Now that I'm home with more time, I'm recognizing the ways I can be easily cheated as a consumer. First of all, twice in the past month, I have not received expected refunds. If I was busier, I might not notice that, but noticing that now led me to lengthy back-and-forths with companies to get the refund I was due. When the online transactions don't go as planned, it takes hours of phone and computer time to rectify the situation--time is money, and figuring out these problems ends up costing lots of time and money. I wonder how much companies are making from these errors simpy because people give up on trying to solve the problems. This is one reason why shopping in person may be better than using online systems.
Next, when our television broke, it led me to analyze our television service costs only to find that we were being robbed of a few hundred dollars a month in costs that resulted in services we didn't even use. A good company would likely try to match people with an affordable, useful plan and not allow people to continue to pay for a plan they don't even use or is out of date. It took a broken television for me to investigate and realize what was going on. And similar to the refund issues, rectifying this issue has taken lots of time too.
I grew up during Ralph Nadar's crusades to protect consumers from fraud. And now, it seems that many of us have lost sight of our rights as consumers. With big tech taking over so many consumer platforms, it's difficult to figure out what's going on and rectify problems you encounter. For starters this is a big problem because it's difficult to get in contact with a person at almost any company, and then more difficult to figure out with the person you do eventually contact what's going on.
On another occasion recently, I was trying to figure out how much money we had on a number of gift cards. That too took numerous calls and has led me to give cash or checks by hand rather than gift cards since so many people lose their gift cards and it's almost impossible to retrieve lost gift cards.
How can we be better consumers? How can we protect ourselves from the fraud and loss possible?
First, as I've not done well enough, keep good records of what you buy, when you buy it, and any related receipts.
Next, keep it simple. Don't deal in too many credit cards or other accounts--the simpler, the easier it is to manage.
Know what's best to buy online versus offline. As for expensive items, I suggest you buy them in person for the most part--it's easier to return an expensive item to a local store. Also, many of the items you see online have poor quality--it's good to be able to see, touch, and study an item before you buy it. For example, I bought a great looking shirt only to receive a poor quality item. I'll return it, but next time I'll shop for most items in places where I can see and touch the items. I know that's not possible for all.
Also, use what you have. So many items you own can be repurposed to fit a new need. As the adage says, Less things, more time.
I want to be a better consumer. It's so easy for big companies to trick, fool, and cheat consumers during this high tech age. We all have to help one another navigate the consumer seas so we're not cheated. And while I'm on this platform, we also have to support fair/just wages for all workers and big taxes for the ultra wealthy who have more money than they know what to do with--that ultra wealth often translates into errant use of power and might, and that is a big danger to people everywhere. We can do better.