We hear wonderful things about Amazon Prime…except from readers who live in parts of the country served by smaller shipping carriers like Ontrac and Ensenda. Reader Z. recently reported a package missing, and Amazon sent a replacement. Ontrac brought both the original package and the replacement on the same day…a week after that original shipment was supposed to arrive. [More]
Retail Services
Ontrac Takes My Amazon Package On Weeklong Vacation, Delivers It Alongside Replacement
By 9.12.13 — Updated: 5.7.14
Scammer Threatens To Blow Up Kmart If Prepaid Debit Card Isn’t Filled
By 9.12.13
While the man in the earlier story who mentioned that he might get a machine gun and use it against the employees of a customer service call center was improperly venting his frustration, the person who called in a bomb threat to a New Jersey Kmart was just trying to scam the store out of some money. [More]
D.C. Mayor Vetoes Higher Minimum Wage, Re-Opening Door For Walmart
By 9.12.13
Earlier this summer, city lawmakers in Washington, D.C., passed legislation that would raise the minimum wage in the city for workers at certain large retailers from $8.25/hour to $12.50/hour. It was seen as a direct challenge to Walmart, which had planned to open new stores in the nation’s capital, and which threatened to pull out if the bill was enacted. But now that’s a non-issue, as Mayor Vincent Gray has vetoed the legislation. [More]
Let’s Hope Kids Didn’t Vote Funzo Onto Walmart “Hot Toy List” Or We’re All Doomed
By 9.12.13
The children are our future and as such, they hold our fates in their adorable, tiny, toy-clutching hands. Walmart decided to let kids decide what this year’s hot holiday toys will be, holding a three-day playfest to allow them the try out and rate their favorite toys. Anyone who knows The Simpson‘s Funzo should be hoping those tykes didn’t choose a toy-murder happy creature sent from the bowels of hell to destroy us all. [More]
How A 1¢ Interest Payment Zombified My Bank Of America Account
By 9.12.13
A few days ago, we shared the hilarious and pitiful one-cent check that a reader received after closing out his Bank of America money-market account and taking the funds elsewhere. This was a silly and annoying waste of paper and postage, but better than the alternative…having the account go zombie and run up a negative balance when it should have been long since dead. [More]
Sears Settles With New York Over Deceptive Refunds
By 9.12.13
For more than two years, Sears offered “Come Back Cash” promotions that rewarded customers with Sears gift cards for purchases over certain qualifying thresholds. But if a customer returned an item, they would have the proportionate value of that gift card deducted from the refund, even if the total value of the purchase was still above the threshold for meriting a gift card. [More]
Lawsuit Claims Home Depot Is Shaking Down Accused Shoplifters
By 9.11.13
A new lawsuit aimed at Home Depot claims the company engaged in shakedown tactics to pressure and intimidate thousands of customers, accused of shoplifting, into paying millions of dollars to have those accusations dropped. The class-action suit says Home Depot would threaten customers with a lawsuit if they didn’t pay up, even when they had no intention of actually suing anyone. [More]
Kmart Forgets It’s Still Summer, Begins Airing Holiday Ad
By 9.10.13
Perhaps Kmart panicked after having a nightmare that it was November and had forgotten to put together a holiday ad campaign, or maybe some prankster at Sears changed a Kmart marketing exec’s desk calendar. Why else would the beleaguered retailer start airing a holiday shopping ad while it’s still summer? [More]
Some Target Stores Accidentally Put New Phillip Lim Line On Sale A Week Early
By 9.10.13
Some bargain-hunting label-lovers have been waiting eagerly for Target’s Sept. 15 launch of a new clothing and accessory line from designer Phillip Lim. But thanks to a handful of stores that screwed up and put the clothes out for sale a week early, some items are now available to snag on eBay. [More]
With New iPhone Looming, Walmart Announces Smartphone Trade-In Program
By 9.10.13
The folks at Apple will soon reveal a new iPhone, inevitably leaving some consumers looking at their current device while asking, “What did I ever see in you in the first place?” Walmart, however, still sees some value in that phone you don’t love anymore (especially in terms of its resale value on the secondary market — hubba hubba) and is willing to take it off your hands. But is it a good deal? [More]
Chase: Refunding A Scam Victim Is The Same As Forgiving A Debt
By 9.9.13
When you successfully convince your credit card company that you were scammed out of thousands of dollars and that a chargeback should be issued, you’d think that would be the end of the story, but not for one Chase credit card customer who just found out — two years after receiving the money back — that Chase now says the refund is actually a forgiven debt, and that he must pay income taxes on it. [More]
Bank Of America Cuts Me A 1¢ Check I Don’t Want Or Need
By 9.9.13
Bank of America…scrupulously honest? Hmm. Reader Dave closed his money market account that dated back to the Countrywide era, transferring all of the funds to a local bank. (Yay!) Well, he thought he had transferred all of the funds. Did the company zombify his account years later, charging him maintenance fees on a one-cent balance? No. something unexpected happened. [More]
Scammers Vomit On Receipts To Trick Walmart Into Taking Back Bogus Video Games
By 9.9.13
Using the power of emetophobia, some scammers in Michigan apparently think they have found the secret formula for tricking Walmart into accepting returned video games — or rather, returned video game boxes containing counterfeit or blank discs. [More]
Judge Denies Class-Action Request In Massive Bank Of America Lawsuit
By 9.6.13
An effort to consolidate 26 separate homeowner lawsuits against Bank of America hit a huge roadblock yesterday when a federal judge ruled that while the individual cases appear to have merit, they can not be heard as a group in a class action. [More]
Corn Poop Soap Just Might Be The Gift You Need
By 9.4.13 — Updated: 9.5.13
“Can vary slightly in size, shape and color – just like real ones!” says the promotional copy for Corn Poop Soap, a product that is exactly what it sounds like. It’s soap shaped like a turd full of corn kernels, a picture of which we will not put on the front page of this site, because ew. [More]
There’s A New iPhone Coming. Where Should You Sell Your Old One?
By 9.4.13 — Updated: 9.5.13
Every year, the trees shed their leaves before winter comes, and gadget-lovers shed their iPhones once the new one appears on store shelves. While rumor circulate about exactly what the newest version will have (a thumbprint reader? A glorious golden case?) we know for sure that Apple fans want to know where they can get the most cash for their stale old phones. [More]
Kmart Frowns Upon Customers Using A Closed Store As A Personal Huffing Haven For The Night
By 9.4.13
Sometimes you don’t want to go home, and perhaps sometimes you just don’t have enough money to splash out on a hotel or motel room. But that doesn’t mean Kmart will take kindly to customers snuggling up inside a closed store like a ne’er-do-well stowaway intent on huffing numerous canisters of air duster. [More]
Does The Garden Of Discontent Still Bloom In The Off-Season?
By 9.3.13
Daniel ordered what’s called a “country bundle” from 1-800-Flowers for his girlfriend. When we have flowers delivered, we’re not buying dead plant stems. If that were the case, there wouldn’t be such a large industry built around flower delivery. What we’re buying is the experience of dazzling our partner when they see the flowers. Daniel’s girlfriend received this arrangement, but she wasn’t dazzled. Should she have been? [More]
