Dangling a free prepaid gift card in front of folks’ faces is a time-honored method of getting people to switch services. But a number of cable customers who switched to Time Warner Cable because of the promise of a $300 gift card say the pay-TV provider has yet to make good on the promotion.
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Customers Say Time Warner Cable Failing To Honor $300 Gift Card Promo Deal
By 4.14.16
From Apple To Walmart, Over A Dozen Of The Biggest Businesses In The U.S. Sign On To White House Climate Pledge
By 7.27.15
A huge number of the world’s nations are coming together in Paris this December to negotiate an agreement to stem emissions and forestall further climate change. Ahead of this winter’s United Nations talks, however, some well-known names here at home are pledging their own contributions to the cause. [More]
China’s Ministry Of Commerce Pledges To Crack Down On Counterfeit Items Sold Online
By 1.29.15
After another Chinese government agency scolded e-commerce giant Alibaba and its eBayesque subsidiary Taobao over its mismanagement of its business and for selling or allowing bogus goods to be sold to the public, the country’s Ministry of Commerce has pledged to crack the whip on the online industry and try harder to prevent the sale of counterfeit goods. [More]
Fisher Price Includes Batteries, But Not Ones That Work
By 6.28.10
Dana is annoyed that the Fisher Price toy she bought for her baby promised her that batteries were included. They were in the box all right, but they were dead. In fact the manual Fisher Price enclosed with the toy suggests you immediately replace the included batteries with new ones. [More]
Is Bank Of America Of Trying To Skirt The CARD Act With New Annual Fees?
By 11.10.09
In a series of recent posts, WalletBlog has accused Bank of America of breaking the spirit of its “no new fees” promise and of potentially breaking the law next year, after it announced it will introduce annual fees on some existing credit card accounts in 2010.
These Light Blocking Curtains Are Surprisingly Easy To Locate In The Daytime
By 6.16.09
Dustin bought a set of Eclipse light blocking curtains at Kmart, but woke up the next day to a well-lit room and some gently glowing windows. The picture Dustin took of the curtains looks an awful lot like the “normal” ones in the official product shot.
Comcast Programming Guides Won't Display Porn Next To Kid's Shows Anymore
By 6.7.09
Sorry kids, your days of catching enticingly named porn listed next to your cuddly family shows on Comcast’s programming guide are over. Comcast will now place “blocks of dummy channels” to keep family programs away from the racy pay per view channels.
Has Comcast Hired ELIZA For Customer Chat Support?
By 4.8.09
This English-as-a-second-language tech support guy just wants to help Noah out, but the weird combination of formal exchanges and misunderstandings make him sound like an AI program. We don’t think Jullan even realizes that his good-natured attempts to help are only annoying the customer more. In theory, we like the idea of a tech support guy “extending an extra mile,” but maybe next time he should stick to tech support and leave billing questions unto the billing department.
United Promises There's No Fee, Then Takes $150 Out Of Your Account
By 3.5.09
We all know that just because a rep on the phone promises you something, that doesn’t mean it’s necessarily true. But in Alan’s case, two different United reps both confirmed, repeatedly—he asked several times before completing the purchase and again before canceling—that he could cancel his tickets within 24 hours of purchase without paying a fee. A week after he canceled, he was hit with a $150 non-refundable fee that one United rep admitted was a new policy that wasn’t in writing—but United still refused to reverse it.
Sleepy's Promises To Help Deliver Your Mattress As Long As You Do All The Work
By 2.21.09
Sleepy’s just won’t help Ashley pick up her new mattress. The store promised to have rope on hand to strap the mattress to her car, but when Ashley arrived she was told that Sleepy’s had “run out of rope.” To apologize, a sales rep instead promised her free delivery, but called later to explain that he wasn’t authorized to offer any freebies. He did, though, promise that Sleepy’s would have rope the next time Ashley came by. Of course, they didn’t have rope when she returned, and when she complained to a manager, the manager explained that Sleepy’s had no obligation to provide Ashley with rope or free delivery, and that she better find a way to take her mattress because they weren’t going to refund her money either.
Circuit City's "Free Shipping Day" Promise Turns Out To Be Worthless
By 1.7.09
Circuit City promised that if you ordered from them on December 18th, you’d get free shipping and a guarantee that your order would arrive before Christmas. It turns out that promise was worthless, at least for Brandon—or rather, it’s worth exactly $5 in company scrip from Circuit City. (We love apologies that force you to shop at the company that screwed up.) Circuit City’s CSR even says that the December 18th offer doesn’t exist, despite the fact that their logo is still up on the freeshippingday.com website as of today.
Citibank Promises To Credit ATM Fees, But Will Try To Get Out Of It Unless You Badger Them
By 4.25.08
Tim was pretty sure he met all the conditions of Citibank’s offer to refund ATM fees—he opened his account online and he doesn’t live near a Citi Financial center. When he wasn’t credited, he contacted them to ask why, and was told he had to meet the conditions he’s already met. He had to contact them four times to finally get the $2.00 fee credited as per their advertising. You might be asking yourself, “All that trouble for two dollars?” Well, that’s why he ends his email with this: “Can someone point me in the direction of a better bank that actually provides ‘reimbursement of the fees other banks may charge you for using their ATMs’ without hassle?”
Dell Still Ships Tiny Items In Massive Boxes
By 4.20.08
From the looks of David’s package, Dell isn’t close to honoring its promise to switch to alternative packaging within the next two months. This obscenely large box contained nothing more than a 2GB flash drive. David’s son snapped a few pictures, which appear as an eerie slideshow after the jump.
Dr Pepper Promises Free Soda For Almost Everyone In US If Axl Rose Will Release "Chinese Democracy" This Year
By 3.27.08
Yeah, it’s a PR stunt—but a funny one, especially because the only two people excluded by Dr Pepper’s pledge are “estranged GNR guitarists Slash and Buckethead.” Someone in the Dr Pepper PR department really likes Axl Rose. Rose says neither he nor his label are in cahoots with Dr Pepper, and that he’d share his drink with Buckethead because “some of Buckethead’s performances are on our album.”
Countrywide Says It's So, Like, Totally Not Going To Go Bankrupt, OK?
By 1.9.08
Reacting to the bankruptcy rumors, Countrywide spokesman Rick Simon said, “There is no substance” to them “and we are not aware of any basis for the rumor that any of the major rating agencies are contemplating negative action relative to the company.”
So, if you’re seeking better interest rates, and are morally flexible about who you give your money too, look for companies that are in dire need of an infusion of cash. Who’s the predatory lender now? Don’t you feel cool?
