A Texas man and his dog both died while stuck inside his 2007 Corvette earlier this week after the power locks malfunctioned and the driver was apparently unable to find the manual release. [More]
horror stories
Cable Company Tech Arrested After Allegedly Grabbing, Shoving Customer
By 5.22.15
Cable company installation horror stories usually involve things like poorly run cords, maybe a dead gecko, gaping holes in walls, possibly having your house condemned, and the occasional tech who pees into a bag instead of in the bathroom. But a woman in Staten Island says a disagreement with her Time Warner Cable tech escalated to the point of him assaulting her in her house. [More]
Family Switches To Sprint To Get Bill Cut In Half, Ends Up With Bill For $3,800
By 5.14.15
While we’ve criticized Sprint’s “half off” promotion, which says it will cut your current wireless bill in half, for really only providing savings of about 20%, we’re pretty sure the idea wasn’t to stick customers with nearly $3,800 in bills for service they never used. [More]
Comcast Refused To Cancel Cable For Customer Whose House Went Up In Flames
By 4.9.15
When your house burns down, the last thing you should be concerned about is having to make repeated calls to your cable provider to get them to cancel or suspend your service. And yet Comcast refused to cancel service for one Minnesota customer after his house was turned to ashes — all because he couldn’t provide his full account number. [More]
Chemotherapy Patient Says Walmart Employees Mocked Her In Restroom
By 3.30.15
A Louisiana woman who had recently completed chemotherapy treatment and who underwent a double mastectomy last summer claims that Walmart employees laughed at her in the store bathroom after confusing her with a man. [More]
New Homeowner Has To Sell House Because Of Comcast’s Incompetence, Lack Of Competition
By 3.25.15
Only months after moving into his new home in Washington state, Consumerist reader Seth is already looking to sell his house. He didn’t lose his job or discover that the property is haunted. No, Seth can’t stay much longer because no one can provide broadband service to his address; even though Comcast and CenturyLink both misled him into thinking he’d be connected to their networks and in spite of the fact that his county runs a high-speed fiberoptic network that goes very near to his property. [More]
Contractor Steals Homeowners’ Valuables, Demands Cash For Their Return
By 3.20.15
It’s certainly not unheard of to have your things stolen by workers with access to your home, but most of them don’t have the gall to justify their theft by saying the victim should pay a ransom because the thief’s boss doesn’t pay them enough. [More]
Owners Of Wrecked Boat Out $20K Because AAA Tow Driver Used Personal Vehicle
By 3.11.15
Common sense would tell you that if your vehicle is wrecked while in the care of a AAA tow truck driver, either that driver’s insurance or AAA would be responsible for making you whole again. But if the tow driver is using their own personal truck at the time of the collision, you could be stuck holding the bill. [More]
Woman Convicted Of Stalking Couple Who Outbid Her On House Says Losing Dream Home Was “Devastating”
By 2.12.15
In a twist on the old haunted house tale, a couple in San Diego found themselves haunted by the ghost of a woman in their present, who was convicted of stalking them after they won a bidding war over a house. Though the woman says she didn’t intend do to any harm, the loss of her dream home was “devastating.” [More]
1-Year-Old Suffocates During Home Remedy For Lice
By 2.5.15
Though its effectiveness is debatable, using mayonnaise to get rid of head lice is a well-known home remedy. But one family’s attempt to rid their child of the tiny insects has apparently resulted in a tragic death by suffocation. [More]
UPS Sorry About That Driver Who Peed On House After Throwing Package
By 1.28.15
It’s nothing new to hear of a UPS, USPS or FedEx driver being caught on camera treating a customer’s package with reckless disregard for its contents. But what you don’t hear too much about are delivery drivers who, after mistreating the parcels with which they’ve been entrusted, decide to use the recipient’s house as a toilet. [More]
Dogs Taken By FedEx Driver Returned To Owners; Driver Suspended
By 1.9.15
On Thursday we told you about the Houston family who claimed that home security footage shows a FedEx delivery driver stealing their two dogs. While the matter is still being investigated, there is good news to report — the puppies are back home where they belong. [More]
Uber’s Response To Complaint About Driver Who Offered Oral Sex: Here’s $31
By 12.11.14
How is one supposed to react when an Uber driver offers to pull the car over and demonstrate his prowess at oral sex? And how is Uber supposed to react when that passenger files a complaint about the incident? We don’t know the answers to these questions, but the ride-sharing service valued the passenger’s discomfort at around $31. [More]
How Dropping Phone, TV Service From AT&T Bundle Resulted In 3-Year Collection Hell For Customer
By 12.5.14
Cable and telecom companies love to sell you on the convenience and affordability of bundles combining phone, TV and Internet service onto one bill. But what they don’t tell you is that shedding that bundle could end up in a billing nightmare. [More]
Wells Fargo Refusing To Honor Widow’s 30-Year-Old CD
By 11.19.14
In 1984, an Arizona man invested more than $18,000 in a Certificate of Deposit at First Interstate Bank, and then placed that CD away in his family’s personal records where it sat for 25 years. Then in 2009, after he passed away, his widow discovered the CD and attempted to cash it out, only to be denied by First Interstate’s new owner, Wells Fargo. [More]
USPS Apologizes For Declaring Living, Breathing Man “Deceased”
By 10.21.14
Every parent dreads the possibility of outliving their children. So imagine the shock when one mom found out via the U.S. Postal Service that her son had died. Now think about how the not-at-all-deceased felt when he learned that he’d been declared dead by the post office. [More]
Homeowner Loses Condo Because City Messed Up Address On $95 Tax Bill
By 10.21.14
For the last few years, a woman in Georgia has been living in her condo and paying her local tax bills — except for one $94.85 city tax bill she never received because the address on the notices was incorrect. But that error didn’t stop the city from auctioning off her home. [More]
