Reports by Consumers

This consumer reports on the water heater repair.

I wake up to the sound of the phone. It was the tenants from my grandparent’s apartment calling our house since they can’t get a hold of them. The hot water heaters were down and nobody could get hot water. My father comes home and says he had been working on them for the past hour and asked if I was willing to come with him to Home Depot to help him get a new hot water heater since his plumber brother is nowhere to be found.

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Read more from this blogger: November 25, 2006

This consumer reports on reduced prices on iPods.

So far black Friday has treated us well with great savings from Apple. For today, and only today, most of the iPods and other accessories are on sale. As you can see, you can save $21 on an iPod, and you can save up to $50 on other products.

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Read more from this blogger: Black Friday: Apple knocks down prices

This report on role reversal in this father-daughter relationship makes us wonder how consumer roles will shift, even with TiVo.

In the last 5-6 years the balance between us has shifted. At some point I became the ‘go-to-person’ for computer help or electronics advice. I got him hooked up with TIVO, advised on computer purchases, helped troubleshoot network problems and recommended backup devices. Today I set him up with his own web hosting package so he has a website and a new email address with his company name. It has been an interesting role reversal, and I find a great deal of personal satisfaction in being the problem solver.

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Read more from this blogger: The Student Surpassed the Master

This consumer reports on predatory lending.

In a speech from 2003 (before the one quoted in the materials packet) Julie Williams of the OCC made some comments about the changing circumstances in which credit decisions are made, which help to put the predatory lending issue in context:

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Read more from this blogger: money and geography

This consumer reports that TiVo is raising prices.

According to David Zatz, Tivo is raising their prices - just in time for the holiday season.

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Read more from this blogger: Tivo Raises Prices … Yup … Smart Move

This consumer reports on ways to avoid identity theft and credit card fraud from Internet phishing schemes.

The FTC works for the consumer to prevent fraudulent, deceptive and unfair business practices in the marketplace and to provide information to help consumers spot, stop, and avoid them. To file a complaint or to get free information on consumer issues, visit www.ftc.gov or call toll-free, 1-877-FTC-HELP (1-877-382-4357); TTY: 1-866-653-4261. The FTC enters Internet, telemarketing, identity theft, and other fraud-related complaints into Consumer Sentinel, a secure, online database available to hundreds of civil and criminal law enforcement agencies in the U.S. and abroad.

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Read more from this blogger: Consumer Alert: How not to get hooked in a phishing scheme