Everyday RIP-OFFS (1 Viewer)

[Thik Nongyow]

I have some examples:

a. Organic farming. It is not environmentally-safe as many people really think.

b. Modern cremation practices. Why not cremate like the Hindus in India do for free, instead of paying $500-2000 to have love ones turned to ash through a machine?

 

[Philip_G]

I'm not familiar with the hindu practice, care to clue me in?

 

[Patrick Sun]

I think really expensive speakers are a rip-off for those who buy them.

It's like going to a convention, and many vendors are selling the same items, but at different prices. The high price vendors will probably sell some at the high prices (due to lack of research by the buyers) until information that cheaper sources are available, and then the demand at the high prices drops (basic economics 101) until the supply at the cheaper prices are soaked up, and then the price goes back to what people are willing to pay given the choices/supply.

There's no setting of a minimum or maximum price of what an item can be sold at for "common" items because free enterprise will dictate a price point where goods can be negotiated where the demand and supply level becomes close at a certain price range. Go way below or way above the equilibrium price range, and either the demand soaks up the supply, or the seller is stuck with selling much less than