Bank of America really did a former city employee a favor when they let him open and allegedly deposit checks made out to Seattle and city entities into two accounts, one in his name and another called “The City of Sea.” Close enough, right? [More]
Retail Services
Geek Squad's Founding Geek Exits Best Buy
By 3.7.12
Robert Stephens founded Geek Squad in 1994 in Minneapolis and sold the company eight years later to Best Buy. Rather than than take his buyout check and invest it in a semi-pro basketball team, Stephens stayed on after the merger to become Best Buy’s Chief Technology Officer. But all things come to an end and today, he announced it was time for him to try something else. [More]
Mislabeled Medication From Target Prescribes Five Times The Dose For Child
By 3.7.12
Just because a medication comes from the pharmacist, that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t double check the label carefully, as one mother recently discovered. After she read over the dosage instructions on a medication from Target for her sick 18-month-old, she realized it was way too high. [More]
Movie Price Madness: How To Save Money On A Trip To The Theater
By 3.7.12
Unless you’ve been living a hermit-like existence, you’ve likely stepped out to the movie theater at least once recently, and once there, perhaps the skyrocketing price of tickets and the exorbitant cost of snacks shocked you right back into staying home (or into suing theater chains). There are ways around shelling out $13 per ticket and emptying pockets on popcorn, however. [More]
Green Dot Mixes Up Prepaid Card Addresses, Ties Up My Money
By 3.7.12
Sarah bought a Green Dot Visa card at Walmart so she could do some shopping online. Her experience is a great illustration of why this site isn’t a huge fan of prepaid debit cards: she put down cash for a card that had erroneous address information even though she had carefully followed all directions and registered the card. She ended up with most of the card’s balance tied up in transactions she couldn’t complete. [More]
Change Payment Card On Amazon Pre-Order, Lose Your Shipping Date
By 3.7.12
It’s too late for Jared, who won’t get his copy of Mass Effect 3 until Friday, the poor thing. (Other people who placed pre-orders got theirs yesterday.) But he wants everyone else to learn from his mistake. If you pre-order an item from Amazon, but change your method of payment for the order before it ships, you’ll lose your spot in line and your release-day shipping. Sure, this usually doesn’t matter all that much, but we’re talking about a game here. [More]
Let's Celebrate 100 Years Of Eating Entire Packages Of Oreo Cookies
By 3.6.12
Raise a glass of milk to toast those always dunkable chocolate wafers filled with vanilla creme — Oreo cookies turn 100 today, marking decades of afficionados gleefully consuming row upon row in a variety of favorite ways. [More]
How Much Have The Big Banks Been Penalized Over Mortgage Mess And Where Is All That Cash Going?
By 3.6.12
The last few years have seen numerous settlements between the nation’s biggest mortgage lenders and various federal and state authorities. And while we hear numbers like “a total of $25 billion,” exactly which banks are responsible for the biggest chunks of these settlements? [More]
Wireless Is Free On Delta As Long You're Buying Stuff From Amazon
By 3.5.12 — Updated: 9.8.16
There’s some good news for Delta Airlines passengers is that they’re offering free in-flight WiFi. Score! Oh but there’s a catch — it’s only free to view Amazon.com sites so you can buy stuff mid-air. Yay…? [More]
Target Would Rather You Return A Purchase And Buy It At A Lower Price Than Just Give You A Price Adjustment
By 3.5.12
Have you ever bought something at a store only to find out a week or two later that the store had reduced the price? Some retailers will be nice enough to give you a refund for that price difference if you show them the receipt. But if you want to take advantage of this policy at Target, you may need to return your original purchase and buy a completely new item. [More]
How To Wash Pants? Give Them To Your Woman, It's Her Job
By 3.5.12
After a writer for The Daily Telegraph tweeted a picture she says is of the care instructions inside her boyfriend’s new pair of trousers, which directs men to “give to your woman to wash, it’s her job,” we’ve got to wonder if it’s the real deal. If it is, it’s in ridiculously, hilariously bad taste. [More]
Scare Yourself Into Paying Off Your Credit Cards With This Tool
By 3.5.12
If you’re accustomed to paying just the minimum payment on your credit card bills each month, you might change your ways if you discover how long it will take you to get rid of your debt. [More]
Feds To Stop Punishing Chase, Bank of America For Sucking At Mortgage Modifications
By 3.2.12
Since the Treasury Dept. began releasing quarterly report cards on big banks’ efforts to improve their mortgage modification processes, Bank of America and JPMorgan Chase have consistently received subpar marks, leading the feds to withhold a total of $171 million in incentives. That money is now set to be released to BofA and Chase — but not necessarily because they suck any less at mortgage mods. [More]
Massachusetts Official Urges State To Pull Funds From BofA Over Fees
By 3.2.12
Following yesterday’s news that Bank of America is testing new checking account fees in Massachusetts, that state’s Secretary of State has said it may be time to pull out the millions of government money currently stashed in the BofA coffers. [More]
Too Soon? Dahmer Tours Visits Sites Where Killer Met His Victims
By 3.2.12
I was in grade school in the Milwaukee area when the grisly news and details of Jeffrey Dahmer’s horrible crimes came to light. We were all sickened. Living in a city associated with one of the most barbaric serial killers of all time wasn’t anything to brag about, and the city mourned for the citizens who were victims. Unsurprising, then, that many Milwaukeeans aren’t too happy with a company called “Dahmer Tours” which is offering visits to places connected with those events for $30 a pop. [More]
No More Room For Gender Stereotypes When It Comes To Buying Fancy Stuff
By 3.2.12
Times used to be, men shelled out the big bucks for fast cars and women drooled over expensive designer shoes. But with high-end spending on the rise again, it seems men and women aren’t really shopping along stereotypical lines anymore. Sports cars and stilettos for everyone! [More]
Kohl's Wants You To Pick A Side: Paper Statements Or Online Account Access
By 3.2.12
If you have a Kohl’s charge card and like to have a paper statement but also check your account online…well, tough. As part of what looks like a push to get customers to opt out of receiving bills in the mail, the good times of having two different ways to access one’s account are over. If you want paper bills, you’ll have to surrender your access to the site. [More]
Common Price Tag Gimmicks Retailers Use To Lure You In
By 3.1.12
JCPenney’s campaign to revitalize the brand, which includes celebrity commercial star Ellen DeGeneres and a redesigned logo, will continue this week with items priced at round numbers, like $20 instead of $19.99 this week. So what’s the big idea behind how retailers price items? Of course, every tag is aimed at convincing you to buy that item. Let’s check out some other common tricks. [More]
