Small victory for the little guy

[mickeyd]

I'm the little guy referred to above.

I am one of the vanishing few who have a newspaper delivered to their home by a "paperboy". A few weeks ago I did not get a paper delivered by the appointed time of NLT 9AM.

I took the required action to notify the company that I had no paper via email. I received an automatic email response that it would be delivered soon. An hour later I called the subscription department and asked "what's up?". I was advised that a paper would be dispatched soon.

Never got the paper.

I called the next day and spoke with a CSR who apologized for the non-delivery and offered me a "credit". Since I pay them via Discover Card automatically each month, I demanded a credit of about $1.30 for their poor service to this 25 year customer to my DC. Between the CSR and the supervisor I was advised that they do not make such CC credits for less than $5.00.

I demanded a $5.00 refund since that was the minimum amount that they could act on, even though all I was out was about $1.30. They said OK after much discussion. Today I received a $5.00 credit on my DC account.

The sad thing is that if I did not have the time and patience that retirees have, I would not have taken the time to chase after $1.30.

Victory is mine!

 

[Red Badger]

Congrats on winning a decisive battle!

Besides, they should know better that to get in a dust up with someone who's earned the Combat Infantry Badge.

Thanks for serving.

 

[LOL!]

Great story!

 

[kgtest]

I'm the little guy referred to above.

The sad thing is that if I did not have the time and patience that retirees have, I would not have taken the time to chase after $1.30.

Victory is mine!

Are you my father? Lol. HE would sit on hold for 8hrs with the IRS if a nickel were at stake.

He always goes into that CSR battle hot and heavy, guns waving...me I take it calm and collect and when I don't get the results I want I slowly climb the chain of command, or call again until someone yields.

Is it really victory, when you finally did receive the news, it was old news hehe

 

[Senator]

And now some poor retired guy is looking for a new job because he forgot one address..

 

[cbo111]

....having bad flashbacks of being a 12-yr old paperboy. My route was approx 8 miles of pedaling to deliver to less than 50 customers. Seven days a week getting up at the crack of dawn earned me about $30 a month. And I also had to collect the monthly fees, of which several customers were routinely very difficult to squeeze a nickel out of. My dad had to accompany me to get some of these clowns to pay. Made my future job at McDonalds seem like a dream.

 

[Calico]

And now some poor retired guy is looking for a new job because he forgot one address..

^^^^^^
This.

 

[pb4uski]

I'm sure that you (OP) are the talk of the office there today and for many days to come. Congratulations.

I wonder why they didn't just extend your subsciption by one day.

 

[Scrapr]

....having bad flashbacks of being a 12-yr old paperboy. My route was approx 8 miles of pedaling to deliver to less than 50 customers. Seven days a week getting up at the crack of dawn earned me about $30 a month. And I also had to collect the monthly fees, of which several customers were routinely very difficult to squeeze a nickel out of. My dad had to accompany me to get some of these clowns to pay. Made my future job at McDonalds seem like a dream.

I see you were the one to take over my route. We were the "other" paper. So much more spread out. So many memories of falling asleep as the distributor was late dropping my bundle. Mom taking me out in the snow....only on occasion. Hard collections

But the reason why i wake at 5:00 am every single day

 

[Bigdawg]

....having bad flashbacks of being a 12-yr old paperboy. My route was approx 8 miles of pedaling to deliver to less than 50 customers. Seven days a week getting up at the crack of dawn earned me about $30 a month. And I also had to collect the monthly fees, of which several customers were routinely very difficult to squeeze a nickel out of. My dad had to accompany me to get some of these clowns to pay. Made my future job at McDonalds seem like a dream.

HAHA. Could have written this post myself. I actually found more money/stuff than I earned. I usually stumbled upon a $20 at least once per month on the ground and found a really nice Buck knofe once.

 

[samclem]

....having bad flashbacks of being a 12-yr old paperboy. My route was approx 8 miles of pedaling to deliver to less than 50 customers. Seven days a week getting up at the crack of dawn earned me about $30 a month. And I also had to collect the monthly fees, of which several customers were routinely very difficult to squeeze a nickel out of. My dad had to accompany me to get some of these clowns to pay. Made my future job at McDonalds seem like a dream.

+1. Collecting was the worst.
-- "Can you come back next week?" (Lady, if this $3.25 is going to break the bank, maybe you shouldn't be getting the paper)
-- "Can you break a fifty?" (Sure, I'm peddling this bike every day through these hilly neighborhoods in all kinds of weather because I'm wealthy. Fifty dollars is about what I make in 2 months. You make about $5000 in two months. Have you got that in your pocket? Could you break a 5 thousand dollar note?)

 

[Ready]

There is no minimum amount that can be credited back to a credit card. They pay a fee of around 3% of the amount charged, and most merchants don't pay anything for issuing a credit. It sounds like because of some random policy they gave you more than they needed to.

My paper frequently goes missing on Sundays. But I only pay ten cents per newspaper for home delivery, and I don't have the patience to chase after them for my dime.

 

[street]

Looks like you got a lot of pats on the back and glad you won. I wouldn't of done that but we have to do what we have to do.

 

[JPatrick]

Glad you won, and hoping the kid got a positive lesson that will serve him well in the real world. I'm sure you slipped him a holiday bonus for being on time the other 99.9% percent of the time..

