After the contract was signed, mistakes made by a…
bait and switch
Qwest Sells Woman "Cheaper" Package That Costs More, Has Unmentioned 2-Year Commitment, And Requires New Modem
By 4.7.08
Matt’s mom, a longtime Qwest customer, called up the company to switch her long distance over from AT&T. The CSR suggested she switch over to a bundled package that would save her $11 a month and offer faster Internet connection speeds. What the CSR didn’t mention was that the new package required a 2-year commitment, that it wouldn’t work with her current DSL modem, and that it actually came out to about $3 more per month.
Staples Rebuts "Charge Senior Citizen $390 For Basic Computer Repair" Post
By 3.5.08
Staples saw our recent post, “Staples Tries To Charge Senior Citizen $390 For Basic Computer Repair,” and Bob MacDonald, Staples VP of Technology Services, sent in the following rebuttal:
On behalf of Staples, and our entire team of EasyTechs, I wanted to respond to the recent post regarding an allegation that we attempted to charge a senior citizen for unnecessary computer repairs. We have spoken to those involved in this episode, including the store manager and the technician. (We were unable to contact the author of the post due to missing contact information, and our calls to the customer have not been returned.) The facts are these:
Very Strange Circuit City iPod Touch Bait And Switch
By 2.26.08
Ian writes:
Last Thursday 2/14, I ordered a 32GB iPod touch from CircuitCity.com at $474 + tax for a total of about $514. After thinking about it for a bit, I logged back in and canceled the order – just a bit too steep for an iPod, you know? I figured I’d have to wait a while for the price to drop, and left it at that. Well, believe it or not, I received a call at work today from a Circuit City sales rep at corporate telling me he’d offer me the iPod at a discount, so CC could keep my business. I was baffled – nothing like this has ever happened to me before, but the price he gave me $420 + tax… was too good to pass up.
14 Moving Company Crooks Indicted
By 1.28.08
A federal court handed down indictments against 14 moving company employees for extorting money from customers. Allegedly, they would sucker people in with low estimates, then ask for much more money on delivery, and not release the goods until the price was paid. Of all the moving company complaints we receive at The Consumerist, this one is the most common. It’s always important to check out a moving company’s rep beforehand; ask friends for recommendations, look up their BBB report, and see if they’re talked about on sites like MovingScam.com and MovingSham.com. Don’t just go for whoever is cheapest, a low-price could end up costing you a lot.
Buyer Beware: The Condo Squeezeplay
By 1.11.08
CBC Marketplace did an undercover investigation into buying a condo, and found that it’s rife with risk for the buyer, while the sellers completely protect themselves. You get lured in by the model condo they set up, all spacious and with stunning views and stainless steel appliances and breakfast bar and all that jazz, but contractually, there’s no guarantee that you will get that space. The contract pretty much says everything is subject to change, the floorplan included doesn’t have any measurements or square footage, and there’s clauses that say that any sales material or verbal promises made don’t count at all. One contract lawyer says that any relationship between what you’re told you’re buying and what you end up with will be a “coincidence.” Watch the video to learn more about protecting yourself from the condo bait-and-switch squeezeplay.
Best Buy Still Embracing Deceptive In-Store Kiosks
By 12.23.07
Best Buy still uses a secret internal website to deceive customers, according to the L.A. Times. The website appearing on in-store kiosks resembles Best Buy’s official site in every way, except for the prices. Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal was surprised to hear that his investigation failed to end Best Buy’s bait-and-switch, telling the L.A. Times: “We thought Best Buy had addressed this. That’s what they said to us. Apparently that’s not the case.” A tipster in Virginia also reports the continued existence of the secret website.
Reader Wins Epic Quest For Black Friday TV Deal From Circuit City
By 12.14.07
Mitch writes:
There are several types of people out there, but I’m the kind of person who believes people should stick with what they say. Circuit City offered a Sharp 46″ Aquos on Black Friday this year, but they weren’t about to let me have it easily. Now, having done Black Friday in the past I knew I would be in for a fight to get my TV, but what I had to go through was just ridiculous.
Amazon Cancels Black Friday Orders, CSRs Trick Customer Into Buying $90 Mouse
By 12.4.07
Amazon either ran out of inventory or didn’t catch several pricing errors on their Black Friday sale until after they’d already begun to ship products, but either way a lot of customers just had their orders canceled. One customer even got tricked into re-purchasing a wireless mouse at full price because the CSR promised him Amazon would honor the sale price—then after placing the order received an email from another CSR saying that the promise was no good and he’d be charged the full $89.99. Then the CSRs continued their all-drinking, all-smoking holiday office party over at Amazon Customer Service.
Sears Unable To Fulfill Black Friday Online Orders, How About Something Crappier Instead?
By 11.30.07
The deep discounts some retailers offered on Black Friday are biting them in the ass – they were too popular and can’t fulfill all the orders. Some are trying to scramble to offer alternative deals, but since they can’t compare, they smell like bait and switch… and now that it’s been almost a week, bait left over from last Friday sure don’t smell too pretty. Here’s what reader Ian has to say about Sears failure to sell him a TV at advertised price…
UPDATE: Circuit City Apologizes For Not Honoring Call Of Duty Advertisement
By 11.8.07
Adam writes us to say that Circuit City has apologized for not honoring their advertisement and have offered to compensate him with both games for free.
Circuit City Refusing To Honor Advertised Offer For Free Call Of Duty 3?
By 11.6.07
Adam
We looked up the weekly circular for Naperville, IL and sure enough. There it is. No mention of a misprint. We think Circuit City should honor this offer. There’s really no reason to believe it was a misprint.
Target Won't Refund New iPod Box Found Full Of Rocks…Twice
By 10.9.07
Melanie Ritter thought she was buying a video iPod from Target for her daughter’s birthday, only to open the box and find rocks inside. Imagine how much more disappointed she was the second time this happened.
Cubic Telecom Lied About Its "Cheap International Calling" SIM Card
By 10.5.07
Last Friday, we published a post about Cubic Telecom, an Irish start-up that sells a SIM card that’s supposed to enable international calling for “50-90%” less than standard carrier rates. The post was in reference to columnist David Pogue’s review of the product, and he was quoting rates that were provided to him directly by Cubic’s CEO. Turns out the CEO was “misleading” him—he provided numbers that were substantially lower than the actual rates, and has been stringing Pogue along with assurances that they’d “update the site” ever since. As of Thursday, October 4th, they still hadn’t.
Spurred By Consumer Email Campaign, Nebraska AG Smacks Down Bait-And-Switch Gas Stations
By 10.2.07
The Nebraska Attorney General has told the Conoco that posted low prices on its signs but then charged 25-50 cents higher per gallon on most of the pumps to stop its deceptive advertising practices.
By 9.30.07
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Gas stations along I-80 accused of advertising one price and charging another will give $5,000 to charity as part of a settlement with Nebraska Attorney General Jon Bruning. [Lincoln Journal Star]
Executive Email Carpet Bomb Scores Direct Hit On Time Warner
By 9.30.07
Reader Clayton launched the feared Executive Email Carpet Bomb against Time Warner executives after learning that the cable installation he scheduled for this week would not occur until November. Within an hour of launching the EECB, Clayton received a call from Time Warner promising to reschedule his installation for this weekend. Clayton’s EECB:
