An anonymous tipster sent us AOL’s 153 page internal collections guidebook for prying money out of delinquent account holders. The guide shows that AOL is following some of the debt industry’s most egregious collection tactics by encouraging agents to deceive and lie to customers. After the jump we present AOL’s scare tactics, tricks to negotiating a substantial discount, and the full collections guide.
discounts
Restaurant Gives 25% Discount To Birthday Diners, Writes "Bug On Food" For Reason On Check
By 3.25.08
A restaurant in Dubai gave a 25% discount to a party of birthday diners after they found four bugs in their food. Says a restaurant official, “The guys thought being friendly and having a joke about the environment would relax the diners because it was a birthday, but unfortunately it didn’t.” We sort of think after the second or third bug, you should probably just comp the meal—and then shut down the restaurant for fumigation.
Haggle With Chain Stores
By 3.23.08
The Times is reporting that recession-fearing chain stores like Best Buy, Home Depot, and Circuit City are increasingly more desperate to clinch sales by negotiating prices. Hit the jump to see how ordinary shoppers are wielding research and charisma to knock added savings out of retailers.
Want To Use Amazon Prime? You'll Pay $50 More For This TomTom Unit
By 3.4.08
Steve was going to split the cost of a TomTom GPS Navigator unit with a friend so they could give it to his sister as a gift.
Is It Legal To Use Out Of Date List Prices For Comparison On Sales?
By 2.27.08
Last week we pointed out how Apple artificially inflates the discount of its refurbished units by using the original introductory list price as a comparison, even if the price has since dropped and the true list price is now lower. Now a reader writes in to say he caught Toys R Us doing the same thing on sale prices of Playstation 3 bundles and 30 gig Zunes. Our question: is this legal? New York City’s consumer protection law seems to imply that—at least for retailers doing business in NYC—it’s not, unless you clearly indicate the trail of price reductions, something neither company is doing.
You Can't Discount The Past, Apple
By 2.23.08
A reader noticed that Apple is selling refurbished 8gb iPhones for $349, and they’re listing the original price as $599. “Save 42% off the original price,” says the Apple Store. Gosh, that’s a huge savings! Wait… well sure, the original original price was $599, but we all know that Apple knocked that down fairly quickly, and now a brand new 8 gb model sells for $399—which means actually you’re only saving 12.5% off the Real World Price Right Now of a brand new iPhone, if you went and bought it today.
Pick Up Some Haggling Tips At HowToHaggle.com
By 2.4.08
HowToHaggle.com is a short, easy-to-skim website devoted exclusively to the concept of haggling. It’s not the world’s most extensive resource, but the tips page lists 15 very good things to keep in mind the next time you want to score a better deal on a product.
By 1.31.08
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Walgreens has a printable online coupon for $5 off a purchase of $20 or more, good for tomorrow only. (Thanks to Mike!)
U.S. News: It's Your Own Damn Fault You Can't Redeem Rebates
By 1.27.08
U.S. News & World Report hates our inability to redeem rebates. If we only tried harder, they say, we might be able to conquer our “tendency to procrastinate and inability to follow multistep directions.” Yes, that must be the problem.
Thieves Steal 42" Plasma TV From Mall During Shopping Hours
By 12.31.07
Those post-holiday TV sales just aren’t enough for some people, because somehow, a 42″ plasma set used for display in a retail store in Albany, Georgia, was stolen from the counter during business hours.
Stores Beg Shoppers To Come Visit This Weekend
By 12.22.07
Spooked by the (apparently mythological) low numbers of shoppers this season, several retail chains are pulling out the stops in an attempt to lure consumers in over the next 72 hours, reports Reuters. Seven New York-area Macy’s stores are now open non-stop until 6pm Monday. Kmart is holding a “64-hour sale” that begins tomorrow morning and lasts until 10pm Monday (we’re not sure if the stores are staying open around the clock, however). JC Penney is advertising special sales tonight and tomorrow morning.
Sales Of Women's Clothing Drops, May Mean Steep Discounts Over The Next Week
By 12.18.07
Mastercard reported on Sunday that, after a slight bump around Black Friday, sales of women’s clothing has dropped again, down 6% even while sales of men’s clothing has gone up 4.5%. They think it has to do with an overall weak year for women’s fashion, and the fact that mothers tend to cut back on new clothes for themselves first when faced with a tighter budget. The silver lining: there may be considerable discounts at women’s clothing retailers in the immediate future as they try to bump up sales at the last minute.
3 Sites To Help You Save Money Online
By 12.14.07
PriceSpider works much like WishRadar that we mentioned last week, except PriceSpider focuses exclusively on electronics, and searches more sites. You choose the product and set a target price, and when it sees that price somewhere online, it sends you an alert.
Save $10 On T-Mobile Total Internet
By 12.12.07
A reader writes in to say he saved $10 on his T-Mobile bill when he called up to ask why there were two different “Total Internet” options on his add-ons list. Were they the same thing? Yes. So he could switch to the cheaper one without penalty and get exactly the same add-on? Sure.
20 Sites Where You Can Find Deals
By 11.6.07
Maybe you’re one of those people who will manage to actually follow through with the whole “home-made, simpler gift giving” concept this season. For the rest of you who don’t want to sit around making dolls and paper-mache serving dishes over the next six weeks, Kiplinger’s has a list of 20 sites to help you score the best prices on your holiday shopping this year.
America's 20 Most Discounted Cars
By 11.5.07
BusinessWeek has thoughtfully rounded up the 20 most discounted cars for your bargain-hunting enjoyment. From total failures to the recently redesigned, here are 20 cars you shouldn’t pay too much for—and probably won’t have to. What the hell is a Chrysler Aspen, anyway? A Mitsubishi Raider?
Do Your Thrift Store Shopping Online At ShopGoodwill.com
By 10.22.07
Ebay isn’t the only shopping site revamping its look: Goodwill’s online shopping website, which has been around since 1999, is about to launch a redesigned site that’s cleaner and easier to navigate. Because the only sellers on the site are member organizations of Goodwill Industries International, the selection may not be as big as eBay, but the fraud is minimal as well—and the member pool is large enough to have “posted more than 17,000 items from inventory that includes antiques, collectibles, clothing, electronics, books and musical instruments, which are arranged according to category. “
