10 Surprisingly Blatant Ways Companies Rip You off
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VOICE OVER: Alexander Cometti
WRITTEN BY: Jessica Walsh
We purchase from them every day, but do they have our best interests in mind? For this list, we'll be focusing on specific actions taken by companies or events in which they royally screwed over some of their very loyal customers. WatchMojo counts down the Top 10 Insane Ways Companies Screw You Over.
Special thanks to our user boxtroll for suggesting this idea! Check out the voting page at WatchMojo.comsuggest/Top+10+Insane+Ways+Companies+Screw+You+Over.
Special thanks to our user boxtroll for suggesting this idea! Check out the voting page at WatchMojo.comsuggest/Top+10+Insane+Ways+Companies+Screw+You+Over.
Script written by Jessica Walsh
We purchase from them every day, but do they have our best interests in mind? Welcome to WatchMojo.com and today we’ll be counting down our picks for the Top 10 Insane Ways Companies Screw You Over.
For this list, we’ll be focusing on specific actions taken by companies or events in which they royally screwed over some of their very loyal customers.
False advertising is honestly just a thing in the business world - from fast food commercials that look too good to be true to Infinity Stones that feel like re-purposed decorative Easter eggs - companies don’t always deliver the product they’ve promised. German car maker Volkswagen sped right for that finish line in 2015 when they equipped their US diesel models with software that could cheat tests by adjusting the car’s performance while being monitored. The result? Several models that had passed EPA regulations were actually spewing harmful nitrogen oxide pollutants well over US limits since day one. Ouch!
We’ve all experienced it… that frustrating moment when you sign up for one thing and the company then asks you if you’re interested in another. Upsells are annoying, but at least most employees/companies actually ask first. Wells Fargo apparently didn’t get that ethical business practice memo back in 2011 when high productivity goals encouraged employees to push multiple checking, savings, credit and insurance accounts on their customers. And if that customer wasn’t interested? Employees were encouraged (directly or indirectly) by higher-ups to sign customers up anyway and hope they didn’t notice. The extent of the resulting fees and dropping of credit scores is almost impossible to tally.
Video games are about skill, and winning with hard won practice or at the very least… getting lucky. But paying for your win? That’s not fair by anyone’s standards. So when EA’s Star Wars Battlefront 2 came out with a loot box system that allowed customers - we mean, players - to use in-game and real world currency, many people cried foul. After all, what’s the point in grinding for all those hours to earn a weapon when someone else can just buy the chance to get it outright? And don’t even get us started on those companies that want us to pay for content that’s already on the disc we just bought. We’re looking at you, Capcom.
Supply and demand is at the heart of capitalism, but hold up, that doesn’t explain a credit card bill in the hundreds the next morning! While airlines and other companies such as Lyft can also be accused of using Dynamic Pricing models to skew their fees, Uber is easily the highest repeat offender. From a Summerfest fare in the ballpark of $900 to a $14,000 US fee for a 20 minute ride in Canada, Uber seems to keep getting complaints - without an end in sight. A business model based on supply and demand is all well and good, but only if it operates within a reasonable threshold. Maybe keep a taxi number handy.
Back when gas prices skyrocketed during the 2008 recession, there was a mad dash for airlines to cut corners everywhere they could to save money. Fees for luggage were instated, Spirit’s barebones model became popular and inflight meals disappeared faster than a complimentary bag of pretzels. In 2017, American Airlines put in an order for the Boeing 737 Max, a plane that slices another 2 inches off every customer’s already cramped plane seat. If the seat is too small, customers will be forced to upgrade and pay more for comfort, right? No thanks, it’s time to switch carriers or get back in the car for a road trip instead.
Every day, we trust search engines to find the answers we need, but they might not be as reliable as they once were. In the early 2010s, Google launched sponsored or paid results, which basically allowed for businesses to pay for their search mentions to appear at the top of the list. Little more than disguised text ads, these promoted results take advantage of people’s tendency to only read the first few choices - when the best or correct answer can sometimes be lower, if not on the next page and will likely get completely missed by the exact people searching for it. These ads are labelled... but subtly.
