Some people will do anything to meet sales and customer satisfaction goals, even if it means falsifying signatures, and opening bogus accounts. Which is why around 30 people in the Los Angeles area are now former Wells Fargo employees. [More]
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Wells Fargo Fires Employees For Creating Bogus Accounts In Customers’ Names
By 10.7.13 — Updated: 10.13.16
Woman Says Costco Didn’t Apologize For Locking Her Inside Store
By 10.7.13
While being inside a Costco after hours might seem like an awesome setting for a movie montage — binge eating in the candy/cookie/nut section, trying on every piece of clothing on the tables, offering free samples to yourself, chugging mayonnaise — a California woman was not so thrilled to find herself locked inside her local warehouse store. [More]
When Is Taking Someone’s Phone Not Considered “Theft”?
By 10.2.13
How long do you need to borrow something before it’s considered stolen? And does the mere act of taking a phone out of someone else’s hands without permission constitute theft? According to an appeals court in California, no. [More]
L.A. Schools Now Taking Back iPads From Students Who Dare To Use Them For Purposes Of Fun
By 10.2.13
We mentioned last week that the Los Angeles Unified School District somehow thought it could hand out hobbled iPads to thousands of students without any of these kids figuring out a way to use the device as something other than a really expensive, incredibly fragile textbook. But now that it’s realizing that the temptation to use iPads the way they are intended (and marketed) can be too great for some students, the school district is taking them back. [More]
California City Requires All New Homes Be Wired For Electric Vehicle Charging Stations
By 10.1.13 — Updated: 10.2.13
Electric vehicles like the Chevy Volt or Nissan Leaf may be the future of automobiles (personally, I’m holding out for someone to create the Mr. Fusion), but one city in California’s Silicon Valley is betting on EVs by requiring that all newly built homes be wired for EV charging stations. [More]
Don’t Get Too Excited About McDonald’s Chicken & Waffles Just Yet
By 9.24.13
Last week we told you about a McDonald’s eatery in California that was testing out a “McD’s Style Chicken & Waffles” dish with questionable waffle content. Since then, the folks at HuffPo got the lowdown from McDonald’s HQ that this is “simply one franchisee who experimented with a limited time offering of his version of chicken and waffles,” which explains why it looks like a few Mighty Wings with a pancake. [via HuffPo] [More]
Yelp Sues Law Firm Over Allegedly Bogus Reviews
By 9.12.13
The folks at Yelp have decided to get tough with what they believe are businesses that post fake reviews on the site in order to appeal to customers or to counteract genuine, negative feedback from actual customers. The company has sued a small San Diego-based bankruptcy law firm, alleging that it filled its profile with false, positive reviews. [More]
Tests Find Cancer-Causing Chemical In 98 Personal Care Products
By 8.27.13
Cocamide diethanolamine (cocamide DEA) is a chemically-modified form of coconut oil, sometimes used as a thickener or foaming agent in a number of products. It has also been listed by the state of California as a known carcinogen, meaning manufacturers are required to include a warning on the label. But recent tests found 98 shampoos, soaps, and other personal care products, that contain the chemical but don’t have any warning. [More]
Bank Of America Continues Deducting Fees, Even After Death
By 8.12.13
Perhaps showing its firm belief in the afterlife, Bank of America has continued to charge fees to the bank account of a man it knows died nearly half a year ago. [More]
DirecTV Bills Elderly Couple $198 For Porn They Didn’t Rent 5 Years Ago
By 8.9.13
Cable customers frequently complain that they are being charged for porn they didn’t order — and cable companies often shrug and insist that someone must have ordered the erotic flicks. But a couple of married septuagenarians in California say DirecTV recently tried to charge them for 18 porn titles rented in a single day — in 2008. [More]
Man Drops $900 In Home Depot Parking Lot, Actually Gets It Back
By 8.9.13
Too often we hear about unlucky souls who accidentally drop large amounts of cash, only to have it snatched up by some heartless goon who believes “finders keepers” is the law of the land. So on this lovely Friday afternoon, we bring you a story with a much happier ending. [More]
Smartphone Amber Alert Freaks Out Everyone In California
By 8.6.13
Russ went to bed early, setting “do not disturb” mode on his iPhone so no one could wake him up. His phone did wake him up, though, screeching and lighting up with an Amber Alert message about abducted children in a different part of the state. He asked Consumerist: how can he make these unwanted text messages stop? [More]
House-Painters Rip Down Customer’s Patio Cover Because They Thought That’s What She Wanted
By 8.2.13
Get it in writing. Those are four words you need to repeat to yourself over and over whenever you have someone doing work on your house. Just ask the California woman who learned that her house-painters had torn down her patio cover, not because they were clumsy or reckless, but because that’s what they thought she’d asked for. [More]
Facebook Fans Identify And Shame Thief Of Customer Loyalty Stamp
By 7.25.13
It’s the definition of small-time crime: a thief who was apparently in a hurry to get some free frosty snacks allegedly walked off with the frequent-customer stamp at a California shaved ice stand. He also grabbed some cash from the tip jar while he was at it. The owners put their faith in the power of public shaming and posted the surveillance video on their Facebook page. [More]
DMV Error Leads To $17,000 In Toll Violations For Truck Owner
By 7.24.13
Back in 2008, a California man bought a truck but after getting a mysterious toll violation from a county 400+ miles away, he realized that the Dept. of Motor Vehicles had goofed and the license plate listed on his registration did not match the plate on his vehicle. The DMV sent him new plates but has done nothing to help him fight the thousands of dollars in toll road violations being racked up by some other driver. [More]
City Claims 80-Year-Old Couple Used 440,000 Gallons Of Water In A Month
By 6.27.13
An 80-year-old California man concedes that it’s entirely possible that he has used 440,000 gallons of water in one month, and that he and his wife really do owe the city $11,000. It’s possible if the city has been pumping dehydrated water into his house. [More]
Update: El Pollo Loco To Help Out Customer Whose $2,200 Was Stolen In Parking Lot
By 6.7.13
Last week, we told you about the unlucky El Pollo Loco customer who accidentally dropped $2,200 in the parking lot, only to have it stolen by another customer who then sat and ate his meal while his victim undertook a frantic search for the cash. Now we hear there is some good news, as the eatery plans to gift the money back to him. [More]
Taco Bell In Process Of Firing Taco-Licker, Crosses Heart And Swears Shells Were Thrown Out
By 6.4.13
The saga of the Taco Bell taco-licker (as opposed to Mr. Banana Grabber) continues, with the fast food chain announcing today that the employee now infamous for dragging his tongue along a stack of taco shells has been suspended and is going to be looking for work elsewhere soon. [More]
