According to News 10, Josh Sjowall ordered a foot-long roast beef combo at a Subway store in Tracy, California. As he picked up the sandwich he felt a foreign object with his thumb and discovered it was a rusty bolt. And oh yes, Subway is….”taking it very seriously.” Details and photo, inside…
complaints
Chili's Serves You Funky Chunky Sour Cream
By 5.9.08
Reader Linda was having lunch at Chili’s and decided to order some extra sour cream to eat with her mashed potatoes. She was surprised and disgusted to learn that like peanut butter, Chili’s sour cream comes in “smooth” and “extra chunky.” Her letter, inside…
Adobe Blames Missing Shipment On Customer For Using The Online Store
By 5.9.08
Amy launched an EECB to Adobe, after her $2600 worth of software failed to ship on time. Or at all. No one at Adobe customer service can tell her why it didn’t ship, or if it ever will, but one CSR suggested it was her fault for ordering through the online store rather than through a sales rep. He says no one tracks the orders on the online store, which makes absolutely no sense. What’s the point in having an online store if no one fills the orders? Why the tease, Adobe? Check out her EECB inside.
Beware Of Rotten Newegg Rebate
By 5.8.08
Reader RJ purchased an Nvidia graphics card from Newegg and submitted his $20 rebate information in January. Nearly 5 months later, he is still waiting for his cash. He wrote to Newegg for answers but received a tepid reply. RJ’s letter and Newegg’s response, inside…
No Proof Of Address? FedEx Curses You Out
By 5.8.08
What started as a routine trip ended in verbal fisticuffs when reader Matthew went to go pick up his package at a local Fedex receiving center in NYC. He thought that his door ticket and identification was enough to get his package but Fedex said he also needed “verification of address” in the form of a utility bill or something similar. Matthew had never heard of this before, but when he questioned this new policy he received a barrage of foul language from an employee and her manager. His letter, inside…
McDonald's Won't Sell You A "Large" Coke Because It's "Breakfast"
By 5.7.08
Reader Rachael went into McDonald’s today to get her usual morning Coca-Cola and was denied a large cup, despite the fact that she paid the “large” price, because it was “breakfast.” Instead, Rachael ended up with a medium Coke which the McDonald’s employee called a “breakfast large.”
Delta Airlines Terminates Ticket Jackets
By 5.7.08
In an effort to save money and inconvenience customers, Delta has discontinued their ticket jackets, much to the dismay of seasoned air-traveler, Greg. For the uninitiated, ticket jackets are the handy-dandy miniature document organizers that allow you to neatly store tickets, boarding passes and itineraries. He was disappointed to learn that Delta had discontinued this mini-marvel of personal organizers which actually boasts a rich history in aviation. His letter, inside…
Chase Closes Bank Account, Hold Money Hostage
By 5.7.08
What makes the next story about reader Pavel trying to get satisfaction from Chase executive customer service so interesting is that Pavel himself is Executive Assistant to the President of his company. He knows how executive customer service is supposed to work. As he puts in, he has the ability to “walk on water” within in his company. Which makes his experience with Chase, where they closed his account for having a zero-balance for less than a week, and then held his money hostage, all the more frustrating…
MLB.TV: The Premium Content You Paid Extra For Is A Bonus That We Don't Have To Provide
By 5.6.08
According to the customer service at Major League Baseball, the MLB.TV Premium package, which lets customers watch baseball games on their computers at higher bandwidths than the basic package and allows users to watch up to six games at once, is a “bonus.” The rep also claims that the difference between 800k and 1.2Mb video speeds, both of which are available to Premium subscribers, is negligible, and in any case, their product info pages says they’re not obligated to provide the 1.2Mb package. Inside, read why all of this is completely wrong.
BoA Closes Your Credit Cards If You Ask Why They Increased Your APR
By 5.6.08
It’s evident the pendulum swung too far in terms of giving away too much credit, but now it seems to be swinging back in the opposite direction just as hard, with banks getting too tightfisted, even when it doesn’t make sense. For instance, the APR on James’s BoA credit card jumped from 9.32% to 13.99%, and shortly after he called to see about getting it back, they closed all three of his credit cards. One was a Gold account with a lifetime APR of 7.99%, the other had a 1.99% APR. Just last month, he received an offer to transfer $15,000 to the 1.99% card. Obviously at least one department in Bank of America thinks he’s a good credit risk. It appears some other expressionless faces of the massive dodecahedron that is the entity called Bank of America disagreed.
DirecTV Makes You Pay Termination Fee Even If You Can't Use Their Service
By 5.6.08
DirecTV is a lying pack of liars. They told Ian that if he moved to a place where he couldn’t use his dish, then they would let him out of contract without early termination fee (ETF). Well guess what? He moved to a place without a balcony or roof access. Double guess what: Now DirecTV says he has to pay an ETF and they say there’s no record of all those reps telling him that, and that that’s not part of their policy. Triple guess what: Ian called up DirecTV sales and recorded their sales rep telling him that they DO let you out of contract if you move to a new place where you can’t use DirecTV. Are DirecTV retention reps just not versed on company policy, or are they a pack of scumbags? I dunno, but you know what they say, never trust a company run by a man in a mustache. Ian’s audio recording and letter to the CEO of DirecTV is inside…
MyGearStore Bribes Customer To Remove Amazon Feedback
By 5.6.08
“MyGearStore,” a seller on Amazon, tried to bribe reader Michael into remove less-than-stellar feedback. Michael writes, “There were some problems with the order, and I gave them neutral feedback (which was pretty generous).” They said they would give him a partial refund if he took down his feedback. He complained to Amazon, who didn’t reply except with a “thanks for emailing us” and to MyGearStore, who didn’t respond. One tool consumers use to evaluate the slew of online retailers out there is by looking through feedback left by other customers. If stores are trying to pay off customers to get rid of negative feedback, one, they’re stupid because they’re going to get caught. Two, it means you should be suspicious if the feedback for one store, product, or seller is overwhelmingly positive. Critical reading, it’s a good ability to have. The original bribe note sent by MyGearStore, inside..
United Airlines Will Not Let You Report Your Damaged Baggage For "Security Reasons"
By 5.5.08
Reader Sid is having a hell of a time reporting some damaged luggage to United Airlines.
CVS Refuses Foreign ID To Buy "Plan B" Birth Control
By 5.5.08
Reader John and his friend Michelle found themselves in a situation where they needed to get “Plan B” birth control, also known as “the morning after pill.” They went to their local CVS in Hawthorne, CA. and met an uncooperative pharmacist who refused them access to the pills because Michelle only had foreign ID to prove she is of legal age. (18+) The pharmacist also refused John’s state issued ID with the reason that it could not be sold to man, however, the FDA’s website clearly says that Plan B can be sold OTC to a man or woman who is 18 or over. Find out what happened to John and Michelle, inside….
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.
Circuit City Sells Employee Busted Floor Model TV, Refuses To Accept Return
By 5.4.08
Anthony paid Circuit City $1,271 for a new 40″ Samsung LN40A550, but what he received was a “scratched up, dinged to hell, beaten and abused FLOOR MODEL OPEN BOX” LN40A330. As a Circuit City employee, Anthony thought exchanging the TV or receiving a refund would be a cinch. Boy, was he wrong.
Two Carvel Locations in NYC Say "No Free Ice Cream Drinks For You"
By 5.2.08
