You have to be vigilant with money, even if it isn't fun to do!
I bought some parts for the new camper today - a thermostat kit for the hot water heater. The heater works great with only one problem - it won't shut off. There is no temperature adjustment on this model, and with an aluminum tank, no zinc required, either. But two "thermostats" (disc type temperature switches) are provided, one to cut off at 60 degrees (C) for hot water, and the other to shut it down at 80 degrees (C) as a safety. Neither are working.
I used Amazon, as when I checked eBay, they had the same kit for $5 more, no doubt an attempt at arbitrage. The parts kit was cheap - only $14. Anyway, the usual Amazon "soft" scams at checkout - you want to sign up for prime? Oh, and we default to paid shipping, even if free shipping is available. The usual Amazon soft scams. But credit to them, they don't charge your credit card until they ship and they have a generous return policy and usually deliver the goods.
We took the Hamster in to town to get groceries. We stopped to wash it and I noticed that after a decade, the floor mats were looking a little shabby. I was scrolling online while we waited for tacos at our favorite Mexican dive, and saw a set for $50, factory OEM. I clicked on it and they offered four levels of shipping, starting at about $11 and going up to $117 (!!). I clicked on $11 and it sent me to PayPal to pay. "Congratulations! Your charge for $167 went through!" WTF??
I checked the "invoice" and sure enough, they upgraded me to overnight shipping without me asking. Plus, they added "Route Package Protection" for $1.95 (without asking) which I wrote about before. Basically, "Route" just sends you the same tracking information that USPS, UPS, FedEx, etc. will send you for free.
UPDATE: The "Route" charge is automatically entered and you have to uncheck a box to make it go away. Easy to do on a computer, but on my phone, the invoice page conveniently appears half off the screen, so you don't see this check box. Convenient - for who?
So I try to cancel the order, but there is no cancel link, just a phone number, and they close at 4:30 (!!). Looks like I will have to dispute the charge. Never do business with a company that only accepts PayPal. Or uses "Route."
Anyway, I felt beaten down at this point. So off to Walmart "Ghetto Gourmet" (Neighborhood Market) to restock the house after being gone for several months. Mark gets food, I get beverages, and we check out separately. I used to self-serve scanner and it is acting up. I won't take my credit card unless I swipe it. It checks out and I pull a suspiciously long receipt out of the machine. I am charged over $300 for beer and wine (mine) and ham and bacon and $150 worth of groceries (not mine!).
I call over the cashier and show her my cart - no ham, no bacon. What gives? Well, the people ahead of me at scanner #9 rang up about $150 in groceries and when their card didn't read (as mine didn't) they went over to customer service. Somehow, the charge then went through - on my credit card! Is this a new scam to get other people to pay for your groceries? I dunno.
Anyway, the nice cashier, who was going off shift and was looking forward to going home, had to manually enter each item code and issue a credit for about $150. What a pain in the butt. Meanwhile, the manager is on the phone to corporate trying to figure out what happened.
It makes me wonder if this hasn't happened before, and perhaps on purpose. When I approached the scanner, it said "Enter your phone number or start scanning to begin." There was no listing of $150 of groceries on the screen. By the way, whose bright idea was it to have recently scanned items appear at the TOP of the screen? In a cash register, the last item scanned appears at the bottom of the register tape, not the top. Be consistent, people! And use a larger screen that doesn't require scrolling down after you've scanned five items! Sheesh!
Anyway, it is all fixed, I guess. But it made me realize how important it is to get receipts and to look at them. If I had merely stuffed the receipt in my pocket and went home, it would have been a lot harder to prove I was overcharged.
I was at a gas station once and the clerk asked (nicely) why baby boomers always ask for receipts. I told her I keep receipts so if I am ever accused of murder, I have a paper-trail to prove I was out of town that day. Just kidding. But it pays to keep those bits of paper, particularly when you have to return something. And retailers are getting more and more strict about "no receipt, no refund."
Sorry not to post more often, but it is hard when traveling to type on a laptop in a cafe with sketchy wi-fi. Plus I don't have the energy I used to have. Off to the doctor tomorrow and then Mayo next week. Meanwhile, Mark is having new teeth installed. Getting old isn't as fun as it looks!
