Meet Mr. Vargas. He would like to sell you his stake in some commercial property, a triangular lot just north of Central Park, at Lenox and St. Nicholas Avenues, in NYC. You would like to buy this property, because it’s apparently awesome. Unfortunately, after you give Mr. Vargas the money — you find out that the property is owned by an entirely different person.
NEW YORK
Verizon, NYPD Don't Care About Fires
By 10.8.09
Once again, Verizon has been caught leaving its vans parked in front of fire hydrants.
Expense-A-Steak Receipt Generator Makes Fraud Easy
By 10.6.09
Midtown Manhattan steakhouse Maloney & Porcelli’s tongue-in-cheek “Expense-a-Steak” tool generates remarkably realistic-looking expense friendly receipts for whatever amount you enter into the website (supposedly the cash you dropped on their fine hunks of meat.) Is it aiding and abetting fraud? Who knows.
Zipcar Launches iPhone App With Magical Car Unlocking Powers
By 9.30.09
The San Fran/NY-servicing Zipcar car sharing service has finally launched their iPhone app. Besides the expected seamless reservation system, it has a pretty sweet extra feature: It turns your iPhone into a keyfob capable of locking and unlocking your car, and honking its horn. Not owning a car just got awesomer.
Man Goes Into Business Delivering Costco To Overpriced NYC Neighborhoods
By 9.28.09
Groceries on the Upper East Side and Upper West Side of Manhattan are expensive. How expensive? One guy with a truck has started a business delivering cheaper groceries. One catch, he doesn’t own a grocery store. He will go to Costco, where items cost a fraction of their Manhattan prices — and split the savings with you.
Get Your Piece Of The Dell Fraud Settlement
By 9.18.09
Inside: Video – Cuomo and plaintiff Cary Lou Canfield lay down the law at Consumers Union earlier this week, and more info on getting some bucks from Dell.
AG Cuomo: Dell To Pay $4 Million For "Defrauding NY Customers"
By 9.15.09
If you live in New York State and purchased a computer from Dell using a Dell-financed “no interest loan,” today may be your lucky day, dude. Based on a settlement with New York State Attorney General Andrew Cuomo, the computer company will pay $4 million “in restitution, penalties and costs to resolve charges of fraudulent and deceptive business practices that scammed consumers across New York State.”
NYC Restaurant Stops Accepting Cash
By 9.11.09
If you decide to eat at Commerce, an unpleasantly named upscale restaurant in New York City that charges nearly $25 for spaghetti, your cash is no longer welcome.
Tavern On The Green Files For Bankruptcy
By 9.10.09
Tavern on the Green, that New York staple for generations of tourists, Upper West Side matrons, and, oh, tourists, has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. The Central Park eatery, which is the second highest-grossing independent restaurant in the country (number one is Tao, in Las Vegas), has debts as high as $50 million, according to the filing.
NYC Restaurant Calls Coupon Bitches "Bitches"
By 9.9.09
Zach at Midtown Lunch sent us this receipt from Crisp, a falafel joint in New York. The customer used a “buy one get one free” (BOGO) coupon for his meal, triggering a memorable coupon code on his receipt. Enjoy your meal, freeloadin’ bitches! And let’s hear if for comedic receipts! The more, the merrier.
If The Bank Accidentally Gives You $11,000 And You Won't Give It Back, You're Gonna Get Arrested
By 8.28.09
“Bank error in your favor” may help you out in Monopoly, but in real life — you gotta give the money back. One New York man didn’t agree, and now he’s been arrested and has been charged with grand larceny.
New York Times Wishes It Had Not Published "Snotty" JC Penney Review
By 8.24.09
The NYT is now expressing regret over publishing Cintra Wilson’s “Critical Shopper” review of JC Penney’s new Manhattan store. The column was simultaneously hateful and boring, offering astute observations such as the fact that middle class people shop there and that the store carries clothes for the average-sized woman.
Gee, There Was A 6 Hour Tarmac Delay At New York's JFK Airport
By 8.24.09
So, we’ve recently noticed that the new cool thing for airlines to say when they mess up is some variation of, “We tried to make them comfortable,” as if they were escorting you to meet your maker instead of transporting you to Minnesota to see your grandmother and eat “bars.” We think this is creepy. We think they should stop saying this.
Verizon Sued After Tech Punches Customer In The Face
By 8.17.09
According to a lawsuit filed by a Verizon customer in Queens, NY — the tech the company sent out wasn’t quite as affable as the ones in the commercials. Instead of fixing the customer’s problem — the tech allegedly punched him in the face.
My TWC DVR Is Possessed By The Ghost Of Someone Who Likes Tom & Jerry Cartoons
By 8.10.09
Perhaps you’ll recall reader Dave, who was told by Time Warner Cable that the reason he wasn’t getting Fox in HD was that they had stopped broadcasting it in the New York City area. We had hoped that publishing his letter would help resolve some of his issues, but sadly, that is not the case. Dave is back and this time his DVR is possessed by someone who likes “Tom & Jerry” cartoons.
New York State Provides Car Inspection Stickers That Lack One Important Feature
By 7.31.09
Stickers need to stick to things. That’s why they call them stickers. Someone should have explained this to the State of New York.
Homeless? If You Can Prove There's A Relative Who'll Take You In, NYC Will Pay Your Way
By 7.29.09
NYC wants to have less homeless people — even if that means buying them a one way ticket out of town. The NYT says that the Bloomberg administration has paid for 550 homeless people to leave the city — including flying people to “Paris ($6,332), Orlando ($858.40), Johannesburg ($2,550.70), or most frequently, San Juan ($484.20).”
NY Lawmaker Wants Rich Convicts To Pay For Their Own Incarceration
By 7.21.09
New York State Assemblyman Jim Tedicsco sees an injustice. The upstate Republican saw wealthy scammer Bernie Madoff convicted and sent to federal prison for 150 years the rest of his life at taxpayer expense. How fair is that? Why can’t rich criminals pay their own way?
