Consumerist
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Silly
ACE Hardware Is Tired Of People Asking For Double Ended Male Adapters
At the risk of allowing this post to devolve into a discussion about the morality of "double ended male" products in general — we thought we'd share this photo of a sign spotted in the window of an ACE Hardware store. More » -
Bad employer
Pizza Time Owner Cuts Off Heat, Tells Employees To Work In Subfreezing Temperatures Or Quit
The owner of a Pizza Time in Washington state has cut off the heat at his store after an employee forgot to turn the heat off one night, and is threatening to suspend employees who complain. The manager (the owner's wife) has a space heater in her office.
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Cheap booze
Hey! You Can Buy Alcohol At Costco And Sam's Club Without A Membership!
Need some quality alcohol at discount prices? Don't want to sign up for a Costco, Sam's Club or BJ's membership? There may be hope for you! More » -
Frugality
How Much Change Can You Find On The Ground? Over $1,000
Do you stop and pick up change that you find on the ground? No? Well, if you did — how much money do you think you could collect? Marketplace Money talked to some people who make change hunting a hobby — and they say every penny is worth stopping for. More » -
insiders
Call Centers: Teleperformance USA Is A Cancer
"Thank you for holding, your call will be answered in the order it was received by an incompetent drug-addict whose training consisted of watching funny stuff on YouTube." That's the substance of this insider confession from a former trainer at Teleperformance USA, one of those outsourced call centers that turns your customer service call into the modern-day version of The Trial. Hear about the restroom sex, drugs sold on-site, and employees getting away with writing down and running off with customer's credit card numbers, inside... More » -
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Mission Impossible
Giving The Phone Book Spammers What For
How can you tell the number of vacant houses on a block? Easy. Just look for the houses with phone books piling up on the porch. The phone book spammers count those property-value killers into their circulation numbers, which is how they sucker businesses into buying listings in the yellow pages. Minnesota blogger Ed Kohler is even angrier about phone book spam than I am, and is on a bit of a mission to never have a phone book on his property again. So he got a little pissed when Verizon, a company he has no business relationship with, tossed one on his steps. More » -
Dumb
UPS Refuses Your Package On Your Behalf
Adam asked UPS to hold a package at his local facility because he knew he would be out of town. UPS sent Adam a confirmation message saying they would hold it for five days. Instead, they twice tried to deliver it to Adam a few hours later. Then they marked the package as refused by receiver and sent it back to the shipper. More » -
Marketing
Lost Your Job? Hyundai Lets You Return Your New Car
To crowbar open the pocketbooks of newly thrifty shoppers, carmakers are getting more creative. For instance, if you finance a new Hyundai after Jan 3 and lose your job, supposedly the car maker will let you return your vehicle, with no further financial obligation, and no damage to your credit. Intriguing, but definitely one to scour the fine print on.
Hyundai Assurance [Hyundai via Free Money Finance] More »
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chinese poison train
Chinese Poison Drywall Creates Sulfuric Acid Inside Homes
You know what would make for some good drywall? The waste materials from scrubbers on coal-fired power plants. That's apparently what some Chinese manufacturers thought during the housing boom. When they leak and combine with the moisture on AC coils, the result is sulfuric acid, according to complaints by some Floridian homeowners. The acid dissolves the coils on the AC units and in some cases the units fail. Imagine what it does to your lungs.
Drywall complaints go up [news-press] (Thanks to Richard!) (Photo: The County Clerk) More »
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Happy New Year
No Better Time To Get Fit: Gyms Are Slashing Prices
One of the first things to get the ax when people cut back is the monthly gym membership fee — which means that gyms all over the country are slashing prices in order to attract new members to replace the ones who are sloughing off. More » -
Texting
How To Send Text Messages Online, For Free
As text message prices continue to increase, we want to remind you that there are many ways to send free text messages online, even from your phone. Wikihow has a great roundup of methods, including using AIM or Gchat, texting as email, or using free text sites. More » -
Advice
Make 2009 Scam-Free With This List
Stephanie Zimmermann of the Chicago Sun-Times has put together a list of resolutions to prevent scams, cons, and cheats. We really like the suggestion that you find a reputable locksmith, plumber, A/C repairman, and mechanic now, instead of waiting until an emergency. More » -
Economy
Despite Having A S*%!load Of Our Money, Banks Still Aren't Lending
Gripped by "catatonic fear," banks still aren't thawing credit markets, "leaving taxpayers propping up an industry that won’t lend to them." [Bloomberg] (Photo: The Joy of the Mundane) -
Scams
IDT Back In Brooklyn, Working Their Door To Door Scamming Magic
Just a quick heads up to everyone that IDT has nothing of value to offer you, so if someone claiming to be from IDT (or any other energy company that's not the one you already buy energy from) comes to your door and asks to see your bill, give them a good how do you do and send them on their way. I've had IDT scammers hit my building twice in the past two weeks, and just now returned from throwing them out of the building a few minutes ago. More » -
Unclear signs
Someone Needs To Explain "Storewide" To World Market
The text reads: "Offer applies to items in this section/area only." Thanks, Richard!
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Hot Topic
The Hits Keep Coming: Hot Topic Is Selling Another Eerily Familiar Design
We really hope there's a good explanation for this. Hot Topic is selling Twilight perfume, a fragrance that comes in a bottle very similar to Nina, by Nina Ricci.
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Funny
Why Do We Make Things That Look Like Other Things?
What is this obsession with making products look like other products? 1-800Flowers has a bouquet of white flowers in a special basket so it looks like a cupcake. It's called, "Cupcake in Bloom." Then you have those tiny "just for decoration" presents with nothing inside. Discovering these at my grandma's house as a kid, I first began to truly appreciate the world's cruelty and caprice. There's doorstops that are made to look like it's a little kid reaching up for the doorknob, and pencil sharpeners that look like hotdogs. This trend strikes me as disturbing, even perverted... More » -
Scams
Careful, Those Free Acai Products Might Come Attached To A Delicious Scam
The BBB is warning consumers about scams attached to the popular, yummy acai berry. Online ads claiming endorsements by Oprah and Rachel Ray are pitching acai-berry-themed weight loss products — and are generating thousands of complaints from angry consumers who say they've been scammed. More » -
Customer Service
TechGearNow Calls You "Very Rude" For Declining Overpriced HDMI Cables
After ordering a TV from TechGearNow, Reid noticed two notes on his account asking him to call to confirm his order. It turns out they wanted to sell him an HDMI cable and warranty for $60, which he declined. The next time he checked his account, he saw the above note.
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Expiration Codes
Cheat Sheet for Sketchy Food Expiration 'Codes'
Brian, you are the man. After seeing yesterday's post regarding the confusing expiration codes found on some foods, Brian sent The Consumerist a handy cheat sheet explaining the various code format, found inside. A+.
New York, 7:45 PM
Mon Jan 5
23 posts in the last 24 hours
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