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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

#291

Post by paulryanrogers »

jeffwass wrote: post #252
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…

Isn't this what small claims court is for?

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

#292

Post by rawgabbit »

I used to work for a major airline many years ago. I remember when they introduced these crazy fees e.g., seat change fee. I was really disappointed then and soon left. I learned Don Carty then joined Dell who soon started their Byzantine ordering process. I was again disappointed. I still buy Dell monitors because I like them but I never buy from their website.

I remember an episode of the TV show Happy Days when the restaurant owner started charging money to use the toilet stall. It was a sad joke and many businesses are following suit.

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

#293

Post by flutas »

drewg123 wrote: post #175
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 terrible. After my mom passed away, they were one of the few things that my Dad had trouble cancelling. Even with a copy of her death certificate, my Dad could not get the service cancelled. He just ended up throwing the bills (and their equipment) away.

Yup, same experience here 3 months trying to make them understand "he is dead".

We left their crap in a room for ~6 months total at the advise of his estate lawyer. Eventually they did accept that he was dead and canceled the account as well as sent a box to send the equipment back.

They got their equipment back after it had all had an unexpected encounter with a hammer. Never heard a peep about it.

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

#294

Post by nyczomg »

AnthonyMouse wrote: post #285
onlyrealcuzzo wrote: post #182

Earlier quoted context omitted.

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.

[flagged]

You make the rule such that if you can sign up for a service on a website you can also cancel it said website. Now your hypothetical landscaping company is safe

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

#295

Post by khuey »

AnthonyMouse wrote: post #285
onlyrealcuzzo wrote: post #182

Earlier quoted context omitted.

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.

[flagged]

> A rule is proposed to require customers to be able to cancel any subscription on the vendor's website.

Except that's not the proposed rule. The way this works in California (and the way the rule the FTC recently published works, I believe) is that a business is required to allow customers to cancel "in the same medium" that they subscribed. That doesn't require anyone to start running a website.

The rest of your post is just arguing against something that's not even happening.

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

#296

Post by breadwinner »

spiderice wrote: post #272
danaris wrote: post #183

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You can probably avoid this—or, rather, cover your ass legally—by doing something like sending them a letter registered mail informing them that you are cancelling and will be blocking further payments. It's far from a good solution, but it should at least put you in a better position vis-a-vis the courts if it comes to that.

Suddenly waiting on the phone for 45 minutes doesn't sound so bad, unless proving a point is your main goal.

Actually there is another option. Make a complaint to your state's Attorney General's Office. They usually have a website for filing consumer complaints, and AGO will contact the business, and the business is usually responsive when contacted by AGO.

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

#297

Post by flutas »

ssl-3 wrote: post #237
_zoltan_ wrote: post #227

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Maybe not have 13000 different sales tax jurisdictions? Just a thought...

It doesn't really work like that, though. Sales tax is up to the states to sort out how to deal with on their own, and there's 50 of them. Nationally (or as some may prefer, "federallly"), the sales tax rate is already zero -- and has always been zero.

> Sales tax is up to the states to sort out how to deal with on their own, and there's 50 of them.

To add on for any else trying to figure out the 13k number from this statement.

Counties can also apply their own additional taxes.

Cities can also apply their own additional taxes.

On top of just that, the cities and counties can set different taxes in the same area, such as a sugar tax or an alcohol tax or even a pre-prepared food tax vs groceries. It gets complicated fast.

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

#298

Post by SOLAR_FIELDS »

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…

Agree to both. And both are incredibly easy problems to solve. For the first just have a law that says:

> Any advertised price must include all mandatory taxes and fees. No exceptions.

For the second just have a law that says:

> An end user must be allowed to use the same method to cancel as they used to sign up for the service. No exceptions. Additionally, an end user cannot be required to perform more manual actions to cancel than was required to sign up. No exceptions.

No one should be against this except greedy corporations. Easily solved, common sense rules that already have working examples in the real world. 1 is already the law in Netherlands and Australia and these countries aren’t falling over from the undue burden placed on businesses.

I’ll end with: two cornerstones of a free market are price transparency and the ability/mobility to switch services when a better competing offering emerges. Not having legislation like above to protect those values is anti capitalistic

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

#299

Post by meiraleal »

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.

The directors and shareholders, not the employees. They only want to get paid.

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

#300

Post by dotancohen »

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…

Why is a law needed to address this? Isn't the market supposed to adjust for companies like this?
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