Replacing the flooring in his house, Scott authorized the contractor to charge 30 percent of the estimated cost as a down payment. To his dismay, the contractor rang up the card for the full amount before the work was done, then continued to charge the card when he needed more materials. [More]
unauthorized charges
An Online Thief Spent $100 Of My Money On World Of Warcraft
By 5.10.10
Amanda says someone managed to nab her credit card info and tried to stick her with $500 in World of Warcraft charges. Most of the charges didn’t go through, but she remained $100 in the hole until she got a refund. It’s enough to make someone want to go on a Death Knight rampage. [More]
Visa Snuffs Out Credit Card Scam
By 4.28.10
In an attempt to stop a scam in which third parties make unauthorized charges to credit cards thinking they were signing up for a loyalty rewards program, Visa is putting up a roadblock meant to keep information safer, CNet reports: [More]
T-Mobile Wants Me To Pay $6K For Charges On Stolen Phone
By 4.20.10
Stephanie says a pickpocket swiped her cell phone a year ago and stuck her with a $6,200 bill, thanks mainly to calls to the Ivory Coast, the country so clean it was named after two types of soap. [More]
Sony Finally Repairs My PS3 It Broke With Firmware Upgrade
By 1.26.10
Matthew says a firmware upgrade spelled game over for his PS3, then he started a weeks-long battle with Sony to repair it for free. He says Sony made an unauthorized charge on his credit card before finally relenting and taking the charge off, fixing the console and giving him a free game. [More]
Radio Shack Nearly Livestronged Me
By 12.11.09
Even though Radio Shack has promised to tell its employees to manage its Livestrong donations “carefully and correctly,” people are still complaining that sneaky clerks are tricking them into donating. [More]
Radio Shack Responds To Livestrong Scandal
By 12.2.09
Good news for anyone who has accidentally donated a dollar to Livestrong while making a purchase at Radio Shack — the company is willing to give you your money back. The company sent us this statement to address the problem and solution: [More]
I Joked With Radio Shack Clerk About Livestronging, Still Got Livestronged
By 11.30.09
James went into Radio Shack determined to make a purchase without getting stung by the forced $1 Livestrong donation some customers say they’re finding on their receipts. He even joked with the clerk about the phenomenon. Then when he looked at his receipt, sure enough he found out he was an unwilling donor. [More]
I, Too, Was Livestronged At Radio Shack
By 11.25.09
Although Radio Shack employees insist they can’t make a customer donate a dollar to Livestrong at checkout, Cheryl’s tale is disturbingly similar to that of Ryan, who says Radio Shack swiped a buck for him in the name of cancer research. [More]
Radio Shack Forced Me To Donate To Livestrong
By 11.23.09
Ryan says a Kentucky Radio Shack employee tacked on a $1 donation to Livestrong without his permission. This is the letter he sent to the company’s corporate office:
I Lost My Job, Then My DirecTV, Then $680
By 11.10.09
Mary says DirecTV stuck it to her after she missed a payment. Not only did it cancel her service, but she says it charged $680 to her checking account for unreturned equipment — never mind the fact that she still had time left in her seven-day period to return the stuff.
AT&T Wireless Customer? Turn Off Phone Purchasing Power To Prevent Unauthorized Charges
By 6.3.09
If you’re managing cellphones for a family or your parents, or let’s say hypothetically you have a boyfriend who says he reads Consumerist but really he doesn’t or else he would have known better, you’ll probably run into stupid subscription and content fees from time to time. You know how people are when it comes to fake “free” offers.
ClassicCloseouts Randomly Charging Up To $70 On Past Customers' Cards
By 7.8.08
It appears that classiccloseouts.com has decided that they could get a nice revenue boost by going back through their files and giving all their past customers a nice new charge on their credit cards. Of course, they don’t answer their phones, their voicemail is full, and there’s no notice of the charge.
