Rachel’s stepsister passed away last April, but when she called to cancel her pre-paid mobile account Virgin told her that instead of sending in a death certificate, she should just shut off the phone and ignore it. After 90 days of inactivity, it would automatically be canceled. “I asked if they wouldn’t take a death certificate to close the account, but I was assured that it would be faster to simply let the account run out.” Instead, they added some sort of extra minutes promotion to the account that extended it to the present, so ten months later, it’s still active.
promotions
Best Buy Refuses To Honor 2 for $25 DVD Sale
By 1.26.08
Silly Jason. He thought a Best Buy sign reading “2 for $25” meant he could buy two DVDs for $25. He obviously didn’t read the part of the sign that requires customers to buy Saw IV.
Alleged Gibson CEO Possibly Responds To $10k Contest Story
By 1.26.08
Brand new Consumerist reader Mosten posted a comment including the following response that’s allegedly from Gibson’s CEO regarding the $10,000 prize they never made good on to an NYC hip-hop artist. We have no way of verifying whether this response is legit, but thought it was worth sharing for those who are following the story.
Gibson Screws Musician Out Of $10,000 Worth Of Equipment
By 1.25.08
A musician named Tonedeff won the Lolapalooza Last Band Standing contest in 2006. Part of the prize package was “$10,000 worth of equipment from our friends at Gibson. (yes, believe it!).” Well, Tonedeff believed it, and he’s spent the last year and a half trying to get Gibson to make good on their promise. As Tonedeff notes on his blog, maybe he should have seen this coming when Don Pitts—Gibson’s Ambassador of Empty Promises (shown above with devil eyes)—told him, “I mean, this is kind of weird, because you know, you DON’T play the guitar or drums.”
Newegg Honors Canceled PayPal Promotion Transactions
By 12.11.07
A couple of weeks ago, several online retailers ran a poorly managed PayPal promotion that offered sizable discounts. For Newegg, the three-day sale instead lasted less than a day, at which point Newegg was yanked from the participating retailers list on PayPal’s promotions page. But Newegg is going back and making good on orders that were in process when the deal was pulled, according to a reader who forwarded us Newegg’s email.
This Free Coffee Is Surprisingly Expensive
By 10.27.07
Dunce Dunn Bros Coffee is celebrating their newest location at the University of Minnesota by offering a coupon for a free medium coffee. For the price of a small.
Do You Really Need The Neosporin Tote? Does Anyone?
By 8.27.07
You’re probably asking yourself, “What the hell is a Neosporin tote?” Apparently (and we wouldn’t know this because we buy generic Neosporin from Walgreens), Neosporin now comes with a small plastic totebag that you can use to remind yourself that you should take the ointment with you in case you carelessly plunge a knife into your tender fleshy parts while you are away from home.
Miller: You Won A Million Dollars. No, Just Kidding.
By 7.31.07
A man from south suburban Chicagoland was hanging out in an Orland Park bar when a promotional team from Miller started handing out what appeared to be prize tickets.
Honda Dealer Sends Out Scratch-Off Tickets Where Everyone Is a Winner
By 7.20.07
Here’s a typo you don’t see every day. A Honda dealer contracted the services of a direct mail marketing and promotions agency. The agency was supposed to send out 50,000 scratch-off tickets, one of which was the grand prize winner—entitling the customer to a cash prize of $1,000.
Panera Bread Burns Kansas City
By 5.5.07
A deluge of baseball fans trying to collect free bagels has led Panera Bread to cancel a promotion with the Kansas City Royals. Under the promotion, ticket stubs from a home game in which the Royals won with thirteen or more hits could be redeemed for thirteen free Panera bagels.
VIDEO: "Mercury Is A Natural Element" – Free Lightbulb Day At Chelsea Home Depot
By 4.23.07
While we agree with Mr. skeptical glasses in the video that it’s a good PR move for Home Depot, and coincides with the launch of their “green label” line of “eco-friendly” products, you know, consumers need a push with this issue. It’s hard for the shoppers at large to understand that while they cost a little bit more than your basic bulb, they will use less energy and save you money in the long-run. They also look funny.
Free CFLs At Home Depot This Sunday
By 4.20.07
We’ve already mentioned this but people keep sending it in as a tip so apparently it bears repeating: Home Depot will be giving away 1 million (as in, not enough for all of you, Dear Consumerist Readers, for you are many and Home Depot is few) CFLs this Sunday in honor of Earth Day and as part of their new “green” labeling promotion.
AMEX’s MyWishlist: Everything You Need To Know
By 12.12.06
Once again, the American Express website offers cardmembers a chance to participate in the “My Wishlist” promotion, but what’s it all about?
Taco Bell Offers Lifetime Supply of Tacos for PS3
By 11.21.06
Do you like tacos more than playing video games? Well, you might want to consider this offer from Taco Bell: In exchange for your PS3, Taco Bell is willing to give you a lifetime supply of tacos (read, $12,500 in Taco Bell Bucks). Can one human colon take that much Taco Bell? No man can say.
Bank of America Will Get Your C-Note Back
By 9.26.06
Eagle-eyed reader Bruce points out that while Bank of America may be giving out 100 bucks…with the fees they charge they’ll be getting it back from you soon enough.
Battle to be America’s Cleanest Toilet
By 2.28.06
Cast your vote for America’s cleanest restroom at bestrestroom.com.
