Strange, true dilemmas of our readers
October 30, 2010 9:08PM
Updated: April 19, 2011 5:02AM
Weird letters? Oh, yeah, there are plenty of those. Like:
Wayne Burdick of Schaumburg came to us in a panic in 2009 when he got a $27,788 bill from AT&T after watching a Bears game on his computer using a Slingbox connection and an AT&T wireless card. Wayne watched the game at the Port of Miami while waiting for his cruise to depart. What he didn’t realize was that his equipment apparently was picking up an international signal — and racking up international calling rates. (AT&T ended up taking it off his bill.)
A Glenview woman, Catherine Maltezos, wrote to us in 2007 after a rude skycap for American Airlines in Miami intimated that if she didn’t tip more than $1 per bag, her luggage might not make it home. Her suitcase did arrive at O’Hare, but when she opened it, it was stuffed with bags of messy garbage. (American apologized and gave Catherine 8,000 frequent-flier miles.)
A young Will County woman wrote to say that the male stripper she’d hired for her friend’s bachelorette party got a little too cozy with the guests, including sticking a certain part of the male anatomy in someone’s ear … twice. We never did fix that one, though it will go down in Fixer history as our most, er, unusual complaint.
Getting the runaround about a consumer problem? Tell it to The Fixer by visiting www.heraldnewsonline.com and searching for “Fixer.” You’ll find a simple form to fill out. If you don’t have a computer, you can mail a brief description of your problem, along with your name, address and telephone number, to: The Fixer, 13543 S. Route 30, Plainfield, IL 60544. Don’t send original documents. The Fixer cannot send personal replies. Letters are edited for length and clarity.
