First of all — to any would-be arsonists out there? It’s a really crappy thing to do, burning down an elementary school’s playground. But even though fiery actions taken by arsonists torched a 7-year-old New Hampshire girl’s school playground, she’s not letting it get her down. Instead, she’s opened a lemonade stand to raise money for a rebuilding effort. [More]
Retail Services
Amazon To Start Collecting Sales Tax On Goods Shipped To Pennsylvania
By 8.30.12
To kick off the weekend, Amazon will be collecting a 6% sales tax on orders shipped to Pennsylvania starting on Saturday, because of a state directive that requires it do so. A spokesman said that despite the fact that the company had fought the sales tax, Amazon had to reverse its position to comply with the state. [More]
Once All Tip Jars Take Credit Cards You'll Have No Excuse Not To Give
By 8.29.12
“Ooh… sorry, I don’t have any cash on me… [cue regretful face]” will no longer be an acceptable policy if this newfangled tip jar gadgetry catches on. DipJar is pretty simple — a credit-card scanner that sits upright and resembles a traditional tip jar. Stick youur card in and leave a tip wherever it’s deserved. Time to start dreaming up alternate excuses, ye stingy folks. [More]
We've Got A Few Other Suggestions For Your $290 Other Than Buying A Fancy Paper Bag
By 8.29.12
I’ve had a package of brown paper lunch bags in my pantry going mostly unused for about four years now. I can’t remember how much I paid for them, although a similar 40-count bag is available from Dollar Tree for just $1. In case you are in the mood to spend $290, don’t spend that dough on a designer paper bag that’s all the rage on the Interwebs (you probably won’t use it either) — we’ve got a few other ideas on how you can spend your money. [More]
Woman Tracks Down Her Stolen Wallet On A Hunch, Catches Thief Using Her Debit Card
By 8.29.12
We’re so used to witnessing the theft of our money by tracking bank statements online or fielding phone calls from our credit card issuers over potentially bogus charges, but as it turns out, there are still real-life vigilantes taking their property loss into their own hands in real time. A Brooklyn woman found her wallet had gone missing while shopping in Manhattan and soon embarked on a personal reconnaissance mission to get it back. [More]
Bank Of America Jumps On The Simple Checking Fee Disclosure Form Bandwagaon
By 8.29.12
Just because all of its banking friends were doing it didn’t necessarily mean Bank of America was going to start using a simple form to disclose checking fees, but fortunately for its customers, it has. Citibank and Chase both switched already to the one-page form that sets out basic fees for ATMs, overdraft charges and account closings, and now BofA is onboard as well. Finally. [More]
EPA Announces New Fuel Efficiency Standards American Automakers Must Institute By 2025
By 8.28.12
While many American automakers are already shifting toward more fuel-efficient vehicles to please consumers aiming to save at the gas pump, the White House has made an official move in that direction. A new rule announced by the Environmental Protection Agency and Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood today says the U.S.’ fleet of vehicles must average 54.5 miles per gallon by 2025. [More]
Wells Fargo Pushes Pause On Foreclosure As Petition Nears 150,000 Signatures
By 8.28.12
Yesterday, we told you about the California woman who was trying to save the house she’d inherited when her mother passed away, but who claims she is facing foreclosure because the bank refuses to deal with anyone other than her late mom. Since then, more than 120,000 additional people have signed the daughter’s petition and the attention has moved Wells Fargo to put things on hold for a moment. [More]
Urban Outfitters Under Fire For Maybe Sorta Promoting Underage Drinking With Sassy T-Shirts
By 8.28.12
Urban Outfitters, home of T-shirts emblazoned with sassy or ironic sayings or perhaps clothing that unfortunately hearkens back to the Holocaust, is in hot water yet again. This time the trouble is all about a few shirts bearing pro-drinking messages, which is perhaps not the best idea for a store that has a huge underage demographic it’s actively trying to sell things to. Ruh roh. [More]
I Used To Work At GameStop, Now I'm Never Shopping There Again
By 8.28.12
We often hear from people who vow that they’ll never shop at GameStop again after one last straw of a terrible shopping experience. They’re usually not ex-employees, though. Marisa used to work at GameStop. It was a while ago: before, she claims, staffers were encouraged to sell quite so aggressively. Advanced sales techniques and even exceptionally good interpersonal skills aren’t required for employment at GameStop, or so we hear. Marisa’s experience annoyed even someone who used to spend hours in the store, though. That says something. She’s all irrational and expected staffers to know something about games. [More]
You've Gotta Fight For Your Right To Make Vaguely Naughty Jokes On A License Plate
By 8.27.12
Listen New Mexico Motor Vehicle Division, just because your dirty mind is taking a simple inside joke to a scandalous place doesn’t mean one man is about to give up on his ideal license plate. His plate reading “IB6UB9” (we’ll wait while you figure it out… got it? Great.) was recently revoked because the MVD says it’s obscene. [More]
Is It Still Wrong To Buy Reviews Even If They Aren't Necessarily Positive?
By 8.27.12
If all you want is for it to look like someone is at least reading your book and is willing to talk about it on the Internet, does it matter if it’s a good review or a bad review? Not to some self-published authors, who have turned to companies willing to write book reviews for a fee. All they want is that air of credibility that comes with having a real live person talk about their work. [More]
Wells Fargo Won't Talk To Me Because I'm Not My Dead Mother
By 8.27.12
A woman in California says she she just wants to take over the mortgage for the family house she inherited when her mom passed away, but instead she’s facing eviction because the folks at Wells Fargo will only speak to her dead mother. [More]
Best Buy Finally Agrees To Let Founder Schulze Poke Around All Up In Its Business
By 8.27.12
He begged, he pleaded, he wrote passionate letters asking for Best Buy to let him back in, and now it appears founder and former chairman Richard Schulze is finally getting his way. Or he’s at least going to be allowed to check out the information he needs to make a bid to buy the company. [More]
OnTrac Marks My Packages 'Delivered' Today, Delivers Them Tomorrow
By 8.27.12
Last week, we shared a story from a reader who got a very early wakeup call from OnTrac, on his porch with an Amazon package a few days earlier than anticipated. Ryan, meanwhile, has sort of the opposite problem. No, OnTrac isn’t pounding on his door after he went to bed. His packaged showed up in the system as “delivered” even though there was no sign of it. He actually received it the following day. Is OnTrac messing around with flux capacitors, redefining “delivered,” or is something else going on here? [More]
Automatically Adding Gratuity Only To The Bills Of Foreigners Is Pretty Much Discrimination
By 8.23.12
If you’ve ever traveled abroad, surely you’ve been told things like, “You don’t have to tip at restaurants in Europe” or other local customs you can expect to encounter. But servers at restaurants in Burlington, Vt. aren’t so sure an influx of travelers from Quebec are clued in to how tipping works, so some are just adding gratuity automatically to those bills. Awkward. [More]
Target Overthrows Walmart For The Title Of The Cheapest In The Land This Month
By 8.23.12
We’ve been following the price tug-of-war between Target and Walmart as the two retail giants battle for the right to claim they’re the cheapest in the land. It seemed Target had the edge on Walmart last year, and now new research suggests you really will “pay less” at Target. [More]
Chase Won't Stop Calling For My Dead Mom Every Day At 4 A.M.
By 8.23.12
For the month of August, consumer advocate Christopher Elliott will occasionally be sharing some of the questions and problems he receives from readers. In this week’s case, Kimberly says a day doesn’t go by that Chase bank’s auto-dialing system doesn’t call her at 4 a.m. with automatic account notifications for her mother, who happens to have been dead for two years. Can anyone put an end to the hassle? [More]
