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FTC bans hidden junk fees in hotel, event ticket prices

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Re: FTC bans hidden junk fees in hotel, event ticket prices

#251

Post by olddustytrail »

runako wrote: post #118
joshuaissac wrote: post #72

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think legitster is suggesting that the sticker price on the product should be the price paid, rather than a uniform sales tax code. If the seller knows what to charge the buyer, then they know what they need to put on the sticker.

Local retailers would oppose this in very strong terms as a thumb on the scale in favor of online retailers. Online retailers would presumably still be able to show pricing before knowing a shipping address, so their pricing would be pre-tax. That would make the apparent price differential even greater, and on every item. I think this would make the marketplace less clear for consumers.

Oddly enough, the average EU consumer has no problem understanding that the label price is the full price of a purchase, while online prices might include extra stuff such as delivery.

Maybe you're just less intelligent than the average consumer and need some more protection? Or is it something else?

Re: FTC bans hidden junk fees in hotel, event ticket prices

#252

Post by jeffwass »

breadwinner wrote: post #140

This shouldn't be controversial. FTC isn't banning these fees, it is only requiring merchants to disclose the fees. Why would anyone be against that? Another good rule is click-to-cancel. Just a couple of days ago I logged into my Dish Network account to cancel it (after they hiked prices). There is no way to cancel online. There is no way to cancel via chat. You have to call. As soon as you call you're told the wait…

Dish is evil.

Years ago when signed up with them I opted to pay the extra service for local tv channels, which required an andditional antenna to install.

For some reason the installer couldn’t fit it securely on our house, and said to call Dish to remove the service since we cannot receive it.

Dish refused to remove the local service! They said since we signed a contract we were stuck paying for it even though they couldn’t fit the antenna.

I pointed out in a hundred different ways that the contract also required them to provide a service which they are not providing so we shouldn’t have to pay.

All of my attempts to reason with them were ignored, and their call staff refused to escalate to their manager.

Long story short we had to pay for twelve months for something they couldn’t provide to us.

Literally the minute the contract was up we cancelled (it was easier to cancel back then).

I would never ever go near this company again.

Re: FTC bans hidden junk fees in hotel, event ticket prices

#253

Post by wlesieutre »

dchichkov wrote: post #187
floxy wrote: post #163

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>I'm talking about these yellow price tags that show lower than "Club" prices, which are only valid if you collect a coupon online. Which store is that with the yellow price tags?

Safeway, Walgreens.

Kroger too

You have to log in with an account and “clip” the imaginary coupons in their app for the price to apply when you scan your card

Re: FTC bans hidden junk fees in hotel, event ticket prices

#254

Post by pedalpete »

ChrisMarshallNY wrote: post #42
guidedlight wrote: post #10

They should ban hidden taxes too. The sticker price should be the final price.

I remember shopping in Japan. The price on the tag, is exactly what you pay (same with services, like hotels). Since this is Japan, it's a high price, but no surprises. Also, the service is amazing , and they won't accept tips. If you leave money on the table, they will chase after you, to give it back.

I believe this is the default for most of the world. Some countries have some strange differences like Argentina having a table charge on your bill, but here in Australia, the price on the box is the price at the till, with the exception of the card surcharges which are currently being reviewed to be removed.

The exception here is also the holiday surcharge (an extra fee on holidays and Sundays), which has to be "disclosed" before ordering. Usually there is a small sign somewhere that nobody pays attention to.

Re: FTC bans hidden junk fees in hotel, event ticket prices

#255

Post by throw10920 »

jfengel wrote: post #231
breadwinner wrote: post #140

This shouldn't be controversial. FTC isn't banning these fees, it is only requiring merchants to disclose the fees. Why would anyone be against that? Another good rule is click-to-cancel. Just a couple of days ago I logged into my Dish Network account to cancel it (after they hiked prices). There is no way to cancel online. There is no way to cancel via chat. You have to call. As soon as you call you're told the wait…

There is a move afoot to eliminate all regulations unless they've been specifically passed by Congress. Which is basically incapable of passing anything. Ironically, that inherent dysfunction is the main reason to suspect that won't happen. But politically, every regulation as automatically partisan, even when it has overwhelming support.

