Delta was the first airline to start giving out refunds for the extra money they’ve been scalping from passengers while the FAA remains shut down. After the airline made the announcement Monday, US Airways on Tuesday said they would follow suit. [More]
fees
Senators Blast Airlines For Profiteering During Tax Holiday
By 7.27.11
Naughty, naughty. Senators Jay Rockefeller and Maria Cantwell are wagging the fingesr at airlines for raising airfares during the tax holiday that has resulted from the Federal Aviation Administration’s shutdown. The practice could have “long-term negative repercussions for the industry,” said the senators in a letter sent to the airlines on Tuesday. [More]
How To Get A Tax Refund From JetBlue
By 7.26.11
If you have a ticket with JetBlue for dates between July 25 and August 2nd, here’s how to get a refund on collected Federal taxes just by sending an email. [More]
Ralph Nader Gets A Refund From US Airways
By 7.25.11
Ralph Nader, the almighty godfather of the consumer activist movement, has still got it. NYT’s “The Haggler” column just posted a story that Nader called up to tell him about how he got a full refund from US Airways after canceling two round-trip tickets, even getting back the $150 cancellation fee. [More]
Bank Of America Paying Out $410 Million For Reordering Your Transactions To Maximize Overdraft Fees
By 7.14.11
What makes this Bank of America $410 million class action settlement special is that it’s over a basic consumer banking business practice. For years, banks have been processing your daily transactions in order from highest to lowest, rather than real-time. They say they’re doing us a favor so that if we have a check bounce, it’s the one for the babysitter and not the mortgage payment. But this class action suit claims that Bank of America did this to unjustly enrich itself. It’s one of over 60 lawsuits against various banks for similar practices, and it could reshape the entire industry. [More]
Banks Impose Surcharge For Using The Word 'Bank'
By 7.14.11
As usual, parody news site The Onion has managed to produce fake news that tells the truth better than actual facts can. This week’s radio newsflash: not satisfied with charging us fees to receive statements, use tellers, use ATMs, have accounts, and transfer funds, banks will now automatically charge us seventy-flve cents to use the word “bank.” That sentence cost me $1.50. [More]
Travel With Your Own Scale To Avoid Baggage Weight Overcharges
By 7.11.11
The scales at airport check-ins take a beating. Bag after bag, rollies, Louis Vuitons, and duffles filled with too many clothes get put on and off, all day long. Usually the magic number is 50 lbs, and after that, you have to pay a fee. Rules are rules, but in order to fairly enforce them, the scales have to be accurate. Oftentimes, they’re not, the result of lax maintenance. [More]
TCF Bank Figures Out How To Close $.05 Account
By 6.27.11
After reader DFCL’s story about how TCF Bank wouldn’t close his checking account with $.05 left in it, preferring to charge $149 in fees instead, went up on Consumerist, something good happened. [More]
Spirit Airlines To Charge $5 To Print Your Boarding Pass For You
By 6.21.11
Bottom-dollar carrier Spirit Airlines is trying very hard to become the Ryanair of the U.S., announcing that it will soon begin charging travelers $5 to have a boarding pass printed by a Spirit staffer at the airport. [More]
My Pet Got Less Legroom, Her Plane Ticket Still Cost More Than Mine
By 6.15.11
Mari and her dog recently traveled by air. While neither of them was lost, traumatized, or killed, Mari found it odd that her dog’s ticket cost more than hers. While Mari got a bargain on her ticket for $240 round trip, passage for her dog cost $125 each way. We assume that her dog is a great traveling companion and surely worth every penny, but the animal still had even less legroom than Mari, being confined to a bag inside the cabin. And she didn’t even get snacks. [More]
9 Of The Most Annoying Bank Fees
By 6.13.11
The banks of America are breaking new ground every day in the science of nickel-and-diming consumers with fees that start from the second you open an account to the moment you angrily close your account… only to move it to another bank with a different set of fees. But since there are so many ways in which financial institutions can bleed your account dry, the folks at CNN Money have come up with their list of the most annoying fees. [More]
TCF Bank Won't Close $.05 Account, Prefers To Charge $149 In Fees
By 6.7.11
Reader DFCL says that he asked TCF Bank to close his account back in April as it only had a $.05 balance. Now it’s June, his account is still open, and he’s in collections for $149 in fees. Some very exciting things happened between those two points, including him offering to donate $500 to charity if they waived his fees. They declined his offer. [More]
Delta Discontinues Discount For Paying Bag Fees Online
By 6.2.11
Since Delta began charging fees for checked bags — $25 for the initial piece on domestic flights; $35 for a second — the airline has been offering $2-3 discounts to travelers who prepaid those fees online instead of at the airport. Not anymore. [More]
Mom Tries To Teach Kids Value Of Saving, Kids Learn Lesson About Bank Fees Instead
By 5.31.11
In 2007, a mother of three thought she would introduce her kids to the world of banking by having them each open up passbook savings accounts at the local Bank of America branch. But rather than learning how savings earn interest over the years, the kids found themselves schooled in the finer points of bank fees and the need to check your statement. [More]
When Is A Free Ticket Not Free? When There Is A $350 Fuel Surcharge
By 5.31.11
Even though it’s become increasingly easy to amass rewards travel points on most major airlines, it’s not only gotten more difficult to cash in those points for free tickets, those “free” tickets could end up costing you hundreds in taxes and fuel surcharges. [More]
Columnist: Hertz Charged More To Refill Gas Tank Than To Rent Car For 2 Days
By 5.24.11
News that car rental companies are charging more than $9 per gallon for failure to fill up the gas tank upon return caught a Sports Illustrated columnist by surprise. [More]
Bank Of America Testing Letting You Choose To Overdraft Via Text Message
By 5.9.11
Bank of America currently rejects debit card items that would make your balance go below zero, but Finextra reports they’re going to test out a new system that sends you a text message when you’re about to overdraft. The message will give you the option to let the transaction go through and incur an overdraft fee. [More]
Gym Makes Navy Family With Moving Orders Pay Cancellation Fee
By 5.6.11
A Navy family with government orders to move from California to Virginia was surprised when their gym wanted to charge them a $200 early termination fee. [More]
