 2012
A year ago this week, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a landmark ruling in the AT&T Mobility v. Concepcion case. It decided that a company could force customers into arbitration — and effectively pre-empt any class-action lawsuits — by including a tiny clause in their contracts. At the time, AT&T had the gall to claim that this was all for the benefit of you, the consumer, but a new study proves what you probably already guessed: AT&T was full of it. [More]
Seattle Man Victorious Over Apple In Small Claims Court
By April 17, 2012
Chalk up another win for the little guy! A blogger in Seattle says he just wanted Apple to repair his MacBook as the company had promised. When Apple refused, he felt he had no other option but to take the computing colossus to court. [More]
Teacher's Aide Claims She Was Fired For Refusing To Give Up Facebook Password
By April 2, 2012
It’s not just students that are getting in trouble for having Facebook accounts — one teacher’s aide says she was fired from her elementary school for refusing to hand over the password to her social networking account. The teacher is now embroiled in a legal battle with her former employers. [More]
CFPB Now Answering Your Finance Questions
By March 23, 2012
Want to know who you need to call when disputing an error on your credit report? Are you curious about what a “reverse mortgage” is? Well, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has just launched a new interactive service that fields questions like these and provides answers without all the usual fancy finance jargon. [More]
Worst Company In America Sweet 16: Comcast Vs. DirecTV
By March 22, 2012
Welcome to Day 2 of Sweet 16 bloodshed! Unfortunately, because of exclusivity deals, those of you who haven’t paid $350 for the deluxe, HD/3D/Smell-o-Vision package will be blacked out from seeing the televised broadcast of these TV titans. [More]
Which Worst Company Contenders Force Customers Into Mandatory Arbitration?
By March 21, 2012
As we sifted through the mountain of nominations for this year’s Worst Company In America tournament, we noticed a trend of readers who cited companies’ mandatory binding arbitration clauses as a reason for nominating. And while it’s businesses like AT&T and Sony that have made all the headlines for effectively banning class action lawsuits, there are a lot of other WCIA contenders who are forcing customers into signing away their rights. [More]
Worst Company In America Round One: AT&T Vs. Verizon
By March 19, 2012
Two telecom titans will step into the Worst Company gladiator pit this afternoon. One will walk out victorious while the other will end up stuck with a huge early termination fee. [More]
AT&T Customers Petition CEO To Stop Throttling Unlimited Data Plans
By February 29, 2012
The battle over the word “unlimited” has begun, as AT&T customers are fighting back against the Death Star’s throttling of so-called “data hogs,” even though available info shows that most of these people are using completely reasonable amounts of data for owners of unlimited plans. [More]
Tips For Anyone Thinking Of Taking AT&T To Small Claims Court
By February 28, 2012
Last week, a man in California made headlines after his small claims court victory over AT&T for the wireless provider’s throttling of his unlimited data plan. Since then, a number of AT&T customers have wondered if they also have grounds for a complaint. [More]
Man Sues AT&T For Throttling His iPhone Service — And Wins!
By February 24, 2012
This could be the start of something interesting. An AT&T customer in California was less than thrilled by the Death Star’s decision to throttle his iPhone service even though he was on an unlimited data plan. So he went down to small claims court and came out victorious. [More]
Why Won't Anyone At AT&T Answer The DSL Cancellation Line?
By February 24, 2012
Most phone/cable/internet providers make it a pain in the butt to cancel service, requiring that you call a specific number during certain hours. But the folks at AT&T DSL seem to be going a step further by not even answering the phone when a customer calls up to cancel. [More]
