By now, there’s a chance you are one of the million or so people who have already watched the viral-buzzworthy-internetty-whatever YouTube clip of the dog that apparently works at a veterinarian, where it takes a printout from the printer, takes it to the assistant, who staples a receipt to the page, and then brings the whole thing to the customer. [More]
polls
Is "No Problem" A Suitable Substitute For "You're Welcome"?
By 12.16.11
People often complain that customer service reps sound like — and sometimes are — reading from a script. So while many of us appreciate it when we speak to someone who treats us in a less-stilted fashion, is there a point where a CSR’s tone and diction can become too informal? [More]
Would You Do Your Holiday Shopping At A Pawn Shop?
By 12.9.11
Smart shoppers look everywhere they can think of for a good deal. But does that include heading to the local pawn shop to see if they can scrounge up a good bargain when looking for holiday gifts? [More]
Is Wireless Data Still "Unlimited" If It's Throttled After A Certain Point?
By 7.20.11
As we noted in April, when T-Mobile proudly announced that it was offering “unlimited” data plans for smartphones, there should be a pretty sizable asterisk next to “unlimited,” because, after the user consumes 2GB of data in a month, T-Mobile throttles back on the speed at which any further data is delivered. Some would call that a “limit,” but T-Mobile continues to disagree and has rolled out a handful of additional unlimited-with-throttling plans. [More]
Should We Put Cameras On Cops?
By 5.19.11
Following allegations police had stolen a laptop and a digital camera from a suspect’s house, San Francisco PD is considering equipping officers with a head-mounted video camera to document searches and arrests and make sure they’re being conducted appropriately. Is this a good idea? Take our poll and sound off. [More]
Have 342 People Died From Storms Lately? Sears Can Help You Clean Up!
By 5.2.11
Devastating storms have ripped across the country in the past few weeks, leaving at least 342 dead and entire blocks and houses demolished. As a home appliance retailer, what’s your first thought? That’s right, targeted upsell. Several of our readers have sent in this email they got from Sears which says “Affected by the storm? Sears can help you clean up,” and then displays the wet vacs, chainsaws and generators you can buy. The 10% off Sears water extraction service could come in handy, but the email struck some of our readers as being in poor taste. [More]
Comcast's CEO Pay Valued At $31.1 M. Did He Earn It?
By 4.7.11
$31.1 million is what you get for being the CEO of Comcast, reports the AP in their breakdown of Brian Robert’s compensation package. Do you feel this pay is deserving and accurately reflects your experience as a Comcast customer? Our handy poll has buttons that you can push to tell the world your opinion. Just don’t push the red button with the lips on it. That orders more naughty movies and makes a silver bell in Brian Robert’s office go ting-a-ling. [More]
Would You Pay $30 To Rent A Movie That's Still In Theaters?
By 3.4.11
For movie fans, there is that odd stretch of time between a film’s initial release and when it hits the DVD/On-Demand market. Maybe it’s playing in a second-run theater or maybe it’s just in limbo. Regardless, DirecTV is betting that customers would be willing to pay a premium to watch movies during that lame-duck time period. [More]
School Tracks Truant Students With GPS Devices
By 2.18.11
To combat seventh and eighth graders who constantly skip class, a school in California is equipping the worst offenders with GPS tracking units. If you have more than four unexcused absences, you’re assigned to carry a handheld GPs device. Five times a day you have enter in a code to verify your location. You also get an automated call in the morning reminding you to come to school and three times a week an adult assigned to you calls you to check in and discuss attendance strategies. The devices have increased attendance by truants to 95% up from 77%, but some parents feel it treats their kids “like common criminals.” Do you think this program is a good idea? Take our poll and sound off in the comments. [More]
Would You Pay Extra For An Adult-Only Flight?
By 2.7.11
In a recent survey of business class travelers, when asked what annoys them about first-class travel, 74% of them said “children.” The respondents are clamoring for airlines to start offering children-free or 18+ only flights. So here’s the question: would you pay extra for a seat on a kid-free flight? Take our poll and sound off! [More]
Should Supermarkets Be Responsible For Notifying Club Card Members Of Recalls?
By 2.4.11
A new class-action lawsuit being brought against Safeway claims that the supermarket chain failed in its duty to actively notify members of its Safeway Club card program about recalls for food sold at the store. [More]
Have You Finished Your Christmas Shopping Yet?
By 12.24.10
I finished all my holiday shopping back before Hanukkah, so I’ll just be chilling out around Consumerist HQ and occasionally playing with a plastic bag. But I am aware that with only hours to go until Santa Claus squeezes his jolly girth down millions of chimneys, many of you humans are still scrambling to do some last-minute shopping. [More]
Would You Use Best Buy's No-Restocking-Fee Policy To "Rent" Electronics?
By 12.20.10
Over the weekend, we broke the news that Best Buy had quietly repealed its policy of charging up to 15% restocking fees on almost all electronics purchases. But as some readers have pointed out, this could lead to a surge in the number of customers who “rent” new products from the retail chain. [More]
Co-workers Give The Worst Christmas Gifts
By 12.16.10
If you think your boss or colleagues have deliberately gone out of their way to bestow the worst possible holiday gifts on you year after year, you’re in good company. According to a new survey from our scientific siblings at Consumer Reports, about 30% of employed adults single out co-workers or bosses as the worst gift-givers. [More]
Would You Ever Rent Your Christmas Tree?
By 12.10.10
When we recently asked Consumerist readers if they would ever purchase their Christmas tree online, a few commenters wrote that they kept their tree potted all year round and would just bring it inside during the holidays. And now we’ve learned that there are a handful of businesses are offering this same service, for a price. [More]
How Far Should I Go To Let Macy's Know It Accidentally Gave Me Refund?
By 12.7.10
Steve received an early, accidental Christmas present from Macy’s, which mistakenly issued a refund for a jacket he ordered online. Being paragons of moral virtue, Consumerist readers will no doubt tell him to let the retailer know about the goof and offer to pay for the jacket. But the question isn’t so much whether or not to tell Macy’s, but how much effort he’s morally obligated to exert in order to give Macy’s the chance to correct the error. Is an email to customer service enough? Does he need to follow it up until he receives a response? [More]
Would You Buy Your Christmas Tree Online?
By 12.2.10
In November, Target started selling fresh-cut Christmas trees on their website, joining Costco in the growing number of companies who have turned to the web to offer holiday greenery. [More]
