American's policy allows military personnel "one checked 100-pound duffel-type bag, one standard checked 50-pound suitcase and one standard carry-on suitcase of up to 40 pounds." They're getting "a total of 190 pounds of free luggage," said airline spokesman Tim Wagner, in an e-mail to the El Paso Times.

Staff Sgt. Ashley Serrano doesn't see it that way. He says that other airlines see his uniform and waive their baggage fees. "I have flown Southwest, Continental, and when they saw me in uniform, they didn't even ask," Serrano said. "I flew American a couple of times before, but I never had this problem."

Serrano said he was confronted Friday at the El Paso International Airport with a demand for $100 for his third bag, and when he mentioned he was headed for Camp Bowie - where Texas Army National Guard soldiers train before deployment - he said they told him, without a smile, that the Army should have given him a voucher. Serrano's fellow soldier and traveling companion had three extra bags and was charged $300, he said.

"I am not aware of any ability by our agents to waive an excess baggage fee, even for military personnel - since they already have the common checked bag fees waived in our policy," [an American Airlines spokesperson] said. "Otherwise, our policy is very generous as you can see, and intentionally so. We're very proud of our military forces - and many of our employees began their flying careers with the military - so we're pleased to be able to help."

Serrano doesn't seem to think the policy is generous.

"You couldn't fit it all into two (checked) bags if you tried," he told the paper.

Airline baggage fees hit soldier flying out of El Paso for training [El Paso Times] (Thanks, Gabe!)
(Photo: benh57 )

My wife-to-be and I had registered at Target for our wedding, knowing that consumers have had a bad experiences returning items off their registry without a receipt. Well, we got ourselves married (yay!) and lo and behold, we had present duplicates, including a set of blenders that lacked a gift receipt.

We went in and exchanged the duplicates that we could, and complained (loudly) about the blender that we couldn't. What we didn't expect was for the rep we were working with to pull us aside and tell us to come back in a few days and we should be able to return it off of the registry.

I went in this morning, and it did! They have re-added the Gift Purchase Log, and you are able to return items off of that without a receipt if you let them scan your ID. The rep I was working with this morning was unaware of the change, but the manager set her straight right away!

Victory for the consumer!

We are pleased to hear that this silly policy has been fixed.

(Photo: crawfishpie )

Here are the facts:
1) Purchased $200 Canon SLR camera from Target
2) Within the 90 day return period called to ask if I could return the camera shortly after the 90 days because I was leaving town and rushed
3) Supervisor in Target’s return department gave me his name and said it would be okay to return the camera shortly after the 90 day period had expired
4) Within a week of the expiration of the 90 day I went to the Target store in Culver City to return the camera
5) Target returns showed me their 90 day policy and refused to take the camera back
6) Called Target guest relations 800 number and explained that I had been given permission to return the item after the 90 return period but they would not take the item back
7) Target guest relations reiterated Target’s policy
8) I explained to relations that I understood the policy and that is why I called the store to see if I could get an extension of the 90 days. Had I not been given the extension by the returns supervisor I would have made arrangement s to return the item within the 90 days.
9) Target guest relations said that their returns supervisor was not authorized to extend the return deadline.
10) I explained to Target guest relations that I should not be expected to know what their returns supervisors have authority to do.
11) Target guest relations said that a mistake was made but Target still will not be able to accept the item back
12) So put it all together and you get Target employee makes a mistake, but customer must pay for it.
13) I guess that means next time I make a mistake, Target gets to pay for it.

We've been getting more and more complaints about Target and their insanely strict return policy lately. Looks like their customer service has RRoD'd (as the gamers say.)

If you've got any functioning contact information that would help us launch some Target EECBs, we'd love to hear about it. Send it to tips@consumerist.com.

(Photo: blue_j )

We got into the park (after the security guy searched our bag and made us throw away our dangerous bottle of water) and made a bee-line for the Dark Knight coaster.
The line was short, about 25 minutes, but there was a catch – a security person at the entrance was turning people away if they had any kind of bag, be it a small purse or a big backpack.
There were lockers right at the entrance for a $1 each. You had to stow your bag to ride the ride.

We saw this a while ago when Kingda Ka opened, though it was $2 then, but that was the only coaster with this requirement.
Not knowing what to expect from Dark Knight, we ponied up the buck and got in line.

The ride was a major disappointment. More like a carny ride at Coney Park than what we’ve come to expect from Great Adventure. Without exaggeration, this is the worst ride in the park. The tea-cups are more fun than the Dark Knight.

And the real kicker, the seats on the ride were big and open, and we could have easily and safely taken my GF’s purse with us. We were a little annoyed that they got us for another buck, but kind of just went with it.
We retrieved our bag and went on our way. (The lockers have a 2 hour time limit, btw, after which the contents will be “discarded.”)

We went to get on Batman: The Ride across the way, and were blocked because they had the same lockers.
That’s when we realized that all the major coasters in the park now require you to stow your bag, and charge you a buck a ride for the privilege.
We opted instead to walk back to the car and just ditch the bag in the trunk. Leaving behind the Dramamine, our hats, extra sunblock and her eyeglasses. Stuff we’d like to have with us, but weren’t critical.