It’s no secret that tech companies keep coming out with the latest and greatest to get us to pony up for the latest upgrade. However, when reports of older model iPhones slowing down started popping up online and causing a stir… social media lit up. In 2017, Apple released a statement apologizing and actually admitting fault - but claimed it was to extend the battery life of the older phones. Legal actions were taken and Apple quickly backpedaled, coming out with a battery replacement plan and a battery health feature to hopefully appease their fiercely loyal customers.
From new warehouses to drone delivery and the possibility of having packages placed in your car while you’re at work or the gym, Amazon is constantly expanding in ways that prove that they’re not going anywhere any time soon. But should any single company have that much power, especially with a history of alleged manipulative practices? In 2014, a class action lawsuit was filed alleging that Amazon encouraged sellers to raise the pricing of their products to make up for advertised ‘free shipping’ cost. Second, they were also accused of promoting third party sellers with higher prices in their algorithms. Best to start double checking those prices before purchasing.
Imagine going to fill out your prescription only to find that the price has literally skyrocketed while you were sleeping. This is exactly what happened in 2015 when the now infamous Martin Shkreli gave no warning and raised the price of Daraprim, an antiparasitic drug, from $13.5 per pill to over $750. Of course, though this is an extreme example, the pharmaceutical industry as a whole has a history of dubious practices. Pricing increases have since also affected EpiPens and Insulin, leaving those who need these life-saving drugs scrambling to come up with even more money just to survive, and questionable expiration dates are a constant problem. This problem is systematic.
Is your online information safe? The answer to this question increasingly appears to be no. Several companies have come under fire for being the victims of hacks and scams, but nowhere has the effect been so widespread than Facebook. An app constructed as a data-collecting quiz was all it took for the profile information of countless users to be leaked via a company called Cambridge Analytica. At first glance, this doesn’t seem nearly as bad as the 2017 Equifax hack, but when you consider that there’s a case to be made that Facebook information affected the outcomes of Brexit and the 2016 US elections… the scope becomes staggering, to say the least.
Top 10 Insane Ways Companies Screw You Over
We purchase from them every day, but do they have our best interests in mind? Welcome to WatchMojo.com and today we’ll be counting down our picks for the Top 10 Insane Ways Companies Screw You Over.
For this list, we’ll be focusing on specific actions taken by companies or events in which they royally screwed over some of their very loyal customers.
#10: False Advertising
Volkswagen (2015)False advertising is honestly just a thing in the business world - from fast food commercials that look too good to be true to Infinity Stones that feel like re-purposed decorative Easter eggs - companies don’t always deliver the product they’ve promised. German car maker Volkswagen sped right for that finish line in 2015 when they equipped their US diesel models with software that could cheat tests by adjusting the car’s performance while being monitored. The result? Several models that had passed EPA regulations were actually spewing harmful nitrogen oxide pollutants well over US limits since day one. Ouch!
#9: Signing You Up for Extra Items
Wells Fargo (2011)We’ve all experienced it… that frustrating moment when you sign up for one thing and the company then asks you if you’re interested in another. Upsells are annoying, but at least most employees/companies actually ask first. Wells Fargo apparently didn’t get that ethical business practice memo back in 2011 when high productivity goals encouraged employees to push multiple checking, savings, credit and insurance accounts on their customers. And if that customer wasn’t interested? Employees were encouraged (directly or indirectly) by higher-ups to sign customers up anyway and hope they didn’t notice. The extent of the resulting fees and dropping of credit scores is almost impossible to tally.
#8: Monetary Advantage
EA’s “Star Wars Battlefront II” (2017)Video games are about skill, and winning with hard won practice or at the very least… getting lucky. But paying for your win? That’s not fair by anyone’s standards. So when EA’s Star Wars Battlefront 2 came out with a loot box system that allowed customers - we mean, players - to use in-game and real world currency, many people cried foul. After all, what’s the point in grinding for all those hours to earn a weapon when someone else can just buy the chance to get it outright? And don’t even get us started on those companies that want us to pay for content that’s already on the disc we just bought. We’re looking at you, Capcom.
