Do you bother to ask for a receipt when you donate your old stuff to Goodwill? If not, you might start after reading what happened to a couple after they donated some clothes. [More]
happy endings
Family Finds Free Lizard Inside Bundle Of Salad Greens, Brings It To Live At School
By 1.26.16 — Updated: 12.30.16
The tale of Green Fruit Loop the anole lizard is an epic one, as tales about lizards go. GFL began life somewhere in the southern half of the country, apparently as a wild lizard. She made the amazing journey from being a wild lizard hanging out in a field to living in a reptile habitat in an elementary school science lab. [More]
Sephora’s Offering To Customers Upset About Epic Rewards: $50 Gift Codes
By 8.26.15
Earlier this month, we shared with you the story of Sephora’s Epic Rewards promotion that quickly ran out of rewards. Customers were upset after the promotion, believing that they had been misled into racking up points for special “rewards” when there were so few rewards to go around that it might as well have been a raffle. Today, as promised, Sephora is starting to e-mail these customers with their final offering: a $50 gift code. [More]
Comcast Tech Saves Two Lives In Same Week
By 10.22.13
It’s no secret that most Consumerist stories about Comcast service techs are not positive, but there are still plenty of good, hardworking folks toiling away for Kabletown and its affiliated contractors (kontractors?). Take, for example, the California tech who recently stepped up to save the lives of two separate individuals in the span of a single week. [More]
Ashes Found: NH Man Won’t Spend Eternity In Bowels Of Postal System
By 10.9.13
While relaxing in his favorite fishing spot in Key West, Florida, a New Hampshire man told his wife that this was his idea of heaven on earth, and he wanted to have his ashes spread there. He died suddenly earlier this year, and his widow tried to follow his wishes. [More]
Lottery Winner From 2006 Awarded Stolen $5 Million Prize
By 8.29.13
The lottery winner duped out of his prize by the sons of a convenience store owner will finally receive his $5 million. Back in 2006, a man in Syracuse, N.Y. won the huge prize in a scratchoff game, but the cashiers on duty, the store owner’s sons, told him that he had only won $5,000. They bought the ticket from him for even less than that, then did nothing. For six years. [More]
Disney Cruise Line Went Above & Beyond To Help Save Our Child’s Life
By 8.27.13
There’s nothing like the fear of having a sick child and not knowing what’s wrong — except maybe if your child is ailing on a ship off the coast of Alaska, hundreds of miles from the nearest onshore medical help. Consumerist reader Dan wrote in to share a very scary experience that could’ve turned out a lot worse, if not for the kind crew of the Disney Wonder. [More]
Man Drops $900 In Home Depot Parking Lot, Actually Gets It Back
By 8.9.13
Too often we hear about unlucky souls who accidentally drop large amounts of cash, only to have it snatched up by some heartless goon who believes “finders keepers” is the law of the land. So on this lovely Friday afternoon, we bring you a story with a much happier ending. [More]
Best Buy Has Had My Returned Order For 11 Weeks But I’m Still Waiting On My Refund
By 7.25.13
Back in early May, Consumerist reader JR decided to buy a microwave off BestBuy.com, which should have been a simple process. Little did she expect that she’d end up paying for two microwaves and waiting nearly three months to get a refund. [More]
Facebook Fans Identify And Shame Thief Of Customer Loyalty Stamp
By 7.25.13
It’s the definition of small-time crime: a thief who was apparently in a hurry to get some free frosty snacks allegedly walked off with the frequent-customer stamp at a California shaved ice stand. He also grabbed some cash from the tip jar while he was at it. The owners put their faith in the power of public shaming and posted the surveillance video on their Facebook page. [More]
United Airlines Sends Passenger To San Diego, Ships His Dog To Hawaii
By 7.24.13
Handing your canine companion over to an airline, even for a few hours, can be stressful. So imagine how freaked out you would feel when you arrive at the airport only to find your furry friend is nowhere to be found. [More]
Reader Returns Overdue Library Book After 41 Years, Pays $299 Fine
By 7.23.13
Some people need a little more time than others to read a book, like the person who had been holding on to an overdue library book for 41 years but recently decided to turn it in, along with hundreds of dollars in fines. [More]
Apple To Refund $6,000 Spent By 8-Year-Old On In-Game Purchases
By 7.22.13
Another day, another story of a youngster racking up a massive bill on some unlucky adults’ iPad. This time, it’s an 8-year-old in England who tallied up £4,000 (around $6,100) on in-game purchases over the last few months — half of it in just a six-day period. The girl’s dad thought he’d have to sell his car to pay the bill, but Apple says it has decided to refund the money. [More]
Southwest Wins Customer Over With $75 Voucher She Didn’t Ask For
By 6.14.13
We’ve said it before and we’re about to say it again — Proactively reaching out to customers who’ve had a bad experience will (almost) always be more effective than trying to apologize and make good later. To illustrate that point, we bring you the short story of Alexandria and Southwest Airlines. [More]
Chick Fil-A Franchisees, Bridal Store Owner, Designer Team Up To Help Bride Who Lost Dress In Tornado
By 6.12.13
When the owners of a Chick fil-A franchise in Oklahoma found out that one of their employees had lost her wedding dress to the tornado that recently tore a path of devastation through Moore, OK, they decided to do something about it. But their one phone call set off a chain reaction of niceness. [More]
Update: El Pollo Loco To Help Out Customer Whose $2,200 Was Stolen In Parking Lot
By 6.7.13
Last week, we told you about the unlucky El Pollo Loco customer who accidentally dropped $2,200 in the parking lot, only to have it stolen by another customer who then sat and ate his meal while his victim undertook a frantic search for the cash. Now we hear there is some good news, as the eatery plans to gift the money back to him. [More]
Warranty On My Sears Air-Conditioning Might Be Voided Because Sears Won’t Call Me Back
By 5.20.13
A year ago, Sears installed a new air-conditioning system for Consumerist reader Donna. The system also includes a warranty that requires someone come out once a year to do a maintenance check, but after two months of trying to get someone out to her house, Donna was looking that the possibility of her warranty being voided because no one would return her calls. [More]
Hertz Tells Me It Has No Idea How To Read A Fuel Gauge
By 5.13.13
Anyone who has returned a rental car with less fuel than agreed to knows full well that rental company employees understand how to read a fuel gauge, because there is money to be made if you’re coming back light on gas. But one Consumerist reader says it’s a different story when you prepay for fuel and you’re the one looking to be reimbursed. [More]
