The words painted on a wall near the front door are hard to make out but it appears to declare: "Brought to you by Deutsche Bank... Eat it."

Details are sketchy, but NBC says:

Williams said his financial troubles began when he got behind on his mortgage payments then signed a deal that promised to help him stay in his home. The deal failed.

Just last week, Williams said he found out that his home had been sold without his knowledge to a bank and he had to get out.

The front yard of Williams' home is strewn with boxes, furniture and trash cans. There's even some of the home's air conditioning duct work lying on the lawn. That's not the only part of the property left in shambles. The inside of the house is just as messy.

Obviously, we have no idea what really happened, but it sounds like Mr. Williams may have fallen victim to a foreclosure "rescue" scam. The FTC says:

Fraudulent foreclosure “rescue” professionals use half truths and outright lies to sell services that promise relief and then fail to deliver. Their goal is to make a quick profit through fees or mortgage payments they collect from you, but do not pass on to the lender. Sometimes, they assume ownership of your property by deceiving you, the homeowner. Then, when it’s too late to save your home, they take the property or siphon off the equity. You’ve lost your home to foreclosure despite your best intentions.

Whatever the real story is, the house is in pretty bad shape.

If you're facing foreclosure, be sure to acquaint yourself with rescue scams and avoid them. If you've been taken in by such a scam, report it to the Federal Trade Commission and your state Attorney General. If you're looking for help with your mortgage, the FTC recommends first contacting your lender. If you need more assistance, they also recommend speaking with a credit counselor through the Homeownership Preservation Foundation (HPF), a nonprofit organization that operates the national 24/7 toll-free hotline (1.888.995.HOPE) with free, personalized assistance to help at-risk homeowners avoid foreclosure.

Take This Home And Shove It [NBC Bay Area via Buzzfeed]

One passenger describes the incident, "...and then they closed them behind glass doors, and they kind of threatened us that they weren't going to fly with the way people were acting. Some people got very agitated."

Another passenger says that a few people were using harsh language and acting like a mob. That's when two American Airlines crew members refused to work in a "hostile" environment. American was unable to find another crew.

"They gave us a hotel and all that, but the hotel we stayed at had barbed-wire all around it. Nice place. Nice hotel, but barbed-wire around it," another passenger told Fox 5.

The passengers may have been rude, but American certainly got the last laugh. When the passengers finally arrived at LaGuardia the following evening—they found out that their bags had been sent to JFK.

American Airlines Cancels Flight Due to Hostile Passengers [MYFoxNY]

After Bank of America made one too many errors on his account, costing him "thousands of dollars" Avi had finally had enough.

"I said, 'Listen, you know, if you guys don't work with me on this issue, you know, I'm just going to tell everyone how much I hate the bank,'" Oslick said.

So he did. He says Bank of America called the police, who showed up at his door and asked him to take the sign down. He said no. According to Avi's website, the cop said, "Sounds good to me." You can visit his site at www.ihateboa.com.

Man Displays Anger With Company On Side Of House, Internet [NBC10] (Thanks, Everyone!)

Here's a highlight from our inbox. We think it captures the tone rather nicely:

These customer service people at Sprint are worthless, moronic, time suckers. I have never spend so much time trying to get bad customer service from a company. 6.5 hours last month, 6 hours this month. I hate Sprint. Should I tell you about how supervisor Donna [redacted]was supposed to call me back? One of Sprint's little games to get customers with issues off the phone, tell them a supervisor wants to call them back. Hey DONNA it has been 48 hours, I am waiting for your call...

For those of you who'll be canceling your data card contracts over this, and you appear to be legion, try the Sprint Consumerist Hotline: (703-433-4401).

(Photo: cmorran123 )

I HATE dealing with tech support. This time, I bit the bullet because my internet connection wasn't working.

UPDATE: Stephanie's problem has been fixed.

I don't want to do that without letting people know what a terrible experience . I thought Qwest was bad...but I think I have officially seen a new "worst" in customer service.

Since the tech was expected yesterday, Comcast has:

• missed three "scheduled" appointments, including one occasion when the tech claimed to have shown up when he hadn't.
• altered the date/time of one of those "appointments" without notifying me
• hung up on me half a dozen times ("dropped" call) every time I ask to speak to a supervisor
• put me on hold for over fifteen minutes each time, only to drop the call after that
• promised me compensation they haven't put on my bill.

I can't believe they even exist as a company, they have been so operationally incompetent. There doesn't seem to be any way to get real answers because their phone support doesn't appear to take case notes, and I've had two supposed "supervisors" make promises that they have not documented. I'm at a loss.... I want to cry. I just want to check my email. It shouldn't be this hard.