We thought it was pretty lousy that rides we’ve been going on for years and taking the bag on, or stowing it in a cubby-hole on the platform, now suddenly charged a buck each. As if the park isn’t already nickel and diming you to death, this was the last straw.

We decided next year to go to Hershey Park instead.

What do you think of this policy?

Three CR Teams to Handle Reward Zone Premier Silver Customer Calls

As of Monday June 9th, three teams in Customer Care will be skilled to receive calls from Reward Zone Premier Silver Customers. The role of these three teams will be to support normal BBY retail customer issues, not to adjust RZ Points or address escalated RZ issues. The three teams are Jane’s, Scott F.’s and Esau’s.

Any calls received by those teams requiring RZ point adjustments or involving an escalated RZ issue should be transferred to the dedicated Premier Silver Customer Support Representatives in Reward Zone using the UTC extension #533.

The three CR Teams have been chartered to handle Reward Zone Premier Customers in order to give those customers more immediate response to help through our phone systems, and to provide a heighten level of both service recovery and policy exception consideration from Customer Care.

All CR Agents should have a high-level knowledge of the qualifications to be a Reward Zone Premier Silver, and know the policy exceptions provided to RZ Premier Silver Customers. RZ Premier Silver Customers will be identified in fcClient in as “Premier Silver” in the Tier Fields in the fcClient “Search” and “Case” Screens.

If a CR Agent other than agents on those three trial teams happens to receive a call from a RZ Premier Silver Customer, they should transfer the call to an agent on one of those three teams. Even if the nature of the issues is within the scope of normal issues of a CR Agent, for reporting purposes, we would like those calls transferred.

The qualifying requirements to be a Reward Zone Premier Silver Customer:

The customer must spend $2,500 in a calendar year to qualify for RZ Premier Silver status.
The $2,500 can be purchases at a BBY Store, Best Buy.com, or purchases at another retailer if the customer uses a RZ MasterCard

The Benefits of being a Reward Zone Premier Customer:

Extra Points
1.25 Points earned for every dollar spent (as opposed to 1 point for every dollar for other RZ levels)
1.5 Points earned for every dollar spent using a Reward Zone MasterCard at a BBY Store or BestBuy.com
Premier RZ Customers can bank points (unique to Premier Members)
Special Offers from Geek Squad
Free shipping on BestBuy.com purchases
Dedicated support services – CR, BestBuy.com & Reward Zone
Priority Access to Reward Zone Program member events such as concerts and private concerts.
(All RZ Customers will need to accumulate the same 250 Points to receive a $5 GC )

Policy Exceptions for being a Reward Zone Premier Customer:
45 day product return policy
45 day price match time period
No 15% restocking fee on those products that would normally be charged that fee.

MyRewardZone/Premier [Best Buy]

As we've mentioned before, Target doesn't accept returns or exchanges of gifts bought through their wedding registry unless you have a receipt. Got two of the same thing? You're out of luck unless you're willing to call your wedding guests and ask them if they kept the receipt.

Reader Terry has two ice tea makers and two griddles that she'd like to exchange, but is having no luck with Target. Terry has launched an EECB and cc'd us so we could listen in:

My fiancée and I registered at Target as well as Elder-Beerman for our wedding on May 24, 2008; it went wonderfully, by the way. At least until after we opened the gifts. We received two iced tea makers and two griddles from our registry, and they were marked “Fulfilled” on the registry. We also didn’t receive any receipts on the items, but I’m sure our family assumed like I did that you wouldn’t need a receipt with an item purchased from a gift registry.

I hauled my packages back to my local Target, with registry printout in hand as some extra insurance. The person behind the counter informs me that I will need a receipt or gift receipt even for an exchange of the items. I asked him why that was so, that you could clearly see from the registry that Target knew the items were paid for. He said that they used to be able to look up purchase information from the registry but they cannot anymore. He again told me that I should contact my relatives and get a receipt. I asked him if he thought that was tacky, and he agreed. I informed him that I would be escalating this issue, and offered to allow him to escalate it himself, which he was completely uninterested in.

When I went out into the parking lot and loaded the packages back into the car, I called the only phone number I could find which was on my registry printout. After verifying my information with the person on the other end of the phone, she proceeded to tell me that everything the person told me in the store was correct and there was nothing she could do to help me. I went over the same argument points with her that I went over with the person in the store: that it was tacky to call someone for a receipt and that Target knew when and where those items were purchased. She did tell me one thing that the person inside did not mention, that our registry was created before this policy change took place. She told me that gift receipts print out automatically and that it was the gift giver’s responsibility to make sure a receipt was given with the gift. I told her that I found this policy hard to believe, since in the time I have been shopping in Target since this policy change not one of the cashiers have told me that gifts I give from a registry can no longer be looked up and the person MUST get a receipt or gift receipt.

I informed the person on the phone that I would be informing all of my friends of the customer-unfriendly practices at Target, but I also wanted to contact a person of authority at Target to give them a chance to rethink this anti-consumer policy. Low and behold though, while searching for the e-mail address of someone I could contact at Target HQ I found this story, which is another formerly loyal customer with the same issue.

