Customers learn these turkeys just won't fly

November 18, 2008

Thanks to the dozens of you who sent in nominations for my annual Thanksgiving salute to merchants who honor the do-unto-others clause of the Golden Rule. The letters of praise will run this Sunday, next Tuesday and Thanksgiving Day. Today, however, is reserved for a parade of unresponsive turkeys from the business world.

Recent columns

• Home-security complaints: It's an alarming trend

  November 16, 2008

  Dear Greg: I am writing on behalf of a friend, an 85-year-old woman of Colombian descent who was pressured into an alarm system she neither wanted nor knew how to use. She received a scare-tactic flier -- made to look like a letter from her homeowners association -- advertising $0 for equipment and $0 for installation. It did not mention, nor was she ever told, that she was signing a three-year contract (with print too small for even me to read) for monitoring services from SafeGuard America. She lives hand-to-mouth on $514 a month Social Security, and no one bothered to ask if she could afford this service, nor does any signed paper show the amount to be debited monthly from her credit-union account. She called within a day or so to say she couldn't work the system and didn't want it. The company sent two large, intimidating men who did not speak Spanish and told her they would not remove the unit.

• Tree Fay planted is a big pain in the grass

  November 15, 2008

  Dear Greg: I am annoyed to the max and weary of being stonewalled. I live in the Westwood Village Mobile Home Park. I own my home but rent the property it sits on. When Fay came through last summer, a large oak tree fell onto, and over, the fence at the corner of my lot. When I reported the tree to the manager, he indicated it would be removed shortly. It is still there and growing! I inquired about its removal on two more occasions, and the manager was very short with me. It seems that the property the tree fell from belongs to Texaco, the fence and property it fell on belong to the park, and the responsibility falls somewhere in between. I asked the city to remove the tree and it said no. The tree is taking up my whole side yard, and has become a haven for rats, mosquitoes and snakes.

• New BlackBerry turns out to be a real lemon

  November 13, 2008

  Dear Greg: In September, I purchased two BlackBerry mobile phones with T-Mobile service plans on Amazon.com. After the first few days, I couldn't get one of the BlackBerrys to work. I returned it to Amazon; never used the SIM card or phone number. I asked T-Mobile to kill that phone account, but they refused because I didn't cancel within 14 days. I contacted Amazon, but they won't help me with T-Mobile or send me another BlackBerry. Thus, for two years, I am stuck paying for service for a phone I don't have. And if my bill isn't more than $100 a month, per the agreement, they can charge me full price for a phone I paid $1 for on Amazon, -- but no longer have! If I cancel, they'll charge me a $200 termination fee. What kind of nonsense is this?

• Water woes turn into a real black hole

  November 11, 2008

  Dear Greg: I am having terrible problems with the Rainsoft water softener system installed in my home by Discovery Marketing. I got up this morning to black water in my toilets and coming out of my faucets. I've enclosed a close-up photo of one toilet bowl. The company comes out and "fixes" the problem and says it should work fine. Wrong! It's just a Band-Aid on a huge cut. My 102-year-old aunt and my 3-year-old granddaughter live in our home, and I am afraid they could get severely ill if they drank the "black water." Is there anything I can do?

• Health-plan switch turns into migraine

  November 9, 2008

  Dear Greg: I am 86 years old and have a problem with my health insurance. In March an insurance agent talked to me about switching from the AARP Health Advantage plan to SecureHorizons, both under UnitedHealthcare. He convinced me that I would save money switching plans, so papers were drawn up and sent to both plans. I was enrolled in Horizons as of April 1 and unenrolled from AARP Health Advantage at the time. My monthly payment of $152 for the old plan was automatically deducted from my bank account, and I didn't become aware they were still deducting it until July 11. I immediately called asking for a refund for four months and was denied because I hadn't notified them in writing before July 1 that I canceled the old plan. I was unaware I needed to do so.

