Tmobile says they fixed Motoko’s fraudulent bill complaint. Motoko disagrees..An insurance claims adjuster would like to adjust several of the claims made in “10 Things Your Auto Insurer Won’t Tell You”Two airplane manufacturers and a UCLA professor take issue with a Dan Rather Reports episode…
followups
By 9.20.07
../../../..//2007/09/20/on-monday-we-reported-that/
On Monday, we reported that TD Ameritrade knew since May 2007 about data breaches that resulted in thousands of its customers getting penny stock spam, but it turns out the breach could have happened as early as November 2005. [Network World]
Walmart Pulls Foot Burning FlipFlops
By 9.12.07
Walmart says it has pulled thousands of cheap sandals that had of customers complaining about painful, lingering rashes, WFTV in Florida reports.
Verizon Techs Blow Out AP Reporter's Electrical Box During Installation
By 9.6.07
Verizon FiOs techs have flubbed another install, hitting an electrical wire and leaving the electrical box smoking. This time, the customer was an AP reporter. Oopsy poopsies!
First Consumer "Popcorn Lung" Case Found
By 9.5.07
A Denver man who snarfed microwaved popcorn at least twice a day for over a decade has been diagnosed with the first consumer case of “popcorn lung” an asthma-like condition that results from over-exposure to popcorn fumes, NYT reports.
“When he broke open the bags, after the steam came out, he would often inhale the fragrance because he liked it so much,” Dr. Rose said. “That’s heated diacetyl, which we know from the workers’ studies is the highest risk.”
KEELOQ Maker Says Remote Car Entry Devices Not Hacked, Rebutting Researchers
By 9.4.07
Last week, researchers announced they had devised a way to steal cars by breaking the encryption used to encode the signals sent by keyless remote car entry devices using KEELOQ technology.
At Least Nine Cases Of Walmart Flipflops Burning Customers, Here's The Latest
By 8.30.07
A woman by the name of Ginger Edwards from Walmart headquarters in Bentonville called me initially back in July and wanted the shoes so they could test them and informed me that I was the 9th case reported, note that was in JULY. I emailed her pictures of my feet but I did not mail the shoes. I chose instead to use my better judgment and held on to the flip flops as EVERYONE at Walmart has given me the impression that they are completely apathetic to my problem. I or my son, visited Walmart daily after having complained IN PERSON after visiting the doctor the first time back in July and having showed them my feet, and the shoes remained on the shelf until last week!!
Best Buy's Geek Squad Scours Stores In Person For Stolen Porn N' Stuff
By 8.28.07
In addition to having Best Buy Geeks Squad locations hook up store computers to headquarters to check for porn and music stolen from customer’s computers, and pirated software, they’re also sending “audit teams” to investigate hard-drives at the stores in-person, reports an insider.
By 8.24.07
../../../..//2007/08/24/in-an-attempt-to-mitigate/
In an attempt to mitigate the negative PR fallout from having one of its planes explode on the tarmac seconds after the last of its passengers scrambled off it, China Airlines painted over the ruined plane’s logo. [MSN]
TigerDirect Apologizes For Unlawfully Detaining Customer For Refusing To Show Receipt
By 8.24.07
The manager of the TigerDirect that unlawfully detained reader Shaneal Manek for his refusal to show a receipt called him this afternoon and apologized for his store’s behavior. Shaneal told The Consumerist by phone that Tony, the store manager, pledged to retrain his staff on proper procedures and that they wouldn’t retain the services of the security guard involved in the dispute.
Secret Email Addresses For IKEA US Top Management
By 8.23.07
Turns out that for security purposes, the shiny brass at IKEA use email addresses that stray from the format we posted yesterday. If you’ve got an IKEA complaint that needs to go the top, use the addresses inside while the getting is good.
10 Reasons Credit, Debt and You Should Be BFF
By 8.21.07
Rebutting “Ideas For Living Without Credit Or Debt,” Blueprint For Financial Prosperity came up with 10 reasons why credit and debt can be great. Here’s a good one (and one that we ourselves have made in the past):
Fight Bogus Charge Cramming With Account Freeze Power
By 8.15.07
Regarding, “Watch Out For Bogus Charges On Your Phone Bill,” it turns out there’s a more proactive way to fight back against companies passing unauthorized charges on and having your phone company bill you for them. You might be able to get your account “frozen,” according to Verizon’s Fraud and Scam alert page: [More]
Delta Blames Seven-Hour Flight Delay On "Decades-Old Radar And Analog Air Traffic Control System"
By 7.10.07
Delta customer and Consumerist reader Rebekah emailed Delta over concerns about recent and extreme airline delays, threatening to cancel her Delta American Express and taking her miles with her. We’ll let it and the Delta Customer Care reply speak for themselves…
Georgia Sues Infamous Bill Heard Dealership
By 7.10.07
Georgia is suing the super duper shady Bill Heard dealership, whom we wrote about twice in July 2006. This time, the dealership stands to get slapped on the hand for sending out advertising that fraudulently appeared to be recall notices for GM cars, but were actually printed by the state’s biggest car seller in an attempt to scare people into buying new cars. The result of the lawsuit could be a fine of a $5,000 per mailing, up to $50,000,000, reports AJC.com, and a promise to stop deceptive trade practices. It would mark the 16th such promise Bill Heard has made in its 16 years of business.
Apple Gives Macbook Smasher A New Macbook
By 7.3.07
Apple contacted me over the weekend and arranged for me to pick up a new macbook on Tuesday…
UPDATE: Sears.com Repeatedly Delivers Wrong Dryer, Doesn't Correct Website
By 6.21.07
We posted about how Ian started blogging his quest to get Sears to make up for delivering the wrong dryer, repeatedly. Now, the executive customer service types are ignoring his requests for a refund, despite their promises to do so in full. Ian has vowed to take Sears to small claims court-the last recourse for aggrieved customers.
XBOX360 Consumer Pwns Microsoft Using Level 34 American Express Powers
By 6.20.07
Remember Richard? Microsoft and numerous commenters mocked him for trying to get his XBOX360 fixed under warranty repair because he had a random tech pry open the box, thus voiding the warranty.
