So there you are, just swimming along like sharks do, the entire ocean is at your disposal and you’re living the life of a normal shark (who is apparently also self-aware enough to realize how good you’ve got it). But then the next thing you know, you’re living in an aquarium at a Brooklyn Applebee’s, one of your fellow shark pals is dead and you’re in serious trouble for eating three other fish in a “shocking killing spree.” [More]
It’s Not A Good Time To Be A Shark In A Brooklyn Applebee’s Aquarium
By June 17, 2013
N.J. Bill Would Allow Police To Search Drivers’ Cell Phones After Car Crashes
By June 10, 2013
It isn’t just drunk drivers police in New Jersey are worried about — one state senator is introducing a bill that would allow authorities to search through drivers’ phones after an accident, likening the act of texting on them while driving to having an open bottle of booze in the car. [More]
The Xbox One Is Intended To Be An All-In-One Home Entertainment Solution
By May 21, 2013
It’s been eight years since Microsoft launched the Xbox 360, a wildly successful gaming console that has gradually evolved into a home entertainment hub for many users. Today, the company finally got around to releasing details of the “Durango” project, its code name for the next generation of the Xbox. [More]
JCPenney To Require Structural Inspections Of Factories In Bangladesh
By May 17, 2013
Retailers and manufacturers continue to react to last month’s tragedy at the Rana Plaza factory outside of Dhaka, Bangladesh, that resulted in the deaths of more than 1,100 people. Days after Walmart announced its own program to review and inspect manufacturing facilities in the region, JCPenney has outlined its plans to audit factories. [More]
Advocates Call On Senate To Remove Paid Medical Debt From Credit Reports
By May 13, 2013
Medical bills can be outrageously high, and usually there’s a direct relationship between the unexpectedness of a procedure and its cost. Sometimes, no financial planning in the world can forestall unforeseen medical expenses. Yet if any medical debt ends up on your credit report, it can remain there for up to seven years — even after you’ve paid it in full. That’s why a large coalition of advocacy groups have written Senate leadership asking them to consider the Medical Debt Relief Act. [More]
Sen. McCain Back In Anti-Bundling Saddle With New Bill Pushing A La Carte Cable TV
By May 10, 2013
Back in 2006, Sen. John McCain tried and failed to get Congress on board with a bit of legislation that pushed “a la carte” cable TV — programming that consumers could pick and choose instead of being forced to have 300 channels they don’t watch just to get the few they do. He’s not giving up the fight, it seems, as his office introduced a new bill to put the heat on pay TV providers to allow the a la carte option. [More]
‘Boston Massacre’ Nike Shirts Garner High Asking Prices On eBay After Being Pulled From Stores
By April 22, 2013
In the wake of recent events, it’s not surprising that Nike would want to stop selling shirts that feature the phrase “Boston Massacre,” complete with blood-stained letters. So of course it probably comes as little shock that folks who have these shirts are now trying to unload them for high prices on eBay. [More]
Google Introduces Dead Man’s Switch For Your Accounts
By April 12, 2013
More than a decade ago, I had an online friend who abruptly disappeared, not answering e-mails or showing up on any of her favorite sites. Did she lock herself out of her accounts? Did her parents cancel their dialup? Did something happen to her? I never found out, and never would. What if you could prevent that? What if you could send a notice out to all of your contacts after you don’t log in to your accounts for a set period, and “will” your data to someone else? There are workarounds to do this, but now such a feature is built in to Google. [More]
The CFPB Answers Your Student Loan Questions, Part 1: For Prospective Students
By April 11, 2013
A little while back, we asked Consumerist readers to send in their student loan-related questions to Rohit Chopra, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s Student Loan Ombudsman. Today, we’re bringing you his answers in three parts, each dealing with a different aspect of the topic. Since it’s about time for next year’s freshman class to decide on schools and financial aid packages, we’re starting with answers for prospective students. [More]
EA Makes Worst Company In America History, Wins Title For Second Year In A Row!
By April 9, 2013
Following last year’s surprise Worst Company In America victory by Electronic Arts, there was hope that the video game giant would get the message: Stop treating your customers like human piggy banks, and don’t put out so many incomplete and/or broken games with the intent of getting your customers to pay extra for what they should have received in the first place. And yet, here we are again, with EA becoming the first company to ever win a second Golden Poo from Consumerist readers. [More]
Worst Company In America Final Death Match: Bank Of America Vs. EA, Part II
April 8, 2013
This is it. Make no mistake where you are. After weeks of gouged eyeballs, pulverized ribs, countless bruised egos, and one dislocated thumb, the battered bodies of 30 bad businesses are licking their wounds and vowing to fight another year, while your votes have set up an epic rematch of the 2012 Final Death Match. [More]
Worst Company In America Quarterfinals: EA Vs. AT&T
April 4, 2013
Let’s close out the WCIA quarterfinals with this match between the reigning champ and the Death Star itself. [More]
Worst Company In America Round 1: AT&T Vs. Verizon
March 27, 2013
It’s the final day of Round One play in the Worst Company In America Thunderdome, so why not start it off with a showdown between the two largest — and most-hated — telecom titans around! [More]
Here Are Your Contestants For The 2013 Worst Company In America Tournament!
March 18, 2013
After sorting through a record number of nominations from you, the readers of Consumerist, we’ve spent the last few days culling that massive list down to the 32 businesses deemed most worthy of vying for the title of Worst Company In America 2013! [More]
Kmart Admits It’s Pretty Bummed Out About The Shark That Died During Its Ad Shoot, Too
By March 15, 2013
We were so sad yesterday about the white-tipped shark that died after being shipped across the country to star in a Kmart commercial shoot that we weren’t even able to make any jokes about the company jumping the shark. And when we skip obvious puns, the sadness is real. Plenty of our readers expressed sadness on Twitter recently, and it seems that somber feeling goes for Kmart, as well. [More]
Federal Legislation Would Ban Export Of Horses For Slaughter, Protect Public From “Toxic Meat”
By March 14, 2013
While U.S. consumers have been sitting fairly pretty over here during Europe’s horsemeat scare, the hullabaloo has served to stir up some action stateside as well. New federal legislation is seeking to ban the export of American horses for slaughter, reinstate a ban on slaughtering them here and also protect the public from eating “toxic” horsemeat. [More]
Dad Not Thrilled With Response When Child Goes Missing On Disney Cruise
By March 11, 2013
It’s every parent’s nightmare — you leave your young child in the care of someone else for a few hours, only to return and find your kid has gone AWOL. [More]
Ask Tax Dad: A Recovering Slacker, An Incompetent Accountant, And The Tax Return Of The Dead
By March 11, 2013
Usually, our staff Certified Tax Cat handles readers’ questions about taxes, but he got his tax refund early this year and is on vacation, taking a salmon-watching cruise on the Pacific coast. Filling in for him is Laura’s dad, a retired accountant and real live independent tax preparer. Exclusively on Consumerist this spring, Tax Dad answers your questions. [More]
