Everyone who drinks milk watches the price carefully, but what most consumers don’t realize is that the price actually paid to dairy farmers for raw milk is currently the lowest it’s been in 40 years. That’s because only a few large companies control the country’s milk supply, and now the U.S. Department of Justice is investigating the situation and deciding whether to take anti-trust action against them.
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Boa Constrictor Discovered Lounging On Top Of ATM
By 8.22.09
Is this boa constrictor discovered on top of an ATM in Serbia part of an attempt to control the scourge of mice nesting in ATMs, or just the latest international crime syndicate to take up ATM skimming?
Funai Finally Answers The Phone, Offers Refund For Dead 5-Month-Old TV
By 8.22.09
Thanks to their own determination and a tip from a fellow Consumerist reader, Tavie and Gina have finally found someone at Funai willing to not only answer the phone, but grant them a refund for their Sylvania television that died after only a few months of use. The amount of effort needed to get this result is a little disheartening, but we’re thrilled at the happy ending, and we now have helpful information for other customers who encounter problems with Funai.
Wi-Fi Coming To Southwest Airlines Next Year
By 8.21.09
Southwest says a test of Wi-Fi on its planes was successful, so they’re going to expand the service to all of their planes next year.
Beware Fake Gift Card Balance Websites
By 8.20.09
A reader just ran into a gift card scam while trying to unload an Apple gift card via CraigsList. If you’re directed to a website that asks you to put in your gift card information in order to show the balance as “proof” that you’re legit, you’re being conned.
Video Mailbox: Like Netflix, Only 15 Years Too Early
By 8.20.09
I had always thought that mail-order video rental only came to be after the invention of DVDs because video tapes are too bulky and delicate to send through the mail on a regular basis. I was wrong.
"Cash 4 Clunkers" Will Reach Vanishing Point Sometime In September
By 8.20.09
If you’re planning on taking advantage of the Cash 4 Clunkers program you’d better do it sooner rather than later, says Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood. The program is running out of money and the administration says that in the next two days they will outline a plan to gracefully wind it down.
Certified Pre-Owned Cats: Inspected, Detailed, Better Than New!
By 8.19.09
The problem: thousands of sweet, cuddly, adoptable adult cats languishing in shelters. People gravitate toward tiny kittens, which are plentiful in the summer months, leaving adult shelter cats without humans to own. A possible clever solution: Clever marketing ploys. Which is the origin of the Michigan Humane Society‘s Certified Pre-Owned Cats campaign.
Hackers Indicted For Stealing 130 Million Credit Card Numbers
By 8.18.09
130 million is a large number, but that’s how many credit card numbers a group of three hackers are alleged to have stolen from five different companies including 7 Eleven, Hannaford, and Heartland Payment Systems says the Department of Justice.
U-Haul’s New "U-Prison" Proves Unpopular With Customers
By 8.17.09 — Updated: 12.1.14
U-Haul apparently knows about Ryder’s initiative to outdo it on suckage, so they’ve introduced a whole new class of customer abuse: false imprisonment. Best of all, the employee who was sent to let Jessica and her friend out of U-Haul Prison told them that if they hadn’t wanted to get locked in after 5pm, they should have paid for 24 hour access. (They were taking advantage of a complimentary offer from the company.)
Enterprise Removed Air Bags From Cars, Sold Cars, Forgot To Tell Customers
By 8.16.09
New safety innovations for automobiles can be impressive. Side-curtain airbags are a great development for protecting people in a side-impact crash, and are standard on many models, including the Chevrolet Impala. Unless you’re driving an Impala in the Enterprise Rent-A-Car fleet, in which case the airbags were never installed in order to save Enterprise $175 per car. This wasn’t really a problem until Enterprise went to sell their used Impalas, and sort of forgot to tell people that the airbags had been removed.
Whole Foods CEO Spurs Boycott With Health Care Views
By 8.15.09
Memo to Whole Foods CEO John Mackey: when much of your customer base consists of reusable-bag-using, wheatgrass-munching “progressive” types, it’s probably not such a good idea to publish an op-ed in the Wall Street Journal criticizing current health care reform proposals. At least if you don’t want said customers organizing boycotts of your stores.
Using A CARS Rebate? Know Your Rights First
By 8.15.09
Jim decided to take advantage of the Cash For Clunkers program and trade his Crown Victoria in on something a little more fuel-efficient. Unfortunately, the dealership where he bought the car wasn’t quite ready to handle one of the most frightening of all creatures: an informed consumer. They counted on their customers to not fully understand all of the program’s rules.
Marriott Says Woman Is Responsible For Her Rape
By 8.14.09
[Update: Marriott has dropped the appeal.] If you want to live dangerously, why not try an unrelaxing visit to the Stamford Marriott Hotel & Spa? It features a game room, a BBQ/picnic area, $10 a day Internet access, and the occasional mentally unhealthy transient wandering for days around the parking garage waiting to attack you. Best of all, if you are attacked Marriott will let you take all the credit for it, and then subpoena your friends and professional contacts, thereby permanently ruining any anonymity you hoped to maintain. Because at Stamford Marriott, if you’re raped in our parking garage by a guy our security should have noticed and kicked out, don’t come crying to us!
Free Health Care Receives Rock Star Reception In Los Angeles
By 8.13.09
The past few nights, thousands of people have lined up outside of the Forum in Los Angeles. a venue that usually hosts basketball games or big arena concerts. Who’s in town to attract such a crowd? Metallica? Green Day? No, even better—doctors and dentists providing free care on a first-come, first-served basis.
Peekaru, The Snuggie That Makes Baby And Me Look Like Aliens
By 8.13.09
The Peekaru is a Snuggie-like fleece ensemble for mommies and daddies to carry their babies in. One version is sleeveless and covers the baby entirely, with just its face sticking out of a portal. Now, the question is, does the Peekaru make wearers look more like: a) Krang b) Quato c) Master Blaster or d) Kane? Photos so you can make an informed judgement inside.
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