Andy and his wife were saving up for a trip for Hawaii. They had 87,000 points, which represented $87,000 they had spent accumulating these points. Out of nowhere, Citibank closed his account and gave him no chance to get his points. [More]
Retail Services
Bank Of America Freezes All Foreclosures In 23 States
By 10.4.10
Bank of America announced Friday that it was halting foreclosures in each and every case that hadn’t gone to judgement. They became the third major bank to put the brakes on foreclosures after revelations that document processing firms were allegedly forging papers and signatures on a massive scale. [More]
EA Removes Taliban Label From Controversial War Game
By 10.4.10
Buckling to pressure from the media and military families, Electronic Arts stripped the Taliban moniker away from characters in its upcoming war game Medal of Honor. [More]
Gillette Introduces $.34 Razor… In India
By 10.1.10
While here in the States — and in many parts of the world — Gillette is known for pricier devices like its Fusion ProGlide razors that will cost you upwards of $10-11 just for the handle and one blade (and replacement blades costing $2-3 each), the company is attempting to go the opposite route in India, where it is now selling a razor that costs the equivalent of $.34, with replacement blades going for only $.11 each. [More]
JPMorgan Chase Suspends 56,000 Foreclosures
By 9.30.10
JPMorgan became the second major lender after GMAC/Ally Bank to halt pending foreclosures, halting proceedings on 56,000 homes. This follows revelations that “robo-signer” “foreclosure mills” were filing paperwork that would be gracious to call “sloppy,” at the rate of 10,000 a day. [More]
Best Buy Security Thinks I'm A Dumb Criminal, Stole iPad From Them
By 9.30.10
John has a bit of advice for iPad owners: don’t use the device in public. At least, don’t use it for price comparisons at a Best Buy with particularly clueless loss prevention staff unless you want to be accused of theft and have the police show up. He writes that this happened to him while checking some prices on his iPad. [More]
ATMs That Spit Out Gold Are Coming To America
By 9.30.10
Whenever the money level in my Scrooge McDuck-style money bin dips below levels that are safe for diving, I have to send off the servants to restock it with assorted gold bars and coins. But now I’ll get to fire them because Gold to Go has announced they’re bringing their gold-dispensing ATMs to our great nation. [More]
Citibank Transfers Student Loan To Another Company, But Sits On $1000 Payment For 30 More Days
By 9.29.10
The last time I uncovered an obvious error with my Citibank checking account, I realized it was time to move on. Our tipster Roarke may have just reached that same conclusion, only in his case Citibank has already passed along the account for him–just not the thousand dollar electronic payment he made on it a few days prior, which Citibank says it plans to hang on to for another 30 days. [More]
Lucas Figures Out Way To Make You See Star Wars Movies In Theaters Again
By 9.29.10
People who are sick of Star Wars have new reason to hope the world will come to an end in 2012, because the Hollywood reporter says that’s the year the films will start hitting theaters in 3D. [More]
Which Tabloids Give You The Most Lies For Your Buck?
By 9.28.10
Whether you like it or not, the five major glossy tabloids — Us Weekly, InTouch, Life & Style, Star and OK! — are still among the highest-selling periodicals, in spite of the fact that many readers know much of what’s printed between those magazines’ covers is stretching the truth, if not outright fiction. But the next time you’re stuck at the airport newsstand and you can’t decide which “Baby Time For Jen Aniston” cover to buy, there is now some guidance. [More]
Merry Christmas Creep! Santa Is Everywhere In September
By 9.28.10
The Christmas Creep season is officially here, and Consumerist shutterbugs from Portland to Puerto Rico have been sending in photographic evidence. Get into the pre-pre-holiday shopping spirit with this photo album!
[More]
How To Choose The Right E-Reader
By 9.28.10
Sales of e-book readers, also known as e-readers, are way up and prices are dropping. Consumer Reports has tested a wide variety and has advice if you’re in the market for an ebook reader. [More]
Bank Reverses Erroneous Foreclosure On Family With Very Sick Child
By 9.28.10
After the Washington Post reported on their plight, a family with a gravely ill child that got foreclosed on a day after they were told their loan modification was approved, the bank investigated and found that they had screwed things up. [More]
Idaho Man Arrested For Taking Upskirt Pics At Walmart
By 9.28.10
Boise, Idaho police arrested a man for “video voyeurism” at Walmart. His offense was cruising the aisles and snapping shots under women’s skirts. [More]
Chase Forecloses On Family With Son Crippled By Rare Genetic Disorder
By 9.27.10
A family whose son has debilitating cerebral adrenoleukodystrophy got foreclosed on by Chase, just days after they were told their loan modification was approved. [More]
Why Won't Walmart Tell Its Employees They Can't Demand ID For MasterCard Purchases?
By 9.27.10
Even though — as recently as last week — executives at both Walmart and MasterCard confirmed that it is against both companies’ policies to demand ID for credit card purchases, Consumerist readers and Walmart shoppers are letting us know that the hassle continues. [More]
Chase Approves Transaction Anyway After Customer Declines Overdraft Protection
By 9.27.10
Paul opted not to sign up for Chase’s overdraft fee trap–oh wait, they call it “protection”–but Chase happily ignored this fact and approved a transaction anyway, which led to a $34 overdraft fee that they refuse to reverse. The loophole they’re using to get around Paul’s opt-out is that the vendor was someone he’d authorized in the past, and therefore this new transaction isn’t protected from the bank’s “protection” fee. [More]
Best Buy Register/Bank Error Leaves You Overdrafted And Cameraless
By 9.24.10
Reader Jeff is now in a situation that we find all too familiar, but most people have never even heard of: Electronic Funds Transfer Error Hell. You see, Jeff bought a camera at Best Buy and something went wrong — causing his debit card to be charged twice. This in turn caused him to overdraft. Now he’s shocked to learn that the process for reversing the charge isn’t as simple as it would be with a credit card. [More]
