Most Americans aren’t very comfortable with haggling, even when they know that it could theoretically benefit them to do so. What you may not realize is that when you visit Walmart with a CVS flyer in hand, asking for a price match, you’re engaging in a form of haggling. [More]
consumer 101
Dear Customers: Stop Making My Call-Center Employees Cry
By 8.1.12
This week, we heard from a reader who we’ll call Mr. X. He works in marketing, and handles escalated customer service issues. He’s the guy you talk to when things go horribly, horribly wrong. He listens to your phone calls, and decides whether you should receive bill credits and other nice things. Mr. X has some very important advice for the customer service ninjas of Consumerist: please stop being jerks to front-line employees. [More]
Chargebacks: Protecting You From Scammy Online Sellers
By 6.6.12
Ashley ordered a special occasion dress from the website of a manufacturer in China. She didn’t realize that the company was in China, despite the “About Us” on their site saying so, and the deeply mangled English on display on many of the pages. But no matter–sometimes shopping direct on Chinese sites can be a pleasant money-saving experience. This wasn’t. Her dress looked nothing like the photo of what she ordered, and the company will only refund her if she ships the fluffy dress back to China. That will cost $138, when the dress cost only $142. She’s not the only customer in this bind. So what should she do? [More]
Why Did GameStop Sell Me A Used Game As New?
By 4.6.11
Patrick had a confusing experience at GameStop recently, when he bought a copy of God of War III. He asked for a new copy of the game, which was on sale, but received an unsealed copy of the game that looked more like a used game. Thanks to a sale, the price difference between new and used copies was only $2, but why did they sell him a not-so-new game in the first place? [More]
GameStop Is Out Of The Game You Want? Order It For In-Store Pickup, Return 10 Minutes Later
By 11.10.10
The bad news: the GameStop where Ambyr went to buy a copy of Call of Duty: Black Ops for her husband only had enough copies of the game to fill pre-orders. The good news: In GameStop’s universe, to “pre-order” means that you leave the store that just refused to sell you a game, order that game online, and then return fifteen minutes later. Bad for logic, good for Ambyr. [More]
Holiday Scams: Research Charities Before Handing Over Your Cash
By 11.24.08
This is the time of year when scammers try to weasel nice people out of their cash by pretending to represent a charity. Don’t fall for it! When considering giving to a charity, take some time to do a little research. Here are few websites that will help you find a legit charity that will use your money for good — rather than evil. Or iPods.
Consumer 101: 3 Ways To Lower Your Out Of Control Cable, Internet And Phone Bills
By 11.13.08
How much to spend on cable, internet and telephone is something nobody had to worry about only a few generations ago. Today, the Pew Research Center says that after housing, cable and satellite TV service was most frequently cited as a regular household expense (78%), followed by cell phones (74%) and internet service (65%). By contrast, just four-in-ten adults (42%) say they make a car payment. If you’re looking for a way to cut the amount of money you spend on these “information age” expenses, we’ve got three of them to choose from.
