Consumerist
gifts
Posts Tagged “
Gifts
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gifts
manners
Which Is More Thoughtful, Cash or Gifts?
Over at Wise Bread blogger Xin Lu has posted her thoughts on cash verses gifts or gift cards:Cash gifts are the best - On every new year or birthday, Chinese children usually get cash gifts that they end up saving. This sounds pretty sad, but I remember being quite excited about visiting all the relatives and receiving red envelopes with cash in them. Red envelopes are the standard gift for any celebration, and they are considered the best gifts because the recipient can do anything with the money. In America it seems that cash is a less common gift because it is considered to be less thoughtful. Instead, cash is converted to gift cards or useless trinkets that are probably less appreciated by the recipient.We really have to agree with this. Gifts can be very thoughtful, but in some cases gift cards are capitalizing on people who feel insecure about giving cash. More »
refunds
Dear Sur La Table: It Has Been 42 Days Since You Stole $100 From My Bank Account
Rachel used a $100 gift card to pay for her Christmas gifts, but Sur La Table decided to take the funds directly from her debit card. Sur La Table apologized for the error, but instead of overnighting Rachel a refund check as promised, they inexplicably charged her an additional $31.89. Now Rachel is angry and wants an explanation. More »
accounting
How States And Companies Make Money Off Of Unspent Gift Cards
In the last three years, New York has collected $19 million in unused gift card balances under the state's unclaimed-property laws. Best Buy added $135 million in unspent gift cash to its total operating income over the past two years. "For individual retailers, unspent balances can range anywhere from 2% to more than 10% of all gift-card sales," notes BusinessWeek. More »
rain, sleet, or snow
Post Office Offers Refund In Stamps After Delivering Priority Mail Package Five Weeks Late
"I wanted to let you and my fellow readers know about the agonizing experience I had with the US postal service recently. They didn't quite lose my "2 to 3 day" Priority Mail package, but inexplicably shipped it back and forth across the country for over 5 weeks, missing Christmas by over a week, and then told me I did not deserve a refund!" More »
cashing in
Ungifting: The Art Of Selling Your Crappy Gifts To People With Bad Taste
If your family gave you something crappy this year, why not help the item find its intended audience by selling it online? The Chicago Tribune caught up with one woman who did just that. She didn't want to return the singing penguin figurines her mother purchased from QVC, because she didn't want to hurt mom's feelings, so she sold them on eBay. More »
complaints
What Part Of "Must Obtain Signature" Did FedEx Misunderstand?
Frank told FedEx to require a signature before delivering his skis, instructions FedEx found vague and confusing. When Frank complained, FedEx said that in order to deliver the increased volume of goods over the holidays, they reserve the right to essentially chuck your delicate gifts from a speeding truck. More »
shopping
Use Your Gift Cards Immediately!
The Dallas Morning News and Consumer Affairs both say you should use those gift cards as soon as possible—otherwise you risk losing them, forgetting about them, or having them decline in value due to maintenance fees or expiration dates. We know this isn't new news, but the idea that "$7.8 billion in gift card value will go unused this year" makes us cringe. If you really don't want the card, consider selling it online, or giving it to a shelter or other charity that can make use of it. More »
retail
Return Policies For 15 Major Retailers
Hate that stationary bike your hint-dropping friend got you for Christmas? Want to return it so you can buy something useful like a cook book or ten pounds of fudge? Well Mouseprint rounded up return policies for fifteen major retailers to help you offload all those gifts you never wanted. Retailers readily accept returns if you have a receipt and the original packaging with price tags. Most stores charge a 15% restocking fee and want their merchandise back within a few weeks. Happy returning!
Retailers' Return Policies: The 2007 Fine Print [Mouseprint]
Tips for hassle-free gift returns [All Consuming]
(Photo: stephentrepreneur)
holidays
Gift Idea: Buy Someone A Magnum
Tyler Colman, Ph.D., also known as Dr. Vino, suggests giving magnums this year because those huge bottles have a smaller carbon footprint due to the more favorable wine-to-glass ratio. More »
"Shoppers who pay the full price of about $249 for an out-of-stock Wii on December 20 and 21 at retailer GameStop Corp will get a certificate promising a Wii 'sometime in January,'" sez Nintendo's Reggie Fils-Aime. Only at GameStop, urg. [Reuters]
gifts
10 Magazine Gift Guides Reviewed & Ranked
You're busy: you don't have time to shop, or to read magazines, or to look at magazines for ideas to guide you when you go shopping, which you're not going to do because you're too busy. Luckily Slate has pre-digested the gift guides from ten magazines including Vogue, Maxim, Consumer Reports, and Gourmet, then barfed them up like an HTML mama bird for your shopping convenience. More »
trends
Talking Jesus Action Figure Sells Out At Walmart
If you were planning on getting a Talking Jesus Action Figure this Christmas (or whatever) you're almost out of luck. Walmart has completely sold out of the toy and Target.com has "very limited supply," according to the manufacturer's spokesperson, Joshua Livingston. More »
gift cards
LeverageCard Lets You Store And Trade Gift Card Data Online
A new website launched last week that lets you store your gift card data from a variety of retailers in one location, where you can track usage, retrieve card numbers if you lose the physical card, or even swap card balances with other members. The site will also pay you 1% interest on the balance of each card you register, or 3.65% interest if you purchase the card through their site. More »
gifts
Money Bloggers Pick Their Top Financial Books
Thinking about getting a book for that financially-challenged relative this holiday season? If so, it's likely that you're stuck deciding which of the thousands of personal finance books is the best gift choice. Well lucky for you, money blogger Five Cent Nickel developed a list of top financial books that should make your choice a bit easier. Nickel asked several money bloggers to name their favorite personal finance books and give a few thoughts on why the book was their favorite. The result is a list of eleven great personal finance books that can help round out anyone's shopping list.
Eleven Great Books About Money [Five Cent Nickel]
— FREE MONEY FINANCE
(Photo: strobist)
christmas creepy
Stores Offer To Send Your Friends And Family An Invasive Holiday Wish List
Wouldn't it be great if you could email your holiday wish list to friends and family without seeming like a self-indulgent clod? Well, the Wall Street Journal is reporting that several stores now feature self-promoting wish lists that magically email themselves or generate sales calls to potential gift givers. More »
holidays
Shopping Tip: 100 Notable Books
The New York Times has released its list of the 100 Notable Books of 2007, so if you're shopping for bookworms... you get the idea. More »
The folks at NPR would like you to know that they've added a "Green Room" to the NPR Shop. In addition to not wrecking the planet, your purchase supports NPR's general awesomeness. The glassware made from recycled wine bottles looks pretty darn cool. [NPR]
