Lending their names to a reloadable prepaid debit card might be a hot way for celebrities to make money and take up permanent residence in their fans’ wallets, but they’re also widely criticized for their high fees and taking advantage of unsophisticated consumers. Now the cards promoted by two big names who really should have known better, Magic Johnson and Suze Orman, are shutting down. [More]
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OXO Saves Day, And Possibly A Finger
By 9.29.11
A few weeks ago reader Elizabeth bought a discount “as is” mandoline slice from Bed Bath and Beyond. It didn’t have the food holder so she bought some cutting gloves from Amazon, which fit her, but not her husband. In vain, she searched for the replacement parts online. So she sent OXO an email asking if she could buy one directly. She was pleasantly surprised by their reply. [More]
Comcast Employee Rescues Driver From A Submerged Car
By 8.4.09
Add “rescue people from an underwater car” to the list of things Comcast is better at than installing cable.
Marriott Is Nice To You When Jerks Charge Food To Your Room
By 7.28.09
Reader Stephen writes in to let us know that the Marriott Residence Inn in Boulder, CO was nice to him when some random jerks charged food to his room.
Crackpots Detail Insane Ideas For Banking Reform
By 7.18.09
Credit Slips has this wild idea about reforming the banking system by letting some fairy-tale character named “Bob” run around issuing loans to qualified people in his community. We normally love Credit Slips as a well-researched piece of scholarly work masquerading as a blog, like cauliflower disguised as Cheetos, but this “community banking” idea? Ridiculous, right?! Grab a juice box and hit the jump to see what happens when economists take a stab at children’s fiction.
Man Leaves Camera In Airport, Then Actually Gets It Back
By 6.18.09
Reader Mike cc’d us on a complimentary email to Southwest Airlines, which is something that usually doesn’t happen when the words “lost and found” are involved. Long story short— he lost his camera and the airline lost his bags — but he managed to get everything back with a minimum of effort. Lucky guy!
Saved From Flat Tire Hell By The CVS "Samaritan Van"
By 6.15.09
Did you know that there was a fleet of CVS “Samaritan Vans” that patrol the highways looking for motorists in need of help? We didn’t, until reader Danielle let us know she’d been saved by one.
IKEA Flies Your Sofa Cover From Philly To LA In Their Luggage
By 5.8.09
IKEA isn’t really known for their customer service, but apparently one location in LA is trying to change that.
Above And Beyond: Canon Replaces Broken 5-Year-Old Camera For Free
By 5.6.09
It shouldn’t surprise me when a company stands behind their products’ quality, but it really does. One reader was so happy with her experience with Canon that she had to share it with us.
Helpful Service from Wachovia via Twitter
By 4.24.09
Reader Mike wrote to us about a problem he was experiencing with Wachovia (now part of Wells Fargo, but apparently keeping its own identity.) A day later, he he wrote back, informing us that the problem had resolved itself via Wachovia’s Twitter account. (Customers, take note: that’s http://twitter.com/Wachovia.)
Shrink Ray Turned On Latest Issue Of GOOD Magazine
By 3.5.09
The latest issue of GOOD magazine, which arrived in our mailbox yesterday, seems to be equal parts tongue-in-cheek and an actual attempt to save money on printing. To be honest, it’s the first time we ever made it entirely through a magazine in one sitting, so in that sense we kind of like the new format, even if it’s just for one issue. Of note: if your resume sucks, you can enter it in their resume-makeover contest.
Sprint Helps You Deal With Your Deadbeat Brother
By 2.11.09
Reader B. probably shouldn’t have used her credit to help her less-than-creditworthy brother get a cellphone, but this story has a happy ending thanks to some helpful customer service from Sprint.
The Place to Go For BofA Justice: Twitter
By 2.11.09
Reader Alex was at his wits end with Bank of America and their ever-present rate changing. After using every other resource, he turned to BofA’s Twitter, and actually got some resolution. Full letter inside.
A More Helpful Big Brother: Grocery Store Loyalty Programs Used To Notify Customers Of Salmonella Recall
By 2.9.09
According to Consumer Reports, some grocery stores are using their loyalty card registrations to get in touch with customers who bought recalled peanut butter products.
Mint Alerts Users Whose Accounts Were Fraudulently Charged
By 1.15.09
A couple days ago, we wrote about a fake company called Adele that was fraudulently charging 25 cents to credit cards. Personal finance site Mint heard about the scam too, and they reviewed their users’ records and notified them if they found a fraudulent charge.
L.L. Bean Refuses To Let You Be Unhappy — Even Though It's Your Own Fault
By 1.12.09
L.L. Bean just wants you to be happy, ok? Even if your unhappiness is entirely your own fault because you ordered the wrong size shirts and had them monogrammed. They don’t care. You will be happy or else.
Delta Helps You Escape Chicago Before The Winter Storm Of Doom
By 12.18.08
There’s a nasty winter storm coming to Chicagoland — a mix of rain, sleet and snow that might result in 12″ of accumulation. Jennifer was scheduled to fly right in the middle of it.
Logitech Helps You Out Just Because They Feel Like It
By 11.19.08
Here’s a nice story! Cody bought a refurbished Logitech remote from an Amazon reseller — which he says had no warranty of any kind. When it broke, he called Logitech and they decided to replace it for free. Just because!
