success stories

accolades

Sam's Club Lets You Swap Out RedRinged Xbox Hassle-Free

Virg's Xbox360 got the dread Red Ring of Death. He bought it in Feb '07, and it started failing this Nov '08. He figured it would be months before he would get it back and expected to have to pay somewhere. Much to his surprise, Sam's Club let him swap it out for a new one for free. More »

12:37 PM on Fri Nov 21 2008
By Ben Popken
16,337 views, 76 comments

Most discussed exkon: I'm not sure about this, was his xbox out of warranty? I have a few friends who had their xboxes RROD more »

success stories

EECB Convinces Best Buy To Pay For Damage To Car

Here's a good example of how to write an effective Executive Email Carpet Bomb, or EECB, to break through the "please hold" purgatory of the company's phone system. Alicia's car's bumper was scratched by a Best Buy employee, and calling consumer relations as directed proved fruitless. Now she's got a check in her hands from Best Buy to pay for the repairs.

We have quite a few stories now about Best Buy responding favorably to EECBs, which goes to show that if you can find a way to reach the company's executives—and you write a good EECB—your odds of having your problem favorably resolved improves considerably. More »

6:34 PM on Thu Nov 20 2008
By Chris Walters
8,957 views, 48 comments

Most discussed Mless: ...46" TV in a Fit? wow... more »

success stories

Reader Talks Citibank Down To A Lower Interest Rate On Her Credit Card

Nicole was hit with a surprise 6 point interest rate increase on her Citicard, so she fought back. Her story is a good reminder that you should look at all of your options and be prepared to argue on your behalf, even if you're not in a position where you can just pay off the entire balance and walk away. More »

1:27 PM on Mon Nov 17 2008
By Chris Walters
6,660 views, 47 comments

Most discussed h3llc4t: I like how she casually threw in that the rep didn't have an accent. Classy. more »

enterprise

Enterprise EECB Saves Man From Unjustly Paying $560 For Bumper Scratch

Enterprise Car Rental charged Mike $560 for a scratch on the bumper he felt was unfair, but after he followed The Consumerist's instructions on sending an Executive Email Carpet Bomb (EECB), all that changed. "Long story short," he writes, "Within ONE DAY, that email was forward with highlights , such as URGENT -PLEASE RESOLVE, and ultimately reached the northeast manager, who called me and apologized profusely for their poor handling of the situation, and WAIVED ALL charges ($560 for repairs). done..all wiped... GONE!!! THANK you for publishing that thread.. it absolutely positively works!!!"

So, if the low-level peons are ripping you off, try appealing to the higher authorities, en-masse, via EECB.
(Photo: Alexis Deadly)

1:33 PM on Fri Nov 7 2008
By Ben Popken
6,479 views, 38 comments

Most discussed okinawadato: reviled? ERAC is most definitely a nightmare. Now that we have gotten the business side's opinion, here's the consumer's: 1. Don't be more »

FedEx Rep Steps Up, Makes Buying Car 1000% Easier

Jeff has a big sweaty hug to give FedEx after their customer service rep Leslie personaly intervened and saved his car-buying transaction from getting 1000% harder. Read his happy tale, and another addition to the "ABOVE AND BEYOND" files, inside... More »

5:17 PM on Thu Nov 6 2008
By Ben Popken
21,271 views, 50 comments

att

Threatening To Cancel Saves Man $65.52 On AT&T Phone Bill

Here's how with a little patience, persistence and pricematching, reader Scott is saving $65.52 on his phone and internet service with AT&T: More »

1:26 PM on Thu Nov 6 2008
By Ben Popken
10,550 views, 36 comments

Man Finally Gets His $130 Back From Circuit City

In an update and conclusion, reader Sean let us know he finally got satisfaction regarding his story that we posted, "Circuit City Credits Wrong Card For $130 Return, Sends You Away With Nothing." More »

9:24 AM on Tue Nov 4 2008
By Ben Popken
8,086 views, 25 comments

Opposite Of EECB Gets Delayed Lenovo Laptop Order Expedited, Plus $5000 Loaner

When the Lenovo laptop Rick ordered for his college-bound daughter was super-duper delayed in arriving and he hadn't heard anything from the company, he did the opposite of an EECB (executive email carpet bomb). Instead of blasting his complaint to every single executive he could find, he wrote a well-crafted letter laser-targeted at a single individual, the SVP of operations. The result? An email from the Chief of Staff in the CEO's office. His order was expedited, and, in the meantime, they got a $5000 "Reserve Edition" leather-wrapped laptop as a loaner. Here's his letter that got him the fix: More »

7:52 PM on Fri Oct 31 2008
By Ben Popken
13,285 views, 33 comments

Most discussed yungjerry703: instead of carpet bombing send a smart bomb? that sounds like a splendid idea. more »

casio

Casio Stops Claiming Fingerprint Found Inside New Camera, Repairs Fully

Update on "Casio Voids Warranty, Claims There's A Fingerprint Inside New Camera": After Sam's story went live on Consumerist and he got escalated at Casio, they repaired his camera fully under warranty, acknowledged their mistake, and gave him a free 8 Gig Class III SD card. Sam writes, "Once the right people found out things moved around quickly."

PREVIOUSLY: Casio Voids Warranty, Claims There's A Fingerprint Inside New Camera

9:58 AM on Thu Oct 30 2008
By Ben Popken
6,652 views, 18 comments

Most discussed Greasy Thumb Guzik: There's a lot more here than we're getting. It's highly doubtful that the consumer opened the camera, most modern cameras & more »

success stories

When 9 Phone Calls Can't Get Your FiOS Installed, Email The CEO

Reader Bill was getting the run around from Verizon— but he wasn't even a customer yet! His dramatic ordeal started on October 9th, and by the 16th he'd taken a full day off of work, called Verizon nine times and still he was without FiOS. More »

10:35 AM on Fri Oct 17 2008
By Meg Marco
11,198 views, 32 comments

Most discussed JMB: Maybe the headline should read "When 9 Phone Call Can't Get Your FiOS Installed, Support a Company That Actually Wants more »

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