Stephanie No, Stephanie. It shouldn't be this hard. And yet it is. We recommend posting your experience on the internet as Comcast has become very PR-conscious for some reason. Oh wait, you just did!

(Photo:Spidra Webster)

Last September I had to sit in an airport for 10 hours. I was in Chicago, flying home from a work conference, and ATA Airlines dropped the ball. First they said the plane was at the wrong airport (I was at Midway, they said it was at O'Hare), whatever that means. Then they said the plane was at the right airport but the pilots were at the wrong one. Whatever, after many, many delays the plane took off and I had the pleasure of arriving at National at 3 in the morning. It was, all things considered, a fairly awful experience. If I had been unable to pay for wireless internet (with work picking up the bill) I'm not sure I would have made it.

The only bright side to this whole ordeal was that ATA offered everyone on the plane a voucher for a free roundtrip ticket anywhere in the continental US ATA serviced. Quick side story: A co-worker and I were on the same flight and he ran into someone he knew also on the flight. Apparently his friend had been on an ATA flight a while back that had also been delayed and she had been offered the same roundtrip voucher and was using that voucher on this flight WHICH HAD ALSO BEEN DELAYED, meaning she got another voucher.

Anyway I tried to use the voucher when I went to Jacksonville, and later Lake Tahoe, but I found it fairly hard to use as ATA didn't fly to those places and weren't very helpful either way. The guy I talked to on the phone suggested I pay to fly myself to Dallas where I could then fly for free to Jacksonville. I pointed out that if I was going to pay to fly to Dallas, why not just pay to fly straight to Jacksonville in the first place. He had no comeback. Since it was proving so hard to use and I'm not planning on going anywhere in the near future, I had kind of forgotten about the voucher. Until today.

As I was driving in to work I heard a news story that ATA Airlines had declared bankruptcy and discontinued all operations. The company website confirms this, as does this Bloomberg story. The FAQ's on the company website helpful point out that all vouchers are no longer valid.

I don't know what the moral of this story is, if there is one, but I do know that I hate ATA Airlines now more then ever. Unfortunately for me, there doesn't seem to be anything left to hate. You win ATA. You win.

Customer FAQ (PDF) [ATA]
(Photo:gTarded)

Comcast's service continues to surprise me with how inept they are these days. My situation, which is probably not unique started when I first signed up for Comcast television and their high speed internet service in 2005. From the time I signed up till Jan. of 2007, my bill has fluctuated and fees changed so many times, that it prompted several calls to customer service. Of course many of the promised credits to my account never showed up, so in Feb of 2007, since I was moving from my apartment to a house, I decided to dump the cable tv and keep the internet service. Unfortunately Comcast was the only high speed internet service in that area besides satellite. Which bugs me, because I was moving from Rockledge, PA, which was RIGHT outside of Philadelphia INTO Philadelphia. Why do some parts of a major metropolitan area like Philadelphia NOT have DSL yet is beyond me, but that's another issue.

So, at the mid of Feb of 2007, I called Comcast and spoke with a representative there and informed them that I was moving and that I wanted to cancel the television service, but keep the internet. After about 40 minutes of repeating the same information and being transferred to 3 reps, FINALLY someone "supposedly" got everything straightened out. I was told by the last rep that I DIDN'T HAVE TO RETURN ANY EQUIPMENT and to just take EVERYTHING to the house I was moving to. So, I moved, had my address changed at the post office, call all the other places to change my address and Comcast in the middle of march came and hooked up the internet using the EXACT equipment that I brought with me from my old address.

So March 2007 through Jan. 2008 passes by and we now in Feb 2008. Yesterday, I went to check my free year credit report ( I check it every six months now due to some past situations), and everything was in the green and normal with the exception of this unknown charge of $85.00 from Eastern Account System with an account number XXXXXXXXXX and the payment status was and I quote "Seriously past due date, assigned to collection agency." Surprised, and ever so slightly confused I started searching around the internet and finally found the phone number to Eastern Account System. I called them and talked with a guy named Pat. He informed me that the charge was for "unreturned equipment and a 14.95$ charge for a remaining cable balance." I was VASTLY confused at this point and told Pat that of course the equipment isn't returned I'm currently USING the equipment (at least half of it anyway). The representative was ultimately confused as well, and asked for the serial numbers of the devices I had with me. Which I gave him and he verified. Then he asked me if I moved recently, which was an affirmative answer. Pat kinda chuckled and said, "You gotta call Comcast. You moved into a different borough or different section of the city. The two sections DON'T communicate with each other so you'll have to call the main customer service line and find out whats going on." He said he had wondered WHY all their snail mail communications to me all came back returned. Comcast had given them my OLD address. Lovely.