#7: Surge Pricing
Uber (2009)Supply and demand is at the heart of capitalism, but hold up, that doesn’t explain a credit card bill in the hundreds the next morning! While airlines and other companies such as Lyft can also be accused of using Dynamic Pricing models to skew their fees, Uber is easily the highest repeat offender. From a Summerfest fare in the ballpark of $900 to a $14,000 US fee for a 20 minute ride in Canada, Uber seems to keep getting complaints - without an end in sight. A business model based on supply and demand is all well and good, but only if it operates within a reasonable threshold. Maybe keep a taxi number handy.
#6: Uncomfortably Small
American Airlines (2017)Back when gas prices skyrocketed during the 2008 recession, there was a mad dash for airlines to cut corners everywhere they could to save money. Fees for luggage were instated, Spirit’s barebones model became popular and inflight meals disappeared faster than a complimentary bag of pretzels. In 2017, American Airlines put in an order for the Boeing 737 Max, a plane that slices another 2 inches off every customer’s already cramped plane seat. If the seat is too small, customers will be forced to upgrade and pay more for comfort, right? No thanks, it’s time to switch carriers or get back in the car for a road trip instead.
#5: Search Engine Lies
Google (2011)Every day, we trust search engines to find the answers we need, but they might not be as reliable as they once were. In the early 2010s, Google launched sponsored or paid results, which basically allowed for businesses to pay for their search mentions to appear at the top of the list. Little more than disguised text ads, these promoted results take advantage of people’s tendency to only read the first few choices - when the best or correct answer can sometimes be lower, if not on the next page and will likely get completely missed by the exact people searching for it. These ads are labelled... but subtly.
#4: The Slow Down
Apple (2017)It’s no secret that tech companies keep coming out with the latest and greatest to get us to pony up for the latest upgrade. However, when reports of older model iPhones slowing down started popping up online and causing a stir… social media lit up. In 2017, Apple released a statement apologizing and actually admitting fault - but claimed it was to extend the battery life of the older phones. Legal actions were taken and Apple quickly backpedaled, coming out with a battery replacement plan and a battery health feature to hopefully appease their fiercely loyal customers.
#3: Rigged Pricing
Amazon (2014)From new warehouses to drone delivery and the possibility of having packages placed in your car while you’re at work or the gym, Amazon is constantly expanding in ways that prove that they’re not going anywhere any time soon. But should any single company have that much power, especially with a history of alleged manipulative practices? In 2014, a class action lawsuit was filed alleging that Amazon encouraged sellers to raise the pricing of their products to make up for advertised ‘free shipping’ cost. Second, they were also accused of promoting third party sellers with higher prices in their algorithms. Best to start double checking those prices before purchasing.
#2: Medication Pricing
Turing Pharmaceuticals (2015)Imagine going to fill out your prescription only to find that the price has literally skyrocketed while you were sleeping. This is exactly what happened in 2015 when the now infamous Martin Shkreli gave no warning and raised the price of Daraprim, an antiparasitic drug, from $13.5 per pill to over $750. Of course, though this is an extreme example, the pharmaceutical industry as a whole has a history of dubious practices. Pricing increases have since also affected EpiPens and Insulin, leaving those who need these life-saving drugs scrambling to come up with even more money just to survive, and questionable expiration dates are a constant problem. This problem is systematic.
#1: Not Protecting Our Information
Facebook (2016)Is your online information safe? The answer to this question increasingly appears to be no. Several companies have come under fire for being the victims of hacks and scams, but nowhere has the effect been so widespread than Facebook. An app constructed as a data-collecting quiz was all it took for the profile information of countless users to be leaked via a company called Cambridge Analytica. At first glance, this doesn’t seem nearly as bad as the 2017 Equifax hack, but when you consider that there’s a case to be made that Facebook information affected the outcomes of Brexit and the 2016 US elections… the scope becomes staggering, to say the least.
