Consumerist
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amazon
Amazon Deletes Reviews That Mention Pay For Play Review Schemes
After buying an anti-snoring mouthpiece from a third-party seller on Amazon, reader Bob received an email from the company offering him a free mouthpiece in exchange for a five-star review. He noted this attempted bribe in his Amazon review, and Amazon deleted it. Twice.
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bribes
AmTrust Offers Homeowner $50 To Voluntarily Close HELOC
Here's a new tactic we haven't seen before: mortgage originator AmTrust called blogger BeThisWay and offered her $50 to voluntarily close her home equity line of credit (HELOC), possibly in response to the recent class action lawsuit against them for illegally closing HELOCs. She writes, "Well, I'd like to keep my HELOC. But I have to figure out AmTrust's next move. What will they do if not enough people voluntarily surrender their HELOCs? Are cancellations next? Am I better off taking the $50 now, or waiting, hoping they don't cancel it?"
"AmTrust says, "We love you! Really!"" [JustShootMeNow]
(Photo: Caitlinator) -
Allen's
Allen's Bribes Customers Who Find Dead Rat Heads In Their Italian Green Beans
Texas wedding caterer Dale Cane found a dead rat's head in one of the twenty cans of Allen's Italian Green Beans he bought at Walmart. Allen's quickly offered Cane $200 if he agreed to keep quiet, and assured him that "the Pasteurization process renders the product sterile and completely safe for consumption." Even worse, this isn't the first time a dead rat's head popped up in a can of Allen's Green Beans...
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TheCellShop.net told Network World that its email trying to bribe customers to submit perfect reviews was "improperly worded" and they "are now offering $5.00 for anybody who leaves a review whether it be good or bad." [Network World]
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complaints
MyGearStore Bribes Customer To Remove Amazon Feedback
"MyGearStore," a seller on Amazon, tried to bribe reader Michael into remove less-than-stellar feedback. Michael writes, "There were some problems with the order, and I gave them neutral feedback (which was pretty generous)." They said they would give him a partial refund if he took down his feedback. He complained to Amazon, who didn't reply except with a "thanks for emailing us" and to MyGearStore, who didn't respond. One tool consumers use to evaluate the slew of online retailers out there is by looking through feedback left by other customers. If stores are trying to pay off customers to get rid of negative feedback, one, they're stupid because they're going to get caught. Two, it means you should be suspicious if the feedback for one store, product, or seller is overwhelmingly positive. Critical reading, it's a good ability to have. The original bribe note sent by MyGearStore, inside.. More » -
fake reviews
ResellerRatings Cracks Down On TheCellShop.net's Review Bribing
The CEO of ResellerRatings, Scott Wainner, emailed us to say they're busting TheCellShop for bribing customers to submit perfect reviews on his site. He wrote:
ResellerRatings does not condone fake reviews. For the past 13 years, we have worked hard to develop anti-fraud tools, both automated and manual, and we disable fraudulent reviews every day. When we heard about the Cell Shop's actions, we immediately began contacting all Cell Shop reviewers to verify that they were not, in fact, offered money for their positive reviews, and to obtain proof of their valid transactions (order invoices, credit card statements, etc) and we have disabled reviews where money was offered for positive reviews.
Word up Steve-o, make them go outside and pick out their own switch from the hickory tree.
(Photo: Getty)
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fake reviews
TheCellShop.net Caught Bribing Customers To Submit "Perfect" Reviews
If you use resellerratings.com to check out companies before doing business with them, don't take any perfect ratings for TheCellShop.net as legitimate. A reader forwarded us the following email that shows they bribe their customers to leave them perfect ratings in exchange for a $5 coupon. More » -
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bribes
Kmart Will Trade You A Bottle Of Coke Or Free Candy For A Sears Credit Card App
Dan sent us this pic he snapped in a local Kmart and writes, "I remember a previous post on a Wal-Mart card that offered a 2-liter bottle, but I guess inflation caught up with big K as they are only offering 20-oz."
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mcdonalds
Did McDonald's Commit A Crime By Giving Hotcakes To Voters?
Reader Josh writes us with concerns that a Chicago McDonald's Franchisee committed a crime by offering free hotcakes to "early voters" in Chicago. He writes: More »
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