Right after that I get on the horn with Comcast and the amount of dread just piled up with each button I pressed for their customer service number. I get a hold of a rep and tell him my story, of course he puts me on hold and transfers me to the billing department. After about 20 minutes someone picks up and I can barely hear them speak. You know that static you hear when you talk to someone who has a bad cellphone connection? Yup, that was the exact same sound I was then hearing. I was on a landline, so it wasn't me. I guessed their using their wonderful new VOIP telephone system. After several attempts of repeating my story and information to the lady on the static filled line, we finally get the ball running and then I get cut off.

Once again, I dialed the dreaded number and get a hold of another girl named Amanda. We plod through the same thing again. But THIS time NONE of my information was coming up. No street names, account numbers, nothing. She couldn't neither my old or new street address. Giving her my city, state, zip and social number couldn't pull up anything either. On hold I went while she got a supervisor. 10 minutes later, Amanda was back on the phone and asked for my information AGAIN! She was able to eventually find my information using some kind of weird trickery with their computer systems.

So, we go over the story ONCE more of me moving and for some reason there's a charge on my credit report about equipment NOT being returned. I hear some typing and some clicking and finally she says "Oh, I don't see ANY equipment serial numbers attached to your current address." Apparently, Comcast doesn't need to know WHAT and WHO'S equipment your using, they are just happy they can bill you for stuff and the rep that I talked to last year didn't feel the need to change over my information properly.

Therefore, I'm put on hold AGAIN and another 20 minutes was lost from my life. Amanda gets back on the phone and this is the exchange at this point

Amanda - Ok, you just gotta return the cable box and modem to the Willow Grove, PA branch. They will issue you a receipt.

Me - So, what about my internet? I need a cable modem. Will the Willow Grove branch issue me a new one?

Amanda - (said rather admantly) No! They CAN'T issue you a box you live in a different district.

Me - So HOW do I get a NEW one?

Amanda - You will have to either have one mailed to you or you can purchase one.

Me - Ummm.. I don't want to buy one, can YOU mail me out one?

Amanda - Is that what you'd like to do?

That last question made me dumbfounded and VERY VERY concerned about Comcast, the people they employ and the training (If ANY) that's given to their employees. Anyhow, Amanda took down my mailing address and said a new modem would be out in two to three business days. And she begrudgingly noted, supposedly, in the computer that I'm keeping the cable modem and cable box until the new equipment shows up.

That's my tale of woe... even though its being resolved, Comcast and other companies these days make you feel like your a circus poodle jumping through hoops of fire. Why can't we have MORE high speed internet choices in this Country! I'm not asking for servitude or slavery, just a good product and decent customer service.

Honestly, more high speed internet competition is an issue about which you might want to write your congressperson. Maybe if more people did that, they'd start pretending to care about it on TV. Verizon will probably help you look up the address.

Anyway, be sure to dispute the entry on your credit report.

(Photo:cmorran123)

Dear Sprint,

After reading the incredible horror stories on Consumerist, I wouldn't have touched your service with a ten-foot pole. But recently my boyfriend and I were shopping around for new cell phones and plans, and he told me about Sprint's $30/mo SERO plan. I was so tempted that I decided to give it a chance and went into the Sprint store, where I fell in love with the Palm Centro. I decided I'd let my current contract run out before I got the plan, while my boyfriend went ahead and immediately ordered the plan online with a Motorola Q.

His online order consisting of ONE phone and ONE plan somehow turned into an order for TWO phones and TWO plans. But that's just the beginning of it. That doubled order then went through twice, making my boyfriend's bank account overdrawn by $400+. Finally, to add insult to injury, Sprint attempted a third order, the charges for which were thankfully refused by his bank.

Unfortunately, my now-poor boyfriend did all of this on a Friday. The next day, when he realized what had happened, he called Sprint for help. But apparently their ordering department grinds to a halt on weekends, and no one who could help him with a pending order was available. The only CSRs available were ones who handled existing accounts, not new ones.

Sprint's SERO plan is less than half the price of a comparable Verizon plan, but I guess you really do get what you pay for.

Die in a fire, Sprint. Die in a fire.

Hilary R.

What would you do? We'd cancel and use the tips contained here to shop around.

Hilary, who would like to clarify that she didn't send the above letter to Sprint (it was just a rant she sent to us), has an UPDATE:

He has called the Consumerist Sprint Hotline (Thanks Theresa!) and they were very helpful. Apparently the triple-charging was a "balance inquiry" but I still don't understand why charging him three times for a total of $1500 was necessary. They say that the charges will disappear within a few days. However, his order has already shipped so he will still be receiving two phones, but they are sending him a prepaid box to send one back in. The people at the Consumerist hotline said that there are in fact CSRs who can handle pending orders on weekends, but apparently no one else at Sprint knew that.

My boyfriend's plan now is to see how they handle this, and if it gets resolved he's going to ask them to waive any early termination fees should he decide to cancel later on because they further fuck up his service.

Thanks again for the help.

Regards,

Hilary

(Photo:northernplateguy)

How brokers can jump to the front of the line is described in supplemental documents filed in Ticketmaster v. RMG Technologies, an active Federal District Court case asserting that the defendant's automated ticket-buying software violated the Ticketmaster Web site's terms of use. The papers describe a subterranean world of software designed to enter Ticketmaster's online ticket-purchasing system at will and to scoop up tickets without limits.

The lawsuit was filed in April, after Ticketmaster had tired of what its spokesman, Joseph M. Freeman, called a "cat-and-mouse game" between Ticketmaster's security systems and automated ticket-purchasing robots, or "bots."

"We began detecting an increase in attempted online purchases by automated programs about two years ago," Mr. Freeman said, adding that the company thinks RMG is not the only maker of this type of software.

Kevin McLain, Ticketmaster's senior director of applications support, estimates that on some days, 80 percent of all ticket requests that arrive at its Web site are generated by bots.

The company looked for purchase anomalies and found four individual brokers who had bought a total of 115,000 tickets online. One of the four, Chris Kovach, agreed to cooperate and led investigators to RMG and its Web site, ticketbrokertools.com, which was open only to its clients. Mr. Kovach also agreed to permit security specialists to make a copy of his PC's hard drive.

Ticketmaster said it had found evidence that RMG clients, with the help of RMG's "PurchaseMaster" and related software, submitted millions of automated ticket requests, in Mr. McClain's estimation. The RMG software disguised the clients' Internet addresses to create the appearance that their ticket requests had originated in many different places, Mr. McClain said.

A federal judge granted Ticketmaster an injunction against RMG, but nobody knows how many evil ticket-gulping bots exist. Not that we like Ticketmaster and their 30% markups, but next time a concert or playoff game sells out in less than five minutes, we know where to direct our anger.

Hannah Montana Tickets on Sale! Oops, They're Gone [NYT]
(Photo: themikelee)

Last week the apartment complex I live in near Greenbelt, Maryland, sent a letter stating that starting January 1, 2008, Comcast will be the only Internet service available for residents. That's reason enough for me to move.

You might have heard that Comcast's customer service is so low that the publishers of dictionaries are trying to think up new words to describe it. Abysmal is too kindhearted a way to describe it.

Yes, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) here in the United States recently outlawed apartment complexes entering into single source contracts like this — which force a particular vendor on apartment residents. But I don't hold out much hope that the FCC is going to come to my rescue.

"Fuckwiched" is when Comcast misses 5 straight appointments then on the 6th one, you catch the tech sitting in your alley where he thinks you can't see him, eating a sandwich and leaving a message on your cellphone telling you that he's sorry you weren't home.

You're Switching My Apartment to Comcast? I'm Moving Out [PC World]
(Photo:Tyler Durden's Imaginary Friend)

To date, I have spoken to your main customer service department who could only offer to escalate my problems if I wait 21 days (I guess the first 7 months don't count). I have spoken with your repair department who has told me my issue would be resolved sometime between 4 and 20 days (or 2-3, or 30, depending on who you talk to). I have spoken to your store managers who said they could do nothing to fulfill the agreement they made with me when I purchased your products - they even sent us a polite handwritten note explaining what a mess they'd created, but they could not help me resolve it. I have spoken to your Rewardszone department and they could not help me, in fact they could not help me over and over and over again as I restarted the process with them every 10 days just like I was instructed.
....
The thought that I'm going to have to endure another seven years of this nightmare while my service plan is still in effect makes me want to shoot myself in the head. The only hope I have is that you'll screw up and erase the extended warranty I paid for so I have an excuse to throw these worthless appliances into your parking lot and replace them with a set that actually works, from a company that actually cares if their customers are sickened by the thought of ever doing business with them again.

Speedball's Letter To Customer Service [Denver Egotist]
(Photo:redjar)