> There is a move afoot

Who is behind this move? What individuals, and what politicians? By what legal means is this happening? I've literally never heard of anything like this before - without further details, this is just political flame-baiting.

Re: FTC bans hidden junk fees in hotel, event ticket prices

#256

Post by carlosjobim »

lazyasciiart wrote: post #222
carlosjobim wrote: post #205

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Free competition should mean that you don't get punished for winning. There is no sport that punishes a competitor who is constantly winning, as long as they are competing fairly. Imagine Schwarzenegger being banned from Mr Olympia or Gretzky being banned for life from minor league ice hockey. So that the other competitors are given a fair chance of winning. But every sport punishes competitors who are cheating or be…

That’s because business isn’t an abstract activity that doesn’t affect anyone’s real life.

Okay, what about art? Should we punish and limit the most successful artists to give other people a chance?

Re: FTC bans hidden junk fees in hotel, event ticket prices

#257

Post by mulmen »

tokioyoyo wrote: post #250
mulmen wrote: post #221

Earlier quoted context omitted.

So are estimated prices being advertised in Australia, Japan, or Denmark? Why is North America uniquely susceptible to A/B testing? Municipal taxes are not an edgecase in the United States at least. They’re very much the norm, especially in telecommunications.

Because according to Japanese law, in most of the scenarios, the full price, to your best ability, has to be presented to the potential customer. Same goes for Australia, if I recall correctly. No clue about Denmark, I'm sorry. But assuming it's similar over there as well. It's not that NA is the only one susceptible to A/B testing. It's more of a - it's-grey-area-to-illegal to not show full prices outside of NA.

Huh, I find that very surprising. Are the estimates gamed at all? Is there any rule around how accurate they have to be?

Re: FTC bans hidden junk fees in hotel, event ticket prices

#258

Post by throw10920 »

onlyrealcuzzo wrote: post #182
breadwinner wrote: post #140

This shouldn't be controversial. FTC isn't banning these fees, it is only requiring merchants to disclose the fees. Why would anyone be against that? Another good rule is click-to-cancel. Just a couple of days ago I logged into my Dish Network account to cancel it (after they hiked prices). There is no way to cancel online. There is no way to cancel via chat. You have to call. As soon as you call you're told the wait…

Of course it's controversial. They do this to increase profits. A certain portion of the population is pro-profit at virtually any cost. It might seem like Dish employees wake up every day and say, "What can we do today to screw our customers even more?" But usually they're just trying to find ways to make more money.

> A certain portion of the population is pro-profit at virtually any cost.

What percent? (Citation needed if it's anything greater than 1%) What does "virtually" mean? This statement has no details and just comes across as political dogwhistling as a result.

Re: FTC bans hidden junk fees in hotel, event ticket prices

#259

Post by belfalas »

thaumasiotes wrote: post #162
belfalas wrote: post #55

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Also, the service is amazing, and they won't accept tips. If you leave money on the table, they will chase after you, to give it back. I visited Japan some years back and loved this aspect of the culture as well. An Australian ski guide (this was a winter visit) explained it like so: "the Japanese attitude is to want to do a good job by default. Tipping implies that a good job is only done because of pay. The Japan…

That's fantasy. The same thing is true in China. All it means is that the local culture doesn't tip.

This kind of reply is what makes me want to quit HN forever. There's always somebody out there smarter who knows better. Why bother to try and contribute anything?

Re: FTC bans hidden junk fees in hotel, event ticket prices

#260

Post by ssl-3 »

darknavi wrote: post #232
ssl-3 wrote: post #196

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If Denmark has just one sales tax rate or VAT, then maybe that can work OK for Denmark. But this isn't about Denmark -- it is about the US. In the US, there are over 13,000 different sales tax jurisdictions, and each one of them may have a different tax rate. I wish the best to anyone who would ever be tasked with sorting that out with any semblance of accuracy using IP geolocation databases.

Take a good guess and let the user type in their zip code?

Zip codes are for postal routing, not tax rates.

Items I order at home are subject to a 7.25% sales tax rate.

My neighbor across the street (our front doors are maybe 80 feet apart) pays 6.75%.

We both live in the same zip code. We both live within the same city. We both live in the same school district. We each live in two different counties.

(And up the road a bit, a third county is involved instead.)

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