rules

(imorgan73)

RadioShack Employee Buys Customer An Accessory In Order To Get System To Approve Phone Upgrade
By Chris Walters on September 27, 2010 12:30 PM   56 Comments
Has RadioShack gone too far with its sales quotas? Allison wrote us to say that when she tried to upgrade her phone recently, the employee had to add accessories to the transaction before the system would approve it. She said he canceled some, and she ended up paying $2 for "two plastic covers for phones I don't own." But she says her mom had an even more bizarre experience at a RadioShack, where the assistant actually paid for the accessories herself. More »

(James Callan)

Bank Of America Wants Customer To Travel 1,500 Miles To Close His Mother's Account
By Chris Walters on September 14, 2010 8:00 AM   61 Comments
It hasn't even been a month since our last dead Bank of America customer story, but here the bank is at it again, refusing to let a woman's son close her checking account no matter what he does. Although she lived and banked in Tennessee and he lives in Pennsylvania, the latest nonsense has the bank demanding that he visit Texas in person to get a document notarized. More »

(contri)

Continental Refuses To Believe Woman's Service Dog Is Real
By Chris Walters on August 18, 2010 11:40 AM   189 Comments
Continental sure has a lot of skeptical employees when it comes to customers with disabilities. Jessica tried to buy a ticket yesterday and was told no, because the ticket agent didn't believe that Jessica's self-trained service dog was legit. More »

(Caitlinator)

Court Says California Mall Can't Ban Customers From Talking To Each Other
By Chris Walters on August 16, 2010 10:30 AM   131 Comments
The Westfield Galleria in Roseville, California takes the comfort of its patrons seriously—so seriously, in fact, that it wants them to shut up and focus on shopping, or else ask for permission first if they want to talk about any topic that's not mall related. Last week, the state's 3rd District Court of Appeal found that the rule violated the state's constitution, so now mall shoppers can gab as much as they want to each other. More »

Does "One Coupon Per Customer" Apply To Couples Making Individual Purchases?
By Chris Walters on July 19, 2010 10:30 AM   140 Comments
Liz is wondering what's going on at her local Hobby Lobby. She's a professional doll maker and she buys a lot of supplies from the craft store chain every month. So far, she and her husband have been able to use the company's in-store coupons for separate purchases even if they stand together in line at the register, but it looks like her Hobby Lobby may be cracking down on that. Should it? More »

(nailmaker)

Court Says Arbitrators Can Decide If Arbitration Is Fair
By Marc Perton on June 23, 2010 7:07 PM   63 Comments
Think the arbitration clause in a contract is unfair? Go ahead and contest it! Of course, you shouldn't expect to win, since the Supreme Court has just ruled that it's just fine for the arbitrator to decide whether the clause is fair. More »

Park Rules Prohibit "Unlicensed Guns" In State That Doesn't License Guns
By Meg Marco on June 14, 2010 4:20 PM   137 Comments
Here's a problem for the Lackawanna County park system: They've passed new rules that prohibit "unlicensed firearms." Sounds reasonable until you notice that the park is in Pennsylvania where they apparently don't license guns. More »

(lancefisther)

Study Finds Grocery Store Shoppers Are Honest Folk
By Chris Walters on March 24, 2010 10:53 AM   19 Comments
The people on that People of Walmart website may wear some ugly t-shirts, but at least they're honest when it comes to dealing with strangers. According to a new study that looked at how markets, religion, and the size of a community impact concepts of fairness and punishment, Walmart grocery shoppers in Missouri came out on top in terms of treating the other side fairly and punishing selfishness. More »

(Photo: Abeeeer)

American Airlines, Jet Blue, Delta Seek To Delay Tarmac Imprisonment Rule
By Chris Walters on March 17, 2010 10:37 AM   30 Comments
You know that new rule that says airlines have to let passengers off the plane if it's stuck on the tarmac for more than 3 hours? It's supposed to go into effect in April, but at least three airlines are hoping to delay it because they say runway repairs at JFK Airport will interfere with schedules. More »

(kballard)

Burger King Tells Singing Employee To Stop It
By Chris Walters on February 26, 2010 4:54 PM   81 Comments
You know how there are those people who, no matter what job they have, somehow retain a cheery outlook? And if you're grumpy like me you wish they'd go away, but secretly you marvel at how they spread cheer to everyone around them and make the day more pleasant? Well, that's one thing you'll no longer find at a Burger King in a Concord, NH, mall. The district manager put a stop to it. More »