• This roof is rotten -- as is roofer's reply

  November 8, 2008

  Dear Greg: Seven years ago, I bought a new home from David Weekley Homes. On two occasions I had a roof leak that was repaired by Delphini Roofing, which installed the metal roof. The second repair involved removing a significant portion of the roof and installing a waterproofing material to stop the leaks. Last December while hanging Christmas d�cor, I found rot on the fascia boards and was finally able to get a contractor last month to replace the fascia. The contractor found the roof deck had rotted, causing the rot on the fascia board. Upon further inspection, they discovered the waterproofing material had caused the problem. An inspector from Weekley climbed up on the roof, took pictures, and told me it was Delphini's problem. After inspecting the roof, Delphini said the roof was installed to Weekley requirements. They offered to provide the labor to put the metal panels back on, but the repair was done by then. I am stuck with a $3,623 bill for rot on a roof less than 7 years old, caught between two companies pointing fingers at each other.

• St. Cloud woman's not off her rocker over crazy chairs

  November 6, 2008

  Dear Greg: On July 6, I paid $1,389 for a four-chair breakfast/dining set and two matching bar-height chairs for the kitchen counter at Lane Home Furnishings. About a week later, I noticed that the leg braces for all six chairs were at different heights and angles. They sent out a technician who took measurements and pictures and then indicated the chairs were manufactured wrong and could not be repaired. He suggested I call the store to have the issue resolved. When I called the store they told me to come in, but when I did, no one wanted to help me. I wrote to the online customer service site at Lane headquarters in Tupelo, Miss. Jennifer Bolen, senior Lane Home coordinator, responded. After several e-mails back and forth she indicated she would try to resolve the problem but has not done so. I think they are just waiting to see if I give up, but I can't because it is embarrassing when guests ask about the chairs, and I have to keep explaining my saga over and over again.

• Financial advice isn't cheap

  November 4, 2008

  Dear Greg: I should know better than to listen to telemarketers, but they called me at a low point. The credit cards were maxed out, and we'd just found a leak under the kitchen floor. So I signed up with Dynamic Financial for "financial advice" with a guarantee they would save me $2,500 in 90 days or my money back. After many calls and e-mails, they finally called me and made an appointment for a debt counselor to speak with me. After missing the first appointment, he called and had me stay on the line while he dialed my two credit cards and asked them to lower the interest rate. One agreed, one refused. I asked for a refund, but by this time it was past 90 days. They refused. All they did was make one phone call for $990.

• Send me your stories of good customer service

  November 2, 2008

  Tired of the negativity, fear mongering, platitudes and broken promises? No, I don't mean the presidential campaign. I am referring to the usual fare in this column.

• Offer chops martial-arts bill in half

  October 26, 2008

  Dear Greg: I took our 5-year-old daughter to Orlando Martial Arts to learn self-defense because she had been victimized by an older person and we were worried about her safety. The owner, Gary Richards, was very enthusiastic, acting like he was the answer to our anxiety. But two weeks later, I could see she was not learning self-defense, so Mr. Richards moved her from a basic $125-a-month program to a master program for $225 a month. Still my child could not defend herself, and the program was hurting her. The exercises Mr. Richards gave her, including push-ups, jumping jacks, and running, triggered her asthma and meant more medication, trips to the pediatrician and anxious nights to make sure she was breathing. She had to stop going to the class, but Mr. Richards kept sending threatening letters demanding payment. When I signed the contract, he put his finger on the monthly payment and never mentioned I am under a three-year contract. The letters from his attorney are demanding full payment of $8,967 (including lawyer fees). I feel trapped and stuck.

• It's curtains for a one-time drape debacle

  October 25, 2008

  Dear Greg: In April we signed a contract with JCPenney to have custom draperies installed in our home. We put a $600 deposit on our Penney's credit card. We are part-time residents, and the salesperson knew we were returning to Pennsylvania on May 1. Her comment was, "Fine — we will have the drapes made and install them when you return." We spoke with her by phone in July and advised that we would not be returning to Florida until fall. She said that was OK, and she would hold the signed contract at the agreed-upon price until we returned. Well, we are back, and today we were informed by the custom-decorating manager that Penney's does not want to honor the signed contract.

