Retail Services
Morning Deals
By 2.11.08
Would You Scan Checks At Home For Deposit?
By 2.9.08
Banks have hesitated to adopt technology that would let us scan paper checks at home for deposit. The Check Clearing for the 21st Century Act allows banks to exchange electronic images instead of paper checks, but USAA, a credit union associated with the military, is currently the only bank to offer customers a check scanning option. Sure, it’s easy enough to stand on line for a teller or wait for an ATM, but we fear sunshine and people and prefer to stay indoors, thank you. Assuming it was free, is this something you would use if it was offered by your bank? Vote in our poll, after the jump.
By 2.8.08
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Sad people spend more money. Must be why so many commercials seem designed to induce feelings of anxiety and insecurity, even if they’re delivered within a “humorous” context. [CNN]
Thief Pretends To Work At Target, Steals $17k Worth Of iPods
By 2.8.08
The North Miami police are looking for Antonio McKenzie, a “fake Target clerk” suspected of stealing numerous iPod Touches from Target Department Stores in South Florida.
AT&T Reps Don't Know Own ETF Policy
By 2.8.08
8 out of 12 AT&T customer service reps don’t know their company’s own early Early Termination Fee (ETF) policy. Consumers Union, publishers of Consumer Reports, called up AT&T to inquire about the policy and got several different answers. Some said that the ETF was halved after the first year of contract, while others said it went down each month. In fact, while AT&T has talked about switching to a pro-rated ETF, they haven’t yet. Whether you cancel service 1 month into or one month before the end of contract, it will cost you $175. Consumers Union called the other major cellphone providers too, and they gave out the right information. Couple this news and the story yesterday about reps giving out wrong information about upgrading to a new iPhone locking you into a new two-year contract, and it plum looks like AT&T has a serious front-line rep training problem.
Morning Deals
By 2.8.08
Why Is Bank Of America Raising Interest Rates On Its Good Customers?
By 2.8.08
BusinessWeek has just published an article about Bank of America’s recent surprise mailings in January to some of its customers, announcing “that it would more than double their rates to as high as 28%, without giving an explanation for the increase.” These customers have good credit scores and hadn’t made any late payments, and those who called Bank of America to ask why this was happening weren’t given clear reasons. Industry experts say Bank of America has reached a “new level” of “lack of transparency in raising rates,” beyond anything Citigroup and JP Morgan Chase currently practice, because BoA is apparently using some undisclosed internal metric to determine who gets the rate hike.
USAA Customer? Make Sure Your Checks Haven't Been Cashed Twice
By 2.8.08
This morning, Mary logged onto her USAA bank account to check her balance and was surprised to find that her rent check had been cashed twice while she was asleep. She was eventually able to get through to a human and get the problem addressed, but it wasn’t easy. And she may not have been the only one affected.
Sprint Sued For Illegally Extending Customers' Contracts
By 2.7.08
Sprint got hit with a class-action lawsuit for illegally extending customer’s contracts. Like most cellphone providers, up until recently they would put you in a new two-year contract if you added minutes, got a new phone, got refunds, or wore a blue shirt on Tuesday.
By 2.7.08
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Costco is kicking serious ass, says BusinessWeek. [BW]
Americans Struggle With The Concept Of Spending Less Than They Earn
By 2.7.08
“We live in a small town, and everybody looks at your clothes and what you drive and where you have your hair done,” said Ms. Gamble, who earns about $2,600 a month as a grievance counselor at a local prison.
Walmart To Partner With Hospitals, Open More In-Store Clinics
By 2.7.08
The first of the new Clinic at Wal-Mart walk-in centers, as they will be called, is to open in Little Rock, Ark., in April and be run by nurse practitioners employed by the St. Vincent Health System, a three-hospital group in central Arkansas.
Man Accused Of Rappelling Into Kmart Punches His Lawyer In The Face
By 2.7.08
Here’s an odd bit of retail-related crime.
Morning Deals
By 2.7.08
Morning Deals
By 2.6.08
Walmart Sample XBOX 360 Demonstrates The Red Ring Of Death
By 2.5.08
Reader James says:Just went down to my local Wal-Mart the other day (La Quinta, Ca) and saw a Red Ring Of Death xbox 360 on display… thought it was worth a picture.This isn’t exactly a ringing endorsement of the product, is it?
Best Buy Randomly Delivers Your New Stove In The Middle Of Your SuperBowl Party
By 2.5.08
Reader Jennifer wanted a new stove so she could cook delicious vittles for noshing during the SuperBowl. Sadly, she bought her stove from Best Buy, so instead of having a new stove for her party, she had a new stove delivered during the SuperBowl while she had a house full of guests. She launched an EECB (Executive Email Carpet Bomb) on them and CC’d us so we could listen in.
Shopping Without Asterisks
By 2.5.08
America lies in slumber as a new swath of rights are violated, our consumer rights. The right to a fair deal. Companies have a right to try to make a profit. We have the right to receive the goods and services we purchase at the price and quality level advertised, and the right to seek redress if these expectations are not met. You earned that money with your sweat, and now you’re just going to let someone take it from you?
