Consumerist
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stinky
Chicago Is Sorry They Towed 20 People So Secret Could Film A Deodorant Commercial
Know what's more important than you not having your car towed and having to pay a $160 tow fee? Secret deodorant commercials! At least that's the message Chicago sent back in September when they put up signs about a film shoot tow zone only 3 hours before the towing was to begin. More » -
class action
Chicago Impounds Your Car As Part Of "Investigation," Holds It Hostage
A class action lawsuit has been filed against the City of Chicago on behalf of people whose cars were impounded as part of a police investigation — and then charged outrageous fees to get their vehicles back. The lawsuit covers 15,000 people whose cars were impounded by the city over a five year period. More » -
privatization
Lawsuit Attempts Declare Chicago's Privatized Parking Meters "Illegal and Void"
Know what people don't like? Chicago privatized parking meters. Now a public interest group is suing the city, claiming that Daley didn't have the right to lease the meters to a private company for an "excessive period," that that tax payer dollars shouldn't go towards police to enforce meters owned by a private company. They also say that the city can't force the Illinois Secretary of State to suspend licenses for failure to pay tickets issued at private meters. More » -
scams
Apartment Listing Service Sells Database Of Scammy And Outdated Rentals
The Illinois attorney general's office has filed suit against a Chicago-based rental property listing service for allegedly "charging consumers a membership fee for access to a property database populated largely with fraudulent or outdated rental listings." More » -
odd
KFC Wants To Fix Chicago's Pothole Problem
Will sponsored pot holes sell chicken? KFC seems to think so. They've asked the City of Chicago if they can fix potholes — in exchange for including a white stencil saying the spot was "Re-freshed by KFC." More » -
privatization
Parking Meter Revolt: Chicagoans Are Vandalizing Parking Meters In Protest!
The Chicago parking meter saga continues today with a post from theexpiredmeter.com, a blog about Chicago parking tickets and how to fight them. The post has photos of parking meters being spray painted, destroyed and otherwise defaced. Guess people aren't too thrilled with paying 28 quarters for 2 hours in the Loop... More » -
privatization
Are Chicagoans Rebelling Against The New Parking Meter Regime?
The evidence is purely anecdotal, but it seems that some unrest might be brewing in the City of Chicago. Now that the Mayor has leased the city's parking meters to a company that jacked up the rates, people might be staying home rather than feed the meters — which now take as many as 28 quarters for 2 hours. More » -
privatization
Chicago To Lease Parking Meters To A Company That Will Charge $6.50 An Hour?
The Chicago Sun-Times is reporting that Mayor Richard M. Daley of Chicago is trying to get "quickie" approval for a proposal to privatize the city's parking meters. Under the 75 year lease, Chicago's 36,000 parking meters would be controlled by a partnership that includes Morgan Stanley Infrastructure Partners and LAZ Parking. This partnership will, naturally, raise prices. Critics of the proposal say that charging $6.50 an hour by 2013 to park downtown would hurt local businesses. More » -
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errors
Gas Station Owner Accidentally Sells Gas For $0.35, But Is Glad To Have Made People Happy
Mimi Zidan owns the Lucky Mart in Pekin, IL, where a pricing mistake resulted in a mob of gas thirsty customers, rushing to take advantage of pumps that were dispensing gas for only $0.35 per gallon. You'd think she'd be upset about losing so much money, but she's not. More » -
badvertising
Car Dealership Disguises Junk Mail As Traffic Ticket
Reader Sandra thinks Feeny Dodge in Elgin, IL should rethink this advertisement, which is disguised as a traffic ticket. More » -
scams
Towing Chicago-Style: Put Up A Sign After Hundreds Of Cars Have Already Parked
If you're from Chicago and have ever parked an automobile, this has probably already happened to you 6 times and you'll be wondering why this story is even newsworthy. Feel free to go get a sandwich. For the rest of the country... The Chicago Sun-Times is reporting that hundreds of people who drove to the 79th annual Bud Billiken Parade got a nasty surprise when they found that a towing company had posted a notice after the parade started and towed all of their cars. More » -
The Chicago Public School system has given a car to a 12-year-old in recognition of her perfect attendance over a three month period. "By attending school every day within any one of three time periods, a total of 189,115 students were eligible for the Dodge Caliber, which was donated to CPS by Clear Channel and South Chicago Dodge." We suppose giving cars to 12-year-olds is one way to advertise your car dealership. [Chicago Tribune]
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legal
Should GameStop Charge Sales Tax On XBOX Live Memberships?
Reader Dave asks an interesting question. Should GameStop be charging sales tax on an XBOX live membership card? Generally speaking, only "tangible goods" are subject to sales tax, though every state is different. More » -
gift cards
Illinois' New Gift Card Law
Consumers in Illinois have a new gift card law coming into effect next month, says the Springfield State Journal-Register. The new law will prohibit gift cards from expiring within 5 years of being issued.Under the new law, the recipient of a $50 gift card — for example — will be able to spend the entire $50, said the measure's House sponsor, Democratic Rep. Jack Franks of Woodstock.
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subprime meltdown
Countrywide Subpoenaed by Illinois Attorney General
Lisa Madigan, the attorney general of Illinois, is investigating subprime mortgage lender Countrywide "as part of the state's expanding inquiry into dubious lending practices that have trapped borrowers in high-cost mortgages they can no longer afford," says the New York Times. More » -
news from the prairie
Senator Durbin On Toy Safety: "It Might Just Be A Good Christmas For Books Or Movies"
Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) is the Chairman of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Financial Services and General Government, which recently held hearings about the state of toy safety in the U.S. What did Sen. Durbin take away from those hearings? More » -
prices
Too Much Rain In Illinois, Pumpkin Prices Are Up
Our home state of Illinois is the largest producer of pumpkins in the US (Yes, we really do think that's cool, ok?) More » -
sucker state
The Case Of The Phantom I-Pass Transponder
Reader and commenter ChicagoOutfit is having trouble with Illinois' much-loved tollway system. His I-Pass account has someone else's transponder attached to it and he's paying for some random jerk's tolls. He calls the ISTHA and has it removed, but Illinois doesn't refund his money and the transponder keeps coming back. More »
sucker state
New York, 10:10 AM
Mon Nov 16
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