Target: You’re logging registry purchases. We know it. You know it. Your employees know it. I understand that fighting internal and external shrink is important but intentionally removing the ability of team members to verify purchase information is ludicrous. I am not asking for a refund, just the ability to make an exchange for a gift that I can actually use. This is not an unreasonable request.

Also, FWIW: Elder-Beerman had no trouble looking up a duplicate gift I received there. They even issued me a gift card so I could order a china set that they didn’t have in the store. I guess you really do get what you pay for.

Terry

PREVIOUSLY: Target Bungles Wedding Registry, Won't Exchange Duplicate Gifts Without Receipts
(Photo: pdxmac )

Consumer Reports says:

According to the posted policy, you’re simply out of luck if you don’t have a receipt and Target can’t verify the purchase through its electronic “receipt look-up” system, as might be the case if you paid cash or received the item as a gift.

But for items costing up to $20, there’s another “hidden” option that you won’t see on the store’s posted return policy. Customers can get store credit, provided they show a driver’s license or other government-issued identification and haven’t already used this option twice during the year. This option actually has been around awhile, although it initially allowed no-receipt returns for items valued up to $100, an amount subsequently reduced to $40, and reduced again last year to $20.

“It is something we look at as an accommodation above and beyond the policy," says Target spokesman David Fransen. "It’s not publicized or advertised.”

Target’s 'hidden' return policy [Consumer Reports]

Alex called Best Buy's corporate number, but was on hold so long that the police arrived before he could speak with anyone. After getting the manager's information, he left the store, then called Best Buy corporate again, where he spoke with a supervisor who told her that no, actually it's NOT Best Buy's policy to call the cops whenever a customer shares her experiences with another customer, unless it's "disruptive." Alex's email:

Dear Consumerist,

I absolutely love reading your blog and have learned a great deal about the horrors of Best Buy "customer service." But never in a thousand years did I think I'd be sending in my very own Best Buy horror story.

I had recently purchased the Jawbone headset from my local Verizon store based on good reviews, but I quickly discovered my supreme dissatisfaction with it and was looking to replace it with a different brand. On March 5, 2008, at around 9 PM, I entered the Best Buy store in East Brunswick, NJ to see their selection of bluetooth headsets.

The selection of headsets at this Best Buy was dismal, and the merchandising was less than appealing, but that's not why I'm writing. While I was browsing the selection, another customer picked up the Jawbone headset and was taking a look at it. I shared my disappointing experience with the headset and also alerted him to the fact that Best Buy was charging an additional $30 on top of both the manufacturer's price online and Verizon's price. All of this was said within earshot of a sales associate, and I walked away after sharing my experience.

Within 30 seconds, a manager named Tom approached me and asked me to leave the store. I thought he was joking, since I had done absolutely nothing wrong, and I asked Tom for the reason why I needed to leave. According to Tom, "it was policy."

I was incredulous. I've worked far too many retail jobs to know the extent of "power" a manager has over customers, and my intuition told me he was pissed that I lost him a potential sale. I refused to leave the store, based on the fact that I had done nothing wrong and that this so-called policy was pulled out of his ass. Tom walked away and directed an associate to call the police.

I was shocked that Tom treated me like a thief—the cops were coming! I asked Tom for the Best Buy customer service number and immediately called to speak with someone that would knock some sense into trigger-happy Tom. Of course, I had to wait for what seemed like forever to speak with a representative, but before I could actually talk to a live person, the cops came.

Two cops and about four Best Buy associates in tough guy poses stood at the front of the store, obviously creating a dramatic scene. I was calmly waiting for a customer service rep to pick up the phone. I gave up on the customer service line, got the store's phone number and Tom's full name and title and left as per police request.

I have never been so humiliated and infuriated in my life. I felt like my First Amendment rights were violated—all I did was tell a fellow customer my experiences with a product! When I got home I FINALLY spoke to Daniel, a supervisor at Best Buy's customer service line, and he was shocked and appalled at Tom's actions. Daniel confirmed that Tom COULD have asked me to leave, had I been disruptive, then stated that Tom had no right to police a conversation between two customers, regardless of what was said. Daniel apologized profusely, took all of my contact information down, and noted that I had requested to receive a follow up email from a district manager that would deal with the investigation and formal complaint.

As far as I'm concerned, Tom can rot in hell. But I know how retail works, and he'll most likely get some insignificant writeup and a slap on the wrist. What I really want is a massive gift card because of Tom's flagrant abuse of "policy" and for embarrassing the hell out of me in front of the whole store. What steps can I take to get Best Buy to make a customer happy, formally apologize, and give me a free gift card?

Thanks so much. I love the blog and tell all of my friends about it! Keep up the amazing work!

Best,

Alex

(Photo: ob1left)

Stop placing the open-box items right next to the old price tags! The pictures people send us are not (usually) staged. They are taken by ordinary shoppers who could care less about your precious policies, and who can spot idiocy when it stares them in the face. Don't make the screw job so !@#$% obvious and we might stop making fun of you. Well, we're going to make fun of you anyway, but geeze, make us work for it, alright?

