The next time you apply for a credit card, your credit report and income will be only a part of the criteria used to determine your creditworthiness. For that matter, as long as you have the card, what you use it for will be noted and added to a growing set of data that makes up your psychological profile, which will then be referred to every time the bank deals with your or reevaluates your risk as a customer.
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Beanie Baby Futures: Slightly Better Investment Than Bernie Madoff
By 5.15.09
Last year, I visited my parents to help clear out the house we had lived in since 1984. One of my more cuddly tasks was to sort the three garbage bags full of Beanie Babies hanging out in the closet of my childhood bedroom. Most of them found new homes in the garage sale, or were donated to charity.
Chrysler Will Close One Fourth Of Its Dealerships Next Month
By 5.15.09
Mark Calisi, 47, who owns Eagle Auto-Mall in Riverhead, New York, says he was “devastated” to learn that his dealership would be closed. He said Chrysler accounts for a third of his business, which also sells Volvo, Mazda and Kia, and that on Thursday he had to sack 30 of his 100 employees.
Here's A Phishing Site Disguised To Trick Wells Fargo Customers
By 5.13.09
Freddie writes that his friend was tricked by a phishing email. All the warning signs were there to tip off his friend—an email saying he needed to click a link, a suspicious url, a page asking for his login info—but he clicked and entered the info anyway. Please do not be like Freddie’s friend, who is now probably on the phone with the real Wells Fargo trying to get his account number changed.
Foreclosures Hit Another Record High, Up 34% From 2008
By 5.13.09
One in every 324 households in this country received a foreclosure filing last month, according to RealtyTrac. This marks the all time high since the firm started tracking filings in 2005. Foreclosure filings are up 34% since last year.
FTC To Investigate Car Warranty Robocallers
By 5.13.09
You knew it was imminent: after the “your car warranty is about to expire” robocallers pissed off the internet and the government within a matter of days, it was just a question of who would take them down first. Surprisingly, it looks like it’s going to be the government.
What's The New Credit Card Reform Bill All About?
By 5.13.09
Guess what? There are a lot of pro-consumer changes in how the credit card industry will have to treat you if Chris Dodd’s Credit Card Reform bill goes through. Going through the questions you sent in and left as comments, it turns out that a good number of what you’re asking for are in this bill. So then, let’s check out the latest version bill out and see what changes are in store. I know Alex linked to this as a PDF but these are so important I wanted them posted front and center.
Easy Weight Loss And Free Cash: A Dubious Product Online Marketing Empire Revealed
By 5.13.09
I started out looking at the advertising and affiliate practices of one company, CreditReport America, and learned that the company that owns this site apparently produces a solid majority of the ads on the Web that annoy me.
Creative Labs Charges "Maintenance Fee" For Rebate
By 5.13.09
Creative Labs has found a great new way to minimize the risk that a customer will actually benefit from a rebate offer. In Rick’s case, they sent him the rebate in the form of a $10 debit card that was supposed to be good until July 2009, but when he went to a Best Buy to use it last month, it was denied. The reason? He’d been charged a $3 “maintenance fee” every month since January.
Get Informed About Credit Card Reform
By 5.12.09
As we prepare to talk credit card reform with the Obama folks, we want to make sure you’re all able to follow along at home. Inside, we present a cornucopia of fact sheets, charts, and links about the fight for credit card reform.
HSBC Credit Card's Pay-By-Phone Fee Is Higher Than The Bill
By 5.12.09
Why does HSBC charge $15 to make a payment over the phone? Other, often smaller, companies charge $3 or less, as MG notes in his email below. In this case, since the alternative is so unwelcome—a possible late payment, and a corresponding hit on MG’s credit score—it seems pretty outrageous to hold him hostage to a $15 fee.
Loomis Rent-A-Cops Have Shopper Cuffed, Hauled Away Over ATM Photo
By 5.11.09
While Shane was standing in the customer service line at a Seattle REI, he watched two Loomis employees open and change out the cash in an ATM machine. Shane took a photo of them with his iPhone. This apparently freaked out the Loomis guards, the REI security staff, and then the Seattle police, who put handcuffs on Shane, drove him to the police station, and then made him sign a statement that he wouldn’t return to a REI store for a year. You might have noticed in that summary that they didn’t actually bring any charges against him, which should make it clear to anyone who wants to side with the faux Po-Po that what Shane did wasn’t illegal, that the rent-a-cops should be fired, and that REI and Loomis owe Shane a big apology.
Guy Sues BK For $100,000 For Not Holding The Pickles, Onions & Tomatoes
By 5.11.09
A little over two years ago, a Virginia man ordered a a drink and two sandwiches from Burger King. He then proceeded to take a bite and swallow— before he realized that his “specific request for the omission of onions, pickles and tomatoes had not been complied with.” The result? A lawsuit for $100,000 filed in the Virginia Beach Circuit Court.
Send Us Your Credit Card Questions So We Can Ask 'Em At The White House
By 5.11.09
Consumerist is going to the White House this week, and we need your help! Ben and Meg are hitting Washington to do an on-camera interview of a senior policy official in the Obama administration about the new credit card reforms and consumer protections getting pushed through Congress and what they mean for you. Besides our questions, we want to ask your questions about credit card reform, credit card companies, and present tales of credit card woe. Leave your queries in the comments, or send them to tips@consumerist.com, subject line “credit card reform.” If you want to submit your question by uploading a video to YouTube and sending in the link, that’d be swell because then we can splice them into our video.
How To Survive The Downturn If You're Obscenely Wealthy
By 5.11.09
Sure, mouthbreathing peasants can whine about the economy all they like, but they can’t even fathom the pain that we wealthy masters of the universe face in a recession.
Seizure Prompts Wonderful Service From United
By 5.10.09
United couldn’t have been more understanding and helpful after reader Chris’ wife had a seizure as they flew from Sullivan’s Island, SC to Winnipeg. The flight attendants onboard offered to divert the flight to Chicago, but the couple decided instead to power through. United’s staff met them at the gate along with paramedics, and offered to rebook them on the flight of their choice. If they wanted to stay the night, United said they’d be happy to pay for a hotel room. Chris’ takeaway perfectly captures the spirit behind our Above and Beyond posts: “Even if United is a horrible company,” he writes, “there are still nice people there, and sometimes even big companies surprise you.” Chris writes:
Pinkberry Apologizes For Website Error By Offering To Shower Your Office With Freebies
By 5.9.09
To thank Kelly for pointing out an error on their website, Pinkberry offered to come to her office bearing “a few yogurts and toppings for some of the hard working people that you work with.” What error could prompt such an over-the-top apology? Kelly tried to visit two separate Pinkberry locations at 11:30 a.m., which Pinkberry’s website lists as the store’s opening time. But! The store’s don’t open until *gasp* noon!
