Were those Cat Stevens concert tickets on Viagogo a scam?
The discounted Cat Stevens concert tickets Graham MacMillan bought through Viagogo were a real ripoff. This is the story of how he found them, bought them — and lost them.
Christopher Elliott
Why you should always, always read the fine print on a travel insurance policy
Before Bonnie Solberg booked a South Dakota vacation, she thought travel insurance might be a good idea. It was.
An even better idea: reading the fine print on her travel insurance policy before she bought it.
Solberg’s tragic story is a case study in policies that look great at first glance. But a closer examination of the fine print reveals that they may not protect you when you need them most.
Airlines are trying to be nice. Did you notice?
On a recent flight from Los Angeles to Newark, Caleb Ellis saw something striking: a flight attendant being nice to a passenger. Really nice.
How to win in court without overpaying
Justice can be expensive.
How expensive? A 2013 study by the National Center for State Courts suggests it’s unaffordable for most of us. Even a simple automobile case can exceed $100,000 per side if the case goes to trial.
The truth about the Department of Homeland Security’s new journalist database
The Fourth Estate is freaking out about the Department of Homeland Security’s new journalist database. But before you dismiss this as an inside baseball story, let’s consider the effect of keeping tabs on people like me will have on the news you get.
Becker’s Lodge won’t extend my credit after the wildfire
This is a story about red tape and inflexibility, starring a wildfire, a small British Columbia inn called Becker’s Lodge, and one of our readers.
It is also a story without a happy ending but plenty of lessons — including the need for lots of research before you make a reservation.
The truth about how to survive a long road trip with kids
There’s no survival guide for long road trips with kids, but maybe there should be.
Chances are, you’ll drive somewhere in the next few weeks, and you’ll probably need one. Last Memorial Day, for example, an estimated 28 million Americans hit the road — the most since 2005 — prompting AAA to declare that the great American road trip is back.
He found a great rate on Rentalcars.com. But then he signed the Europcar contract
John Mardall signed a Europcar contract that added $135 to his car rental bill in England. He wishes he hadn’t. He shouldn’t have. But he did.
Mardall’s case is a cautionary tale about car rental agreements and the difference between a quote and a contract. It is also a frustrating exercise in “gotcha” travel pricing from which there is no easy way out, at least for him.
His Kenmore washing machine glass shattered. Now what?
When the top of Joseph Hill’s new Kenmore washing machine shatters into a thousand pieces, he calls Sears for help. And waits. And waits. Will his appliance ever get fixed?
This check scam could happen to anyone. Don’t let it be you
Technically, the check scam Pamela Kelley fell for is a business-to-business issue. But it’s so awful, and has so many applications in the real world, that I had to write something about it — and perhaps even advocate her case.