Here's Alex's story:

I have a follow-up to my Apple replacement story from last month. Last week, my adapter melted. I called Apple, they replaced it on Sunday, and all was well for a day, then my logic board got all kinds of f@#!*d up.

And I called them back yesterday through the regular Apple Care number, they had me do basic stuff like zap the PRAM and repair disk permissions, and that would fix it for ten minutes after I hung up, then it would go back to being messed up

Two techs did that, and it didn't fix it, so I called the corporate number just now

I got an extremely nice person named Julia. I referenced my call to corporate with Jeff last month, then she looked at my case file and recited all the failures my MBP had had (logic board, hard drive, battery, optical, logic board, hard drive, adapter).

After reading the failures to me, she immediately offered a replacement.

She even told me she'd refund a prorated portion of what I paid for AppleCare because this new one would come with a year of warranty, and my AppleCare would only last a few months after that.

She sent out a replacement, and she also gave me the option of either not sending it out till they received my unit, or giving her my credit card number so they can charge me if they don't receive it in a certain amount of time.

RELATED
"Apple's Semi-Official Computer Replacement Policy"

From the Baltimore Sun:

BlueHippo will continue to operate, despite probes in several states - including Maryland, where a settlement has been reached - and a class-action lawsuit by customers.

Federal regulators said they were happy with the outcome.

Specifically, the FTC alleged that by failing to ship merchandise in a reasonable time frame or denying consumers the right to cancel and get a refund, BlueHippo violated the FTC's mail-order rule. Officials said the company also might have violated the federal Truth in Lending Act and its regulations by not giving consumers written disclosures before the transactions were made.

The commission also alleged that the company violated the Electronic Fund Transfer Act and its regulations by offering credit on the condition of repayment by preauthorized debits.

The FTC settlement bars the company from misrepresentations in the marketing of consumer equipment requiring more than four periodic payments. In addition, the company must fully disclose terms of refunds, cancellations or exchanges.

The FTC's action does not address one issue that drew criticism at Maryland's settlement last spring and elsewhere - the high cost of the computers. The company charged several times the retail price for the equipment, according to other settlements.

Founded in 2004, BlueHippo now describes a policy on its Web site that gives customers a cash refund within seven days of signing up and store credit for canceled purchases that can be redeemed by purchasing products on bluehippo.com.

Retailer settles FTC suit over PCs [Baltimore Sun] (Thanks, SwatLax!)

Now it looks like the weather might be something of a repeat from last year, but will the current weather delays turn into the same sort of fiasco as last year? Maybe not.

In fact, we've already received a compliment from a JetBlue passenger who, despite being delayed, was pleased with the way the airline handled it.

Here's her letter:

Yesterday there was quite the snow storm in the NYC area, so of course that was the day I chose to fly home on flight 354 from Burbank into JFK. I was a little nervous about taking Jet Blue given the fiasco this time last year (and the year before), but figured if anything did go down, they would compensate the passengers fairly (unlike my experience with Virgin Atlantic, which required a letter from my attorney to get anything).

They rushed us on to the plane at 1:00 pm in Burbank, telling us that if we were not off the ground by 1:30 pm, we could be indefinitely delayed as a result of the bad weather back east. A little before the cut off time, they said that Air Traffic Control was holding us until at least 2:30, so we could sit tight. A passenger near me called over a flight attendant and asked if we had to stay on the plane. The flight attendant said very nicely that we could leave any time and either hang out in the terminal or re-book the flight. A little later on, though, the captain stated that our bags would not be able to be removed if we did that so the whole plane of people wouldn't get delayed by one person wanting to get off.

We fortunately got off the ground a little after 2:00 pm and only hit a little bit of turbulence along the way. As we prepared to descend into JFK, the captain told us that Air Traffic Control at JFK was making us and 2 planes in front of us circle the area as there were delays at the airport. When we finally landed a little after 11:00 pm (only about an hour late), the flight attendants very nicely allowed all the passengers with connecting flights to rush off the plane (after having them move to the empty seats at the front).

Though it was unfortunate that the flight came in so late and the weather was bad, they handled the situation very nicely, and couldn't have been more accommodating. That being said, I did notice a lot of bundled up people sleeping in the terminal at JFK — I guess they weren't so lucky.

Sadly, the incipient passenger rights movement born after the ice storm is now on life support. The most credible of the passenger rights advocates, Kate Hanni, is expected to say a few words on the one-year anniversary of the storm. But I'm not sure it will be enough.

I covered the troubles of the passenger rights movement in a recent MSNBC column and concluded that unless passengers get behind the movement now, it's over. (Anyone who thinks a handful of "passenger rights" bills in state legislatures won't be killed on the federal level is smoking something very illegal, and I want some.)

There's a lesson not learned. When you have the momentum, make the changes you can now. I think passenger rights advocates spent too much time talking and squandered two seasons of free publicity. Now it's all but too late to do anything.

Happy Valentines Day — here's your ice storm [Christopher Elliott]
(Photo:meghannmarco)

i called that corporate number and asked the operator for jeanne toulouse

the operator asked me if i had talked to her or her office before for this issue or a previous issue, i said i hadn't, and she said ok, then she needs to transfer me to corporate customer relations

i talked to a guy there named jeff _____, and basically told him that i'd lost confidence in this computer, because of the hardware failures

he told me that the minimum requirements for apple to replace a machine are three completed major hardware failures (for laptops, he said hard drive, logic board, and optical drive—coincidentally what my three failures have been)

but three completed hardware failures apparently means that they've repaired it three times, so actually it's the fourth failure that will get you a replacement

i asked him several times if this was official apple policy or if there's some codeword i need to reference or anything because the genius i spoke to told me that he would keep repairing things and never replace them

and he said that it's not their policy to automatically do it any time a customer has four hardware failures, but that if the customer asks applecare or someone at an apple store, they'll replace it

so you have to ask, although it doesn't sound like you need to be very persistent once you've had that many failures

incidentally, when i was experiencing my 8 logic board failures with my ibooks in college, they replaced them after the third failure, but that may have been because the ibook logic boards was a known issue

i asked him if it made a difference if it was the same component or different, and he said no, as long as it's something major (which means no battery, casing, or keyboard), they'll replace it after four

i also saw in the comments to my post that some people claimed that genius bar repairs don't "count" for this repair total, so i asked if that was true and he said no, a repair is a repair

RELATED
"Get Applecare Executive Customer Service"
(Photo: galaygobi)

I recently had a situation with a Best Buy in Spokane Valley, WA. I was looking to purchase an XM satellite radio. I looked it all over and decided on which one I wanted. I picked up the box and took it to the front.

You don't need to purchase a subscription, apparently you just call once you make the purchase and talk to XM and they set up your service. While trying to make the purchase, the cashier asked for my telephone number. I politely refused to give my telephone number.

She immediately developed an attitude (like so many you describe at Best Buy in your stories). She told me that she could not sell me the radio without my home phone number. I asked her where on the sign with the price tag that it said $149 + Phone Number. She said it doesn't say that, but she could not sell it to me without my phone number. I then asked her if there was a manager who could come talk to me. The manager came over and had a brief conversation with the cashier and then refused to sell me the radio without my home phone number. Both developed the same nasty attitudes that are described so often by people with stories about Best Buy.

I politely left and walked across the street to Circuit City, but they didn't sell the model I was interested in. Now I am torn...I will never give my phone number, but there is no where left locally to buy what I am looking for.

Does privacy not mean anything anymore? I guess what struck me as odd is that I just sensed the same attitude from the Best Buy cashiers that everyone else describes. I mean, they have a god complex or something. It is just strange. Does Best Buy teach it's employees to be that way? It must or it wouldn't be such a wide spread attitude.

Any ideas?

-Travis

(Photo:dlayphoto)

One reason the Times selected the book is that, unlike so many "problem" books, it provides a series of possible solutions at the end.

It includes some steps that should be widely popular, like giving doctors incentives to explain the risks and benefits of procedures more clearly than they do now. Research has shown that patients frequently decide against marginal care when they know the true risks and benefits. Malpractice laws would also need to be changed so doctors were not sued by patients who later changed their minds.

Other solutions would be more difficult—because medical evidence is often murky, because hospitals and insurers would fight to keep their revenues and because most Americans think it's the other guy who's getting unnecessary treatment. These are the reasons that presidential candidates don't focus on wasteful treatment.

But models for reform are out there. Hospitals that don't use the fee-for-service model, like those run by the Veterans Health Administration, are already getting better results for less money. They closely track their performance—that is, the health of their patients—and motivate employees to improve it.

Southwest escorts children 5 through 11 who are traveling alone, but "once you hit 12, you're considered a youth and not an unaccompanied minor," said Teresa Laraba, the airline's vice president for ground operations.

Here's a summery of various policies from different airlines, to help you find a policy you're comfortable with. There are more specific policies in the article:

• 
  American:
  
• $75 each way for children 5 to 14 flying domestic and international flights.
  
• You can opt to have your 15-17 year old treated as a minor if you want to lay down the cash.
  
• Kids 5-7 have to fly direct, 8-14 can't transfer to another airline.

  Continental:
  

• $50 each way for kids 5-15 traveling non-stop, $95 for a connecting flight within the U.S. or Mexico. $70 and $95 for international flights.
  
• No connections for kids 5-7.

  Delta:
  

• $50 each way for children 5 to 15, $100 for connections.
  
• 5-7 not allowed on connecting flights.

  Northwest Airlines:
  

• $50 each way for children 5 to 14 on nonstop flights and $75 with a connection within the United States, Canada, Mexico, Puerto Rico and the Caribbean. $60 and $90 for international trips.

  Southwest Airlines:
  

• No fee. 5-11 on non-stop flights only. No connections.

  United Airlines:
  

• $99 fee each way for children 5 to 11.
  
• Children 5 to 7 are allowed only on nonstop or direct flights.

