Jenn’s checking account with Bank of America recently had a policy change designed to increase overdraft fees, and it worked: sometime between Friday night and Saturday morning she was hit with 6 NSF charges going back the previous 48 hours, because she was about 15 minutes late transferring funds into her account the day before. Technically she had broken the new policy, but Jenn hadn’t realized or remembered that there was a policy change and she was taken by surprise. She decided to try to reason with BoA’s corporate office about the fees, and explain why she thought they were unfair.
charges
Rogue Charges Resurrect Expired Amex Card
By 5.4.08
Patricia closed her company’s American Express Delta Sky Miles card six months ago, but the expired card unexpectedly sprang to life thanks to a supplier’s accidental charge. American Express laughed off the matter, saying “this happens all of the time,” adding that it’s Patricia’s responsibility to ensure that all vendors destroy her outdated billing information.
"Comcast Treats My Bank Account Like A Cookie Jar"
By 4.30.08
Of all our random corporate screw-up stories, this is one of the funniest, if only because it’s so random and so persistent. Oh wait, Kelly’s out over $100 now and Comcast keeps debiting her account whenever they feel like it. Maybe that’s not that funny after all.
More Info On The $9.87 Credit Card Scam
By 4.29.08
MGD at dslreports read our post last night about Prophotosland.com and its fraudulent charge to reader Megan’s credit card. He’s been following the scammers—”an organized crime syndicate operated from Eastern Europe”—for nearly three years now, and has a ton of highly valuable information on them, including their recent targeting of military personnel stationed overseas. Bottom line: cancel your credit card, Megan, because they’ve got access to it now—and report the charge as fraudulent rather than dispute it.
Watch Out For $9.87 Credit Card Scam From Prophotosland.com
By 4.29.08
A reader named Megan noticed an unfamiliar charge for $9.87 from prophotosland.com on her WaMu credit card statement, so she began to investigate it.
Follow-Up: Citibank Steps In, Forces Sears To Remove The $1070 Charge
By 4.15.08
Tom just sent us a follow-up to yesterday’s post, and it’s good news:Score another one for The Consumerist! This morning I contacted Sears’ Executive Customer Service Department. They attempted to contact the store manager on my behalf. I stress “attempted” because they were hung up on too.
Sears Refuses To Refund $1070 For TV They Never Delivered
By 4.14.08
Update: one day after being posted here, the issue has been resolved. Sears strikes again! They sold Tom a TV for $1,070 on Black Friday last November. “Of course, it wasn’t in stock but they assured me that they could order it,” he writes.
What Happens When You Pay Your $0.19 Amex Bill With 7 Origami Checks?
By 4.13.08
Bad Consumer Smith finally paid off her American Express Optima card after 14 years, but couldn’t believe that Amex tacked on a $0.19 finance charge to her last bill. Smith summoned her lesser angels to work out a fitting response. Here’s what she came up with:
I sent AmEx two checks for a penny each, one for two cents, two for three cents, one for four cents, and one for a nickel.
Bally Cashes Cancellation Check, Continues To Bill For 15 More Months, And Now Demands "Past Due" Payment
By 4.12.08
Ashoka just found out that Bally never canceled his membership, even though they cashed his $50 cancellation check a mere 5 days after he mailed it to them last year. They’ve said there was no date on the paperwork, but Ashoka has a printout that proves otherwise. And they said they tried to contact him last year about the “problem,” but not by phone—even though they called him promptly this month when he changed his credit card info and the automatic billing didn’t go through. Bally, just admit it: nobody gets out, ever.
How To Avoid Extra Travel Fees
By 4.10.08
Kiplinger tries to help you save money on your next airline “flight”—we have to put quotation marks around that word now, since the prospect of actually getting up in the air seems purely hypothetical at this point—with their latest travel article. A lot of the advice boils down to, “Find out what each airline charges extra for, then choose a different airline,” but it’s helpful to have everything in one article for a quick reference.
Gold Medal Travel Demands $200 To Correct Typo, Won't Issue Ticket Otherwise
By 4.4.08
Gold Medal Travel, a UK-based travel agency, is holding a woman’s ticket hostage. Even though Northwest airlines says the ticket will be fine and they have no policy like what Gold Medal claims, Gold Medal says the ticket will be forfeited if the woman doesn’t give them an extra $200 to correct a…
Credit Card Expert Disputes Erroneous Charge, Frustration Ensues
By 3.29.08
Georgetown law professor and Credit Slips blogger Adam Levitin is having trouble disputing an erroneous $176.96 charge on his Citibank Amex card from PACER, the federal court’s online docket system, which he accesses for free. The professor is a consumer credit expert and should have no problem understanding and fixing the error, right? Fat chance.
KidsStuff.com Silently Charges $18 Subscription Fee To Grandparent Who Shopped There Two Years Ago
By 3.24.08
C writes in with another lesson on why you should check your statements frequently:Two years ago I purchased items for my grandchildren at KidsStuff.com. This month (March 2008) I found an $18.00 charge from them on my American Express card.
Sprint Gouges Business Customer For Over $30,000 In Inflated Fees
By 3.17.08
Allen Harkleroad of GMP Services writes, “A warning to all Sprint corporate customers that have dedicated access (T1’s, etc.) if you are out of contract Sprint may be gouging you and claiming outrageously high local loop charges as the cause.”
AT&T Says They'll Charge $25 "Activation Fee" To Move SIM From A Broken Phone To A GoPhone
By 3.13.08
Does AT&T really charge a $25 “activation fee” when you move your SIM card to a GoPhone? A father had to replace his child’s broken cellphone over the weekend, and the rep at the AT&T store told him the only way to avoid an ETF or plan extension was to buy a GoPhone and pay an activation fee, even though the SIM card was the same. Online, you can buy a new GoPhone and have the activation fee waved. Way to treat your current customers, AT&T.
Charges Filed Against Importers Of Toxic Toothpaste
By 3.7.08
On Tuesday, the city of Los Angeles and the FDA charged the heads of two U.S. importing companies with 14 counts each of “receiving, selling and delivering an adulterated drug,” for their roles in importing and distributing over 70,000 tubes of toothpaste containing diethylene glycol (DEG) instead of glycerin. “Each count carries a maximum penalty of one year in jail and a $1,000 fine.”
