Feature

Your Credit Report Isn't The Only Report You Should Monitor

When an insurer decides whether to offer you a new policy, or whether to raise rates on a current one, he most likely pulls a CLUE report that lists any homeowner or automobile insurance loss claims (or sometimes even just inquiries) that you've made over the past 3-7 years. Hopefully you monitor your consumer credit report for errors, but as you can see, that's not the only one you should keep an eye on. More »

10:53 AM on Wed Nov 11 2009
By Chris Walters
10,503 views, 31 comments

Most discussed shepd: I've ordered my auto insurance report, and it still had accidents past the mandatory date of expiry for my province. more »

silly

7 Restaurant Dishes That Are Too Embarrassing To Order By Name

Perhaps you have noticed that restaurants like to give their food interesting names. Perhaps you have also avoided ordering the food by its interesting name because it's completely ridiculous. We looked through dozens of chain-restaurant menus to find the 7 most painful-to-order names out there. Enjoy. More »

1:47 PM on Mon Aug 10 2009
By Meg Marco
42,115 views, 189 comments

Most discussed Danj3ris is accepting...: I love the Quesadilla explosion. It is my default order at Chili's. And I love saying it with my "Let's more »

credit cards

Credit Card Processors Launch A New Strategy To Defeat Theft

This fall, credit card processors will being rolling out a new approach to preventing data theft, based on the assumption that it's impossible to thwart every attack. Instead of keeping 100% of criminals out, they'll segment and encrypt the data into such small chunks that it will no longer be a cost-effective crime. More »

12:41 PM on Tue May 26 2009
By Chris Walters
13,521 views, 21 comments

Most discussed johnva: I'm surprised none of them have this sort of thing already. Well, actually I'm not that surprised, given the fact more »

personal security

Make Sure You Secure Your Smartphone

Do you own an iPhone, G1, Blackberry, Windows or Nokia smartphone? Fancy phones are a nice target for thieves, and unfortunately they're often packed with sensitive information that can be too easily accessed and exploited. Why not take the time this weekend to make sure it's secure? More »

11:15 AM on Fri Apr 24 2009
By Chris Walters
14,695 views, 41 comments

Most discussed Pizza_Club: Oh, and it's free. Send a text message to your phone and it will reply back with the GPS more »

side effects

9 Legal Drugs With Extremely Disturbing Side Effects

We asked for it and you sent them in, a smorgasbord of drugs with extremely disturbing side effects. Here's nine of the most disturbing we found. Jeez! Sometimes the cure really can be worse than the disease... More »

8:22 PM on Wed Apr 15 2009
By Ben Popken
99,255 views, 410 comments

Most discussed summerbee: Um, can I add Paxil to the list here? The list of side effects is typical of any given more »

procrastination

It's Tax Day! Here Are Some Post Offices That Are Open Late...

Today is the day, folks. You'll need to finish up your taxes and send them on their way to the IRS. More »

2:21 PM on Wed Apr 15 2009
By Meg Marco
11,472 views, 57 comments

irs

16 Ways To Get The IRS To Audit You

Bwahhhh! The Tax Man cometh! Here are 16 red flags to watch out for. If you wave them, it will be like if you called up the IRS and said, "Hello? IRS? I'd like you to come audit my sorry ass six ways from Sunday. Here's my address." More »

5:06 PM on Tue Apr 14 2009
By Ben Popken
48,844 views, 104 comments

Most discussed Frank Murphy: How much money would be saved if the IRS and all of its nonessential government employees (with generous benefits and more »

student loans

A Big-Ass List Of Student Loan Resources

It's a tough economic climate to be graduating from school — and maybe an even tougher one for those of you trying to get financial aid. We've put together a list of some financial aid and student lending resources to help make things easier. More »

2:05 PM on Mon Mar 30 2009
By Meg Marco
19,338 views, 41 comments

Most discussed QuantumRiff: One big tip, I wish someone had told me. If all your student loans are through the same company, more »

wcia 2009

Behold The 2009 Worst Company In America Bracket!