  US Airways:
  

• $50 each way for children 5 to 14.
  
• Kids are only allowed on non-stop flights.

Minor passengers, major worries [Columbus Dispatch]
(Photo:Jay Adan)

What they do is write down or take cameraphone pix of the gift cards in the stores before they are sold to customers. They periodically check in online to see if the cards have been sold and activated. Once they see the card is live, they order a bunch of stuff online with the stolen gift card numbers. By requiring the gift card be physically present, retailers, not just Home Depot, are hoping to prevent fraud. Takeaway: before buying loved ones gift cards this season, check to see if the cards can only be used in the flesh, and then make sure they live near a retail location.

PREVIOUSLY: HomeDepot.com Does Not Accept Home Depot Gift Cards

RELATED: Gift Cards Are New Source of Scams

(Photo: IHP)

My wife gave me $500 (5x$100) worth of gift cards as an anniversary present. When I went to use them at homedepot.com, there was no where to enter them in. I called their customer service (spoke with Selena) and was told the news about how they are not accepted as payment.

The local (20 miles away) store wont order the items in that I was looking at because they are listed as "online only"

We're now out $500, or at least we are obligated to spend $500 a retail Home Depot we would now rather spend at the local competitors or Lowes. Just thought others should be aware.

Thanks

-Ben

This Gift Card may not be applied toward Tool Rental deposits and/or purchases made outside of a store. This includes, but is not limited to, online purchases, phone sales, Depot Direct charges or any payment made at your home.

This Gift Card has no implied warranties and is not a credit card or debit card.

This Gift Card will not be redeemed or exchanged for cash, check or credit. It may not be used for payment on any credit or loan account.

Gift Card FAQ
(Photo:c0reyann)

Verizon Wireless abandoned its legal challenge Tuesday of the Federal Communications Commission's rules for its upcoming auction of radio spectrum, removing a potential obstacle to the much-anticipated sale.

The company, jointly owned by Verizon Communications Inc. and Britain's Vodafone PLC, filed a notice in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia that it was dropping its appeal.

The court earlier rejected an attempt by Verizon Wireless to have its appeal considered on an expedited schedule so it could conclude before the auction begins in January. Verizon's filing to the court Tuesday cited this as the reason for its decision to drop the challenge.

Legal experts had said that the company's challenge was unlikely to succeed because the courts generally defer to the FCC in rule-making procedures.

Verizon Wireless Drops Challenge to FCC [CNNMoney]
(Photo:WhiskeyTangoFoxtrot)

They're testing a new "coinless" parking meter system that would erase (not refund) any extra time left on a parking meter so the next person couldn't "piggyback."

The city sees this as "lost revenue."

"We call it 'piggybacking at the meter,'" said Bea Reyna-Hickey, the city's revenue director, referring to drivers who benefit from the leftover parking time purchased by the motorists who used the spaces before them.

"Think of the countless thousands of dollars lost" every year at the city's approximately 33,000 parking meters, she said.

ParkMagic? Not so much [Chicago Tribune via Wise Bread]
(Photo:josephp)

Kiplinger says that banks have already hauled in $19 billion this year in overdraft fees, and are quickly moving to amend policies that are attracting threats of regulation from the government.

Overdraft fees have morphed into a big money-maker for lenders, exceeding $19 billion this year — up 85% from 2004. Banks charge as much as $35 for a check, ATM withdrawal or debit purchase when funds to cover them are lacking, even if it's a $2 cup of coffee that puts a customer into overdraft territory. The sharp increase in total fees is largely due to two factors: The increasing use of debit cards and the fact that many banks automatically enroll customers in overdraft programs without them knowing about it.

They'll also offer less costly options when consumers open an account (such as linking the checking account to a savings account), program ATMs to offer warnings, and employ tiered fee systems in which the first overdraft might be waived but each additional overdraft would incur larger and larger fees. Will they really do what they say? Reply hazy. Try again.

Consumers to Get Some Relief on Overdraft Costs [Kiplinger]
(Photo:FastFords)

BoardFirst.com used passenger's confirmation codes to log them in 24 hours before their flight, thus ensuring the mythical "A" boarding pass. Southwest sued the site, claiming that it violated a clause in their terms of use prohibiting commercial use of their website.

Kate Bell, the owner of the site, says she expects Southwest to begin selling "A" passes itself.

We've never really understood the allure of Southwest. The lack of assigned seats gives us anxiety. It's like the world's most awkward, crowded movie theater.

Southwest's win kills boarding-pass Web site [Arizona Republic]
(Photo:Jay Adan)

"The online advertising business is complex, but my message to you today is simple: Online advertising benefits consumers, promotes free speech, and helps small businesses succeed. Google's acquisition of DoubleClick will help advance these goals while protecting consumer privacy and enabling greater innovation, competition, and growth."

"In our experience, our users value the advertisements that we deliver along with search results and other web content because the ads help connect them to the information, products, and services they seek. Simply put, advertising is information, and relevant advertising is information that is useful to consumers. The advertising we deliver to our users complements the natural search results that we provide, because our users are often searching for products and services that our advertisers offer. Making this connection is critical. In fact, we strive to deliver the ads that are the most relevant to our users, not just the ones that generate the most revenue for us."

Verizon had initially claimed that the text messages violated their policy against messages that were "highly controversial." From the WSJ:

In a statement Thursday, Verizon Wireless spokesman Jeffrey Nelson said, "The decision to not allow text messaging on an important, though sensitive, public policy issue was incorrect, and we have fixed the process that led to this isolated incident."

He added, "Upon learning about this situation, senior Verizon Wireless executives immediately reviewed the decision and determined it was an incorrect interpretation of a dusty internal policy."

Verizon Wireless said Thursday its policy had been developed before text messaging protections such as spam filters "adequately protected customers from unwanted messages." It was designed, the company said, to ward against communications such as anonymous hate messaging and adult materials sent to children.

Verizon Wireless Ends Ban On Abortion-Rights Group [WSJ]
(Photo:meghannmarco)

The change reflects Southwest's new focus on attracting more business travelers. Some analysts expect that Southwest will soon begin charging extra for A passes or some variation. No word yet.

Southwest to end family-first boarding policy[Houston Chronicle]
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I travel a lot on business. I'm on travel right now, in Orlando. Luckily for me, my business this morning was completed ahead of schedule, and as I left my vendor's office, I phoned Delta Air Lines to move up my return flight time a few hours.

This kind of thing happens all the time; up until Delta joined the ranks of the bankrupt airlines, making a change on the day of a flight was free, assuming seats were available on the alternate flight. A while back Delta tacked on a $25 fee, which was annoying but not a show-stopper. It's worth $25 for me to not waste half a day waiting on a flight.

Unfortunately, I've just discovered that Delta has changed the rules again. Now it's a $50 fee to make a change, plus another $20 if you make the change over the phone. It's "only" $50 if you put in for a change on Delta's web site—but you can't make a change on the web site if your original booking wasn't directly through Delta. Like most corporate travelers, I'm not allowed to book directly with an airline, I have to use my company's contracted travel agency.

I can defend a $25 fee. I'd have a hard time defending a $70 fee, and even if I could, I don't want to. I'm not going to give Delta any more money for this flight. The original ticket, booked on Monday, was more than pricey enough.

"To hell with 'em. AirTran is cheaper, much more accommodating, and unlike Delta, their gate reps and stewardii don't act like they did you a favor by showing up for work.

So long, Delta. You suck."

United Airlines
American Airlines
JetBlue
AirTran
US Airways

A Farewell To Delta [Vodkapundit]
(Photo:Maulleigh)

The Los Angeles Times says that South Los Angeles has the "highest concentration of fast-food eateries" and "far fewer grocery stores" than the rest of L.A. They also point out that "30% of adults in South L.A. are obese, compared with 20.9% in the county overall." The policy director of a local advocacy organization says that with the low income levels and limited transportation options, many South L.A. residents are "almost a captive audience for these restaurants, unfortunately."

Critics are saying it's a perfect example of a nanny welfare state policy, and that there are better ways to entice "healthier" restaurants to set up shop. But Mark Vallianatos, director of the Center for Food and Justice at Occidental College, says it's a step in the right direction:

"While limiting fast-food restaurants isn't a solution in itself, it's an important piece of the puzzle. [It's] bringing health policy and environmental policy together with land-use planning. I think that's smart, and it's the wave of the future."

[The headline to this post was updated to improve accuracy—thanks, B.]

"Limits proposed on fast-food restaurants" [Lost Angeles Times]
(Photo: Getty)

According to the Union-Tribune in San Diego, a man tried to return shotgun ammunition to his local Walmart. After he was refused he became enraged and told the employees he would be back to kill them all.

Then the man fired off some shots in the Walmart parking lot. No one was hurt, but witnesses were able to write down the man's license plate number and police located him at his home.

The San Diego SWAT team surrounded the man's mobile home and eventually had to use tear gas to get him to surrender after an 8 hour standoff.

Sorry, scary gun guy. Walmart's return policy on guns and ammo is clear: All sales are final. It pays to read the signs.

Santee SWAT standoff ends with arrest [Union-Tribune] (Thanks, jpac!)
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Let me state clearly what they are having us do: I had to return the camera at the store, the cost of which will be refunded to my brother's card. Then I have to call my brother and explain to him why I am exchanging his gift and ask him to please go back online and purchase a different camera for me. Talk about a pain for my brother who was just trying to get me a nice wedding gift!

I tried asking Best Buy to just give me store credit for the $300 so that I could go online and purchase the new camera without having to get my brother involved, they said no.

Hello,

I love the Consumerist! I've long followed all the shenanigans that Best Buy tries to pull, but up until now I have always been personally happy with their service and prices.

Until I got a wedding gift from my brother. My brother sent me and my fiancee the Nikon Coolpix digital camera. It's a great camera, only problem is that you have to charge the battery. My fiancee and I are honeymooning in the Dominican Republic and plan to travel oversees at least once a year, so we want a camera that takes AA batteries so that we don't have to deal with finding an adapter to charge the battery for our camera when it runs out of juice.