• It's curtains for a one-time drape debacle

  October 25, 2008

  Dear Greg: In April we signed a contract with JCPenney to have custom draperies installed in our home. We put a $600 deposit on our Penney's credit card. We are part-time residents, and the salesperson knew we were returning to Pennsylvania on May 1. Her comment was, "Fine -- we will have the drapes made and install them when you return." We spoke with her by phone in July and advised that we would not be returning to Florida until fall. She said that was OK, and she would hold the signed contract at the agreed-upon price until we returned. Well, we are back, and today we were informed by the custom-decorating manager that Penney's does not want to honor the signed contract.

• Tracking down a check from 1989

  October 23, 2008

  Dear Greg: You are very good at what you do. No doubt, you could extract a quart of blood from a turnip using only one finger. But at a convention of consumer advocates, could you claim to be the very best? I have the ultimate challenge for you. There is an account containing money being held in trust for me. It is on a list published periodically on the Web and merely awaits my claim, much like the Florida unclaimed money fund, but there is a twist: The method for claiming the money is a closely guarded secret. The custodian: The U.S. Treasury. The funds are an unclaimed payroll check issued in bankruptcy proceedings for HyGain de Puerto Rico, which opened an engineering office in Altamonte Springs and hired four employees. Within a couple of weeks the company filed for bankruptcy, and in the final disposition our paychecks went to the U.S. Treasury. The funds are held in an account known as Fund 6133BK, and $181.04 of it belongs to me. It has been there since Oct. 27, 1989. I have been trying to get a response for almost a decade. If you can get one, I will stand up and attest that you are "the best of the best."

• Airline gets into spirit of transfer for credit-card payment

  October 21, 2008

  Dear Greg: I have been trying since March to solve a problem with my Spirit MasterCard. It was issued by Spirit Airlines, and my monthly payment was made online to Barclays bank. In March, I decided to transfer the balance to a card issued by Wachovia bank. I gave Wachovia my Spirit account number, and they mailed a check to Spirit in the amount of $2,399 to pay off the account. Someone at Spirit received the check and deposited it, but my account still shows the same balance. I have called Spirit customer service many times to ask why the Wachovia payment was not posted to my account. Meanwhile, to avoid damage to my credit, I am making payments on the $2,399 balance to Spirit and Wachovia.

• Not-so-handy Jim Metts won't be prowling aisles

  August 24, 2008

  I can't speak for the water, but it's safe for consumers to go in Lowe's and Home Depot again. Unless, that is, Jim Metts has no more respect for the courts than he does for his victims.

• After much ado, wedding-ring blues resolved

  July 6, 2008

  Dear Greg: On Mother's Day my fianc� bought me a wedding-ring set from Whitehall Jewelers in Brooksville. He paid over half with cash and put the remaining $1,500 on his Whitehall credit card -- or so he thought. We both were approved for Whitehall cards, but instead of putting it on his card they charged the purchase to me, which I didn't know until the bill came. The real problem is that they double-billed my card for $3,000, plus $30 for going over my credit limit. I went to the store and was told to call customer service, which I did, then they told me to call the corporate office, which I also did, only to be told to call customer service! I called the credit-card company but they say it's not their problem.

• Contractors that don't require a deposit

  January 19, 2008

  The Atlantic Ocean may be next door, but in terms of consumer protection, Central Florida is the Wild West, a lawless frontier where black-hatted con men rip off homesteaders and laugh in the face of feckless sheriffs who don't even care enough to form a posse.

• He's hot and bothered over Internet hot-spot bill

  December 20, 2006

  Dear Greg: My family relocated to Orlando about a year ago from Massachusetts, but I had to come five months earlier because of my job. My temporary housing did not provide high-speed Internet, so I signed up for a T-Mobile hot-spot account at a local Starbucks where I could video conference with my family to minimize the separation angst. The $39.95 monthly charge seemed reasonable, but then a friend told me Panera Bread offered free Internet to its patrons, so I canceled my T-Mobile account and began enjoying the coffee and free Internet at Panera. Recently, I became aware that T-Mobile has continued to charge me $39.95 a month for my canceled service. I spoke to a very nice T-Mobile rep, who checked my account and said, "You have not used this account in a very long time." I asked to be compensated for a minimum of 12 months service (about $480), but he did not have authority and switched me to a supervisor, who gave me a bunch of legal mumbo-jumbo and said I had a better chance of seeing snow in Orlando for Christmas!