Big Rat's Review on Scammers

How many companies have scammed me in the past few years? Let me count...um.... Nevermind, let me just start dropping names like they're hot. Here is my big list of Scammer Companies for all those people who are naive like me and will get taken advantage of unless someone like me who has already been duped gives you a FAIR warning.

Hello Fresh. This company is definitely at the top of my sh*t list. When I first discovered them I thought it was a fabulous idea. The concept is to send the customer fresh ingredients with interesting recipes every week so that the consumer doesn't have to waste time at the grocery store, or waste food for getting more than is needed. It sounded like a good idea to me and I jumped on the train willing to see if I could learn some new recipes. At first I was impressed with the extravagant packaging which was very protective of the fresh food delivered. However, I was soon very very upset and disappointed. The first two recipes were mediocre and nothing that any average cook couldn't come up with on their own. But that wasn't the worst part of the service. They had gotten my credit card information and they liberally charged me for three months of service when the original agreement was that I would get to try the service for free for the first month. I was fuming in anger and trying to get the charges removed was a source of stress and a strain on my time, when of course I would have rather been doing anything else. Now when their expensive advertisements come into my mailbox they get immediately filed into File Trashcan.

Consumer Cellular. They are next on my list of disappointments. I had purchased a cell phone from Tracfone - a flip phone. At the time I didn't know I could get monthly paid service through Tracfone because I thought their service could only be purchased in pre-paid minutes cards. So I contacted Consumer Cellular, who had been recommended through my subscription to AARP, to see if they could provide service to my Tracfone flip phone. They told me it wouldn't be a problem if they sent me the chip device and I put that into the phone. Happily, I agreed and signed up for monthly cell phone service with them. Once I received the chip, I put it into the phone, but nothing was happening. I called them again for assistance. I even got my husband to help, thinking maybe I was just too stupid to figure it out. Between their customer service and my husband, I ended up with a completely useless phone that could not return to Tracfone's service and could not be served with Consumer Cellular service. I was livid. I was very very angry. Tons of money spent and still no product or service wanted. Then to make matters worse, this company had charged me for two months of service that I didn't even use, and when I called them to get the charges stopped, they refused to help me. Refused! I called the police to report theft, and the police said they could not help me. I had to cancel my debit card just to stop the theft. Um, yeah, I have absolutely nothing nice to say about Consumer Cellular.

Walmart. I used to be a big fan of Walmart and when others would knock them I would stand up for them stating that it was still the most convenient place to find the best discounts. My opinion about Walmart has changed significantly this past year after several terrible incidents. There was a time that the customer service department was helpful and would listen to their customers even if they had to wait in their dreaded long lines to be heard. But to me it seems like those days are gone. I had purchased two pairs of shoes one day - a pair of high top sneakers for $30 and a pair of cheap crocs for $30. I paid the $60 plus tax with my credit card. When I got home, the crocs were not in the bag. When I returned to Walmart to tell them that, they asked for my receipt. I was upset and I didn't know where the receipt was. The transaction should be shown through my credit card. But they didn't want to help me. They probably wouldn't have helped me even if I had the reciept. They would have made up some other lame excuse. It's not like I could report the theft to the police. There was no way to prove anything. That "we don't care" attitude along with having to deal with their barbarian customers who can't keep a cart a safe distance away from others, is enough of a reason for me to avoid Walmart as much as I possibly can. Ordering from the website seems like a good idea, but it wasn't. Whatever discount I thought I was going to get was extinguished after having to add the $20 delivery fee, plus forced tip.

Finally I will end this Rat Chat with a warning to naive consumers about catalog sales. I thought it was a great convenience for shopping and how wonderful that they would send me catalogs with "approved credit". I went a little crazy ordering items that I didn't need just because they allowed me to do so. It became a terrible nightmare. Not only were their pricer three times higher than average prices for the same item, but their were shipping and handling charges added to that. Imagine buying a sweater that should have only cost $25, but after the catalog charges are done with you that same sweater cost you $150. Yeah, very bad idea. I tried to pay my debts with most of them, but then I started getting bills from catalogs I hadn't even ordered from. When I explained that over the phone and in writing, they ignored me (as if identity theft doesn't happen) and continued to send me bills that I did not create. Customer service these days is something that many businesses have no clue about.

It seems to me that there are lot of businesses who are very very quick to grab your cash or credit card, but when it comes to keeping the customer happy or keeping their promises about quality products and/or service, they can't give a rat's as*. I'm slow about changing my ways, but after I've seen how much money I've burned being naive, trusting, and duped, I did change my ways.

Buyer beware.