I pulled up the Best Buy website and looked around until I found a great camera that actually had better features than the one my brother sent me for $100 cheaper! Great I thought, I'll exchange the camera and have $100 in Best Buy credit to get some blank cds, a memory card and other electronics type stuff.

The first thing that gave me pause was that the new camera I wanted was listed as only available online. I wanted to return the camera to a store and just pick up the new one lickety-split. I thought I'd hit a store and try my luck anyhow.

At the store I was told that I could not exchange the camera but that I could return it (without having to ship it back) and that the card on which the gift was purchased would be refunded. I explained to the person that the camera was a gift and that reimbursing the card would do no good as we wanted to exchange this camera for another camera. After much coaxing it seemed like they would be willing to help us, until they found out that the camera we wanted was only available online. I was told there was nothing that could be done.

Let me state clearly what they are having us do: I had to return the camera at the store, the cost of which will be refunded to my brother's card. Then I have to call my brother and explain to him why I am exchanging his gift and ask him to please go back online and purchase a different camera for me. Talk about a pain for my brother who was just trying to get me a nice wedding gift!

I tried asking Best Buy to just give me store credit for the $300 so that I could go online and purchase the new camera without having to get my brother involved, they said no. I explained to them that by giving me the $300 store credit that the money would then stay within Best Buy (I'm not going to have my brother buy me a $200 camera and then ask him to go ahead and spend the extra $100 on something else for me at Best Buy) this didn't phase them. I also told them that if they didn't give us store credit that I could assure them that I would no longer be a Best Buy customer and that I had in fact seen the same camera that I was interested in purchasing available at both Circuit City and Amazon .com for $10 cheaper, but this fell on deaf ears.

I returned the camera, sent an email to my brother explaining things and asked him to purchase the other camera. The silver lining here is that my brother is saving $110 by purchasing the other camera through Amazon.com. But talk about making your customers jump through hoops to give a gift! Shame on you Best Buy.

Chris

(Photo: garavondik)

"Among other changes, the revisions to our Privacy Policy may have changed your preferences for receiving postal mailings from Alaska Airlines and its partners."

(Photo: JasonJT)

I'm really sorry to hear that you have sent us in your game. I researched this issue and found out that our distribution centers aren't set up to return customer discs of any kind so we're not able to send your disc back. I understand this is frustrating for you and I am very sorry that we cannot mail your disc back to you.

If you have not been able to return our DVD, feel free to send it back in the same mailer as your next return (2 in 1 mailer) once you have finished viewing the film. Be sure to include a note with your email address so that we can process the DVD.

I apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.

If you have any further questions or concerns, please feel free to contact us.

Thanks,
Netflix Customer Service

What Happens When You Send Back The Wrong Disc? [Hacking Netflix] (Thanks, Riley!)
(Photo: Maulleigh)

I made a purchase this past weekend that qualified for a $50 rebate. I attempted to follow the rebate process and was told by their Corporate Rebate folks (800-266-7872) - they would not honor it. They added, it would be honored if the store was one of the ones remaining open or website. You might want to publicize this to save folks from being "lured" by offers that will not be honored.

Effective immediately, customers in closing stores are not eligible for CompUSA rebates, and manufacturer rebates will not be available. If an item was purchased prior to 2/27/07, and qualifies for a rebate, please follow the normal submission instructions located on your rebate form. The closing store will not participate in CompUSA's national ads. However, the closing stores will have their own sales; pretty much every item in the store will be on sale, and the closing stores may have their own ads too.

CompUSA

I called my local Gamestop, where I know most of the employees by name, and asked what to do. They said they couldn't help me directly, but to call customer service at (800) 883-8895. I called that number, waited on hold for a few minutes, got a CSR and asked that my name be removed from the solicitation list. I said that I don't mind the calls telling me my reserved games are in, but that the solicitations needed to stop. He said that the two systems are linked, and that I couldn't be removed from one without being removed from the other. I said that was acceptable, since I really didn't want the solicitations. He asked for my phone number, I gave it to him, and he said he'd "put in a request" to have me removed from the system.

I actually like the "Your game is ready" calls. But I'd rather have no calls at all than the solicitations.

This policy is insane. Our tipster says at no time does GameStop inform customers that by accepting a "reminder" call they are opening themselves up to solicitation calls. They also offered the tipster no confirmation that his name had been removed. —MEGHANN MARCO

(Photo: stan)

George writes:

Now, we hear a lot of stupid crap while doing this job, and we are somewhat numb to it, but this really ticks us off. Who in their right mind would give their SSN out to someone just to put a pair of jeans back onto a gift card?!

We checked out Macy's return policy for returning items bought online to the bricks-and-mortar store. There is no mention of this "policy" on their site. Macy's, we'd like you to explain yourselves. Consumers, be like George's wife, do NOT give your Social Security Number to someone just to get store credit on a pair of jeans. For pete's sake!! —MEGHANN MARCO

SSN for Returns at Macy's? [Fat Pitch Financials]
Macy's Return Policy [Macys]