(Photo: frankieleon)

Get Up To Speed On What The CARD Act Will Do To Credit Cards
By Chris Walters on February 11, 2010 3:05 PM   16 Comments
In just a little over a week, the CARD Act will go into effect, and a new set of rules will apply to credit card issuers. Here's a great summary of what will change and what won't, so you'll know what to expect. For instance, did you know that cards issued to business entities rather than individuals are exempt? More »

Check Out The Department Of Transportation's New Site For Airline Passengers
By Chris Walters on January 29, 2010 5:54 PM   10 Comments
If you've got a complaint about an airline, or you want to find out more about whether your complaint is valid, oh boy is there a treat in store for you! Earlier this month, the DOT launched a redesigned consumer aviation website at airconsumer.dot.gov. The goal of the site is "to make it as easy as possible for consumers to find the information they need to make their air travel experience as smooth and hassle-free as possible." More »

(Photo: net_efekt)

What To Do When You Don't Know Whether Something Should Be Recycled
By Chris Walters on January 20, 2010 4:57 PM   75 Comments
If your city has a recycling program but you keep forgetting how it works, Slate has some tips for you. The best solution is to print out a copy of your city's approved items and stick it to your fridge (doh), but the general rule of thumb is: "If in doubt, throw it out. Meaning don't recycle." More »

(Photo: kanegen)

TSA Gets Some Damned Sense, Eases Flight Restrictions
By Chris Walters on December 28, 2009 4:38 PM   90 Comments
Good news, people who are in the unfortunate position of having to do business with an airline in the near future: the TSA's embarrassingly reactionary new "security rules" have been eased as of this afternoon. Now it is up to the captain whether they're enforced on each flight, reports CBS News. More »

Federal Reserve Proposes Rules On Gift Cards
By Chris Walters on November 16, 2009 11:05 PM   49 Comments

—>Here's your chance to sound off on another consumer protection issue. In accordance with the CARD Act, today the Federal Reserve proposed new rules that would protect consumers from fees and expiration dates on gift cards, and they'll soon be accepting comments on the rules.  More »

California May Pass Nation's First Energy Consumption Regulation On Big Screen TVs
By Chris Walters on October 14, 2009 11:31 PM   60 Comments

—>As soon as next month, California may become the first state to implement energy consumption rule for big screen TV sets similar to the ones for refrigerators and air conditioners. A trade group has been adamantly opposing it, reports the Los Angeles Times, but hasn't found much sympathy from the California Energy Commission, which may be able to avoid building a $600 million natural gas power plant if they can cut back on energy guzzling sets.  More »

FTC Wants Your Input On How To Improve AnnualCreditReport.com
By Chris Walters on October 12, 2009 6:39 PM   87 Comments

—>The problem with annualcreditreport.com—other than its name—is that getting your reports from the site is a little like dealing with GoDaddy: you have to deal with upsells and side-sells at every step. You can indeed get your free credit reports from the site, but you'll also have to keep turning down other offers from the three participating bureaus. Hell, there are even ads (sorry, "sponsor" links) on the home page, the one place where you'd hope for the least consumer confusion.  More »

FTC Says Bloggers Can't Hide Endorsement Deals
By Chris Walters on October 5, 2009 6:10 PM   58 Comments

—>For the first time since 1980, the FTC has updated its rules about endorsements and testimonials, and they've added blogging to the books. Now bloggers who don't disclose that they've been somehow compensated—either with cash or with free services or products—can be fined up to $11,000.  More »

Wachovia Teller Refuses To Deposit Check Written In Two Ink Colors
By Chris Walters on September 2, 2009 12:05 AM   112 Comments

—>"The best advice I can offer to those who wish to commit check fraud against Wachovia Bank," writes Jim, "is to purchase a typewriter." Although he's been a customer of the bank for years and had a hefty balance that more than covered the deposit amount of his handwritten check, because the dollar amount was in black ink and the signature was in blue ink the teller said it might be fraudulent and refused to take it.  More »

Coffee Shop Bans Lunchtime Laptop Users
By Laura Northrup on August 7, 2009 11:45 AM   181 Comments

—>Patrons working on laptops are a fixture of coffee shops, and with electric outlets and free wi-fi, shops aren't exactly discouraging students and, uh, professional bloggers from hanging out there. Until now.  More »