 

[Montecfo]

I see you were the one to take over my route. We were the "other" paper. So much more spread out. So many memories of falling asleep as the distributor was late dropping my bundle. Mom taking me out in the snow....only on occasion. Hard collections

But the reason why i wake at 5:00 am every single day

Your mom took you out on snow days?? I knew better than to ask. I wish I had a bike. Just a skateboard.

Afterword I had a crust of bread and water for breakfast. And I was grateful.

 

[FUEGO]

I've stopped chasing the random buck or two shortfalls. And if health insurance is involved I don't get too worked up unless the amount in controversy if over $50 or so.

I used to run the neighborhood paper route for this weekly bird cage liner kind of paper. All advertisements. $30/month for a couple hours worth of work each week (this was in the early 1990s when I was 12 or so). Too much work for me. Didn't last long. Eventually moved up to making sandwiches at Jersey Mike's in the fancy part of town for $5.25/hr (plus all the steak and cheeses I could eat and the occasional beer purloined from the walk in fridge and occasionally consumed on the floor of said walk in fridge).

 

[Scrapr]

Your mom took you out on snow days?? I knew better than to ask. I wish I had a bike. Just a skateboard.

Afterword I had a crust of bread and water for breakfast. And I was grateful.

Mrs Scrapr & I try to outdo each other on how poor we were. 6 of us in a<1000 SF house. Did i say house? I meant cardboard box

 

[427Vette]

Thankfully you are retired so you have the time to deal with such a tragic event. I wish my life could be so simple that I could get all bent out of shape over something so trivial. I am curious if in your 25 years as a loyal customer if you have ever called and complimented them on getting your paper to you during inclement weather or thanked them for starting and stopping your paper while you were on vacation. Did you bother to find out why your paper never showed? Was there an accident or a health issue or did they not deliver it just to piss you off? What are your plans for the $3.70 of pure stolen profit?


I agree with Street's comment. It's not a battle I would have fought but you have to do what you have to do I guess.

 

[Sunset]

Your mom took you out on snow days?? I knew better than to ask. I wish I had a bike. Just a skateboard.

Afterword I had a crust of bread and water for breakfast. And I was grateful.

You got bread AND water for breakfast ?

We were so poor it was bread on Monday,
and Water on Tuesday,
an empty glass on Wednesday just due to the philosophy of 1/2 full or 1/2 empty,
Then back to bread on Thursday,
and Water on Friday.
Mom took Sat and Sun off, so no breakfast on those day....

 

[FUEGO]

Mrs Scrapr & I try to outdo each other on how poor we were. 6 of us in a<1000 SF house. Did i say house? I meant cardboard box

My wife grew up with 7 in her family in a dirt floor hut in the jungle. Unless you count their grandma and other extended family that lived with them occasionally then you're talking double digits living in that tiny 1 room dirt floor hut. And least they didn't have pesky possessions taking up valuable living space!

 

[skipro33]

Just because you never got your paper doesn't mean it wasn't delivered. Anyone might have snagged your paper for any number of reasons. The most likely culprit is someone who knows you and is now having a good laugh.

 

[brucethebroker]

You know, some of us scrimped and saved for decades to get to where we are today: RE'ed or semi-RE'ed. We may need to de-program the thrift a little. DW and I have had this conversation many, many times. Used to fight every battle we had as "ripped off" consumers. I now cringe at some of the things we would do when we were "wronged". I once left a ten cent tip to a waitress on a holiday weekend (to make my point). Yep, the service WAS lousy, some of the worst we had experienced. But it was a holiday, and the place was most likely understaffed.

Lately, we try to take the attitude of picking our battles over larger money problems. Cable co. jacks up the rate $20 a month-sure, we'll take those guys on and will wait on hold for hours, or even better, shop it out to save $. McDonalds cashier shorts me a dime? Nah.... (I also try to determine if it was an honest mistake (cashier example) or corporate greed/trying to scam the public (cable).

Personally, OP, I admire your spunk, and I would have fought the same battle 10 years ago. Bet they deliver your paper after the first phone call next time. (Of course, it will have been spat on....)

 

[HGTVfan]

Thankfully you are retired so you have the time to deal with such a tragic event. I wish my life could be so simple that I could get all bent out of shape over something so trivial. I am curious if in your 25 years as a loyal customer if you have ever called and complimented them on getting your paper to you during inclement weather or thanked them for starting and stopping your paper while you were on vacation. Did you bother to find out why your paper never showed? Was there an accident or a health issue or did they not deliver it just to piss you off? What are your plans for the $3.70 of pure stolen profit?


I agree with Street's comment. It's not a battle I would have fought but you have to do what you have to do I guess.

+1

Sad.

 

[sanfanciscotreat]

There is no minimum amount that can be credited back to a credit card. They pay a fee of around 3% of the amount charged, and most merchants don't pay anything for issuing a credit. It sounds like because of some random policy they gave you more than they needed to.

My paper frequently goes missing on Sundays. But I only pay ten cents per newspaper for home delivery, and I don't have the patience to chase after them for my dime.

Ten cents is the delivery charge or ten cents for the paper and delivery?
Have not seen a paper for ten cents in twenty five years

 

[Ready]

Ten cents is the delivery charge or ten cents for the paper and delivery?
Have not seen a paper for ten cents in twenty five years

It is for Sunday only newspaper service. $10 for two years of newspapers. It's the Orange County Register, not LA Times, but still not a bad deal. If anyone in Orange County is interested, here is the link to the Groupon deal:

https://www.groupon.com/deals/orange-county-register-3