I gave up credit cards 8 years ago. Prior to that, I had a mound of debt, high interest rates, and a bitter taste in my mouth from the entire order. Once out of debt, I vowed never to go back. And I haven’t. Yet credit card companies are still out there, and more predatory than ever. President Obama just signed the new credit card reform bill. While it is a welcomed start, there is a huge hole right in the center of it. Lenders generate most of their profits from interest and fees, so this bill will be taken by them as a direct dip into their pocketbooks. Since the law won’t take effect until February of 2010, I expect them to ‘make the most’ of the next 8 months … Read entire article »

For those of you not familiar with Albertson’s, it is a relatively well-known grocery store here in the Western US. Last week they announced their “Big Relief Price Cut” to all shoppers. They advertised some examples of markdowns, showing significant savings. The flier I saw listed 7 products on the cover, all of them with pretty good prices. From the looks of it, almost everything in the store would be marked down with deep cuts. “We’ve cut prices on thousands of items, up to 20% less every day,” the circular boasts. … Read entire article »

Got a call today from 866-945-4973. As the phone rang and I saw the 866 prefix, I quickly Googled the number and saw it listed on some websites, so figured I should allow my voicemail to pick up. A few moments later, I received the following voicemail (X’s represent personal information I’ve left off for obvious reasons): … Read entire article »

The following reviews are based on my personal experiences. Your experience with these companies may be different. I’ve had three different car insurance companies in the last year: AIG, Progressive, and Travelers. Here’s a quick rundown of my experience with each one: … Read entire article »

My attention was drawn to one of the worst and phony-looking wrinkle ads I had ever seen. Seriously, the artist behind that ad gets a C- in Photoshop. And as the ad’s animation progressed, this wrinkly woman must have shed… oh, about SIXTY years! … Read entire article »

Travelers Insurance lost a customer today, and I believe their policy is dead wrong. I certainly would not go so far as to say this was a “scam,” but I believe to call it “shady business” is a fair assessment. Here’s what happened. … Read entire article »