How my kids taught me to be a better consumer advocate
How good are your reading comprehension skills? How patient are you? How willing are you to forgive other people’s shortcomings?
Commentary
Elliott Advocacy is a nonprofit organization that mediates cases between consumers and businesses. These are commentary articles that detail our efforts and provide educational information for consumers.
Why won’t American Airlines refund my son’s airfare?
Even though Sampath Radhakrishna cancels his son’s airline ticket within 24 hours, his refund is missing in action. Now his credit card bill is due. Can the airline expedite the refund?
Are you a rude passenger? Here’s what to do before you board — and what not to do
It’s the complainers that make travelers such as Randall Kessler complain — specifically, the folks who shuffle around the airport waiting area, griping about something over which neither they nor their airline has any control.
Transportation department taps brakes on proposed regulation requiring disclosure of airline fees
The U.S. Transportation Department surprised the travel world last month by suspending the creation of an important new consumer-protection regulation.
Avoid the worst products ever with these insider strategies. (Trust me, you’ll want to)
If you ask me, the shoddiest products on earth are toys. I don’t mean that in a derogatory sense — as in, they advertised a computer, but instead they sold me a toy. I mean a literal toy.
How to kiss a giraffe and save a baby elephant
Editor’s note: After Thursday’s story about being delayed on our way from Nairobi to Orlando, several readers asked about our trip. Here’s my report.
Driving along the Trans-Canada Highway isn’t a road trip. It’s a family culinary tour
The Trans-Canada Highway stretches nearly 5,000 miles and crosses six time zones. If you’re in a rush, you can probably drive it in a week. But add a temperamental SUV, two working parents and three school-age kids, and it turns into a month-long adventure.
The TSA’s new pat-downs get too personal for some
When Barbara Leary went through the full-body scanner at Manchester-Boston Regional Airport recently, her hip replacements set off the alarm. She was directed to another line, where she underwent a physical search by a Transportation Security Administration agent.
How early should you arrive at the airport for your flight?
Want to start an argument? Tell your travel companion you won’t be arriving two hours before your flight. Go on, try it. I’ll be right here.