Your nominations are in and the teams have been seeded, all that's left to do is vote! Without further ado, the Official WCIA Committee would like to present... The 2009 Worst Company In America bracket! More »

12:37 PM on Mon Mar 23 2009
55,141 views, 198 comments

how to

Save Money On A Funeral

Someone wrote to us this week that a person in his family is terminally ill, and that he was told "that the cost of the casket, funeral, viewing, and burial would possibly exceed 12,000 dollars." He thinks that's an "exorbitant amount of money," and so do we. There is no reason to pay that much money for a kick-ass funeral that people will be talking about for years to come. You don't need to be a cheapskate to manage this, either—you just need to be aware of your rights and know what traps to watch out for. Here's our list of what to do the next time you have to plan a funeral. More »

11:13 AM on Fri Mar 6 2009
By Chris Walters
21,847 views, 110 comments

Most discussed darkryd: Build your own? Kinda creepy and a little too on the cheap-o side, don't you think? more »

warranties

3 Steps To Protect Yourself When Making Major Electronics Purchases

Stores like Best Buy like to take advantage of your natural fear that a piece of electronic equipment that you just spent a bunch of money on is going to break. And, let's face it, it might — but that's no reason to rely on an expensive extended warranty from the retailer. More »

1:51 PM on Tue Feb 24 2009
By Meg Marco
21,923 views, 93 comments

Most discussed minsky: Regarding warranties and electronics, if a given electronic item makes it through the manufacturer's warranty period without having problems, chances more »

housing

Top 10 Most And Least Affordable Cities

The National Association of Home Builders and Wells Fargo have put together an index of the most and least affordable metro areas. The index was created by calculating what percentage of a city's residents making the median income can afford a house in that city. More »

10:26 AM on Fri Feb 20 2009
By Meg Marco
30,299 views, 195 comments

Most discussed JanetCarol: Nothing in the DC Metro / Fairfax County VA made the least affordable?!?!?!? I'm shocked. more »

taxes

10 Tax Incentives For You From Bush's Bailout Bill

Remember that guy Bush? Well back in October he signed one of those fancy bailout bills and it had a bunch of tax incentives for you. Here are the highlights of The Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 relevant to your tax return: More »

12:12 PM on Mon Feb 16 2009
By Ben Popken
25,478 views, 49 comments

Most discussed holocron: When are they going to offer a tax credit for student loan payments? That would be a huge boost to more »

wall street bailout

NY AG: Before Losing $15 Billion, Merrill Lynch Quietly Made 696 Employees Millionaires

New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo wrote a letter yesterday to Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.), head of the House Financial Services Committee, (which is currently holding hearings Washington on how banks are spending bailout funds.) In the letter, Cuomo expresses concern that Merrill Lynch moved up their bonus schedule so that they could make sure that taxpayers would get the bill. More »

11:33 AM on Wed Feb 11 2009
By Meg Marco
18,858 views, 135 comments

Most discussed t-r0y: I don't see how you can continue to bad mouth these banks and investment firms without some comment about the more »

your rights

Mandatory Binding Arbitration: The Worst Choose Your Own Adventure Ever

Mandatory binding arbitration agreements are bad for consumers for so many reasons that, unless you're the victim of one, it's hard to keep track of the various ways you can be screwed. So we've come up with this helpful illustration: a choose-your-own-adventure-styled trip through the arbitration process. More »

4:49 PM on Tue Feb 10 2009
By Alex Chasick
68,700 views, 76 comments

Most discussed Tiki McTikatron: So if you are handed a paper contract (say from a daycare center) and see this clause, are you more »

legal fridays

How To Not Get Sued For What You Said On Yelp

Recently, angry chiropractors and dentists have sued Yelp reviewers for defamation, loosely defined as "publicly telling mean lies that hurt more than feelings." Apparently, no one takes the internet seriously, until all of a sudden someone does. Here's what anyone who leaves comments online should know about defamation. More »

6:40 PM on Fri Jan 23 2009
By Alex Chasick
21,850 views, 71 comments

Most discussed atomoverride: option b, create a fake idenity / name so when you post your comments they will be suing the fake more »

circuit city

GRAPH: The Decline And Fall Of Circuit City

Liquidation is a time for reflection, we guess, so we put together a nice little time line of Circuit City's precipitous decline over the past 2 years. We begin our journey in March of 2007, when Circuit City announced that it was firing everyone who knew what 1080p meant so that they could hire cheaper labor... More »

11:11 AM on Fri Jan 16 2009
By Meg Marco
25,051 views, 71 comments

Most discussed Eldritch: Firing those employees was the catalyst. I think that gave them a ton of bad press, and just stuck stupid more »

digital tv transition

A Very Simple Flowchart Explaining The Digital TV Transition

There has been some demand among readers for a flowchart that explains how you will be affected by the digital TV switch that will happen this February. Your wish is our command. More »

12:00 PM on Tue Dec 23 2008
By Meg Marco
69,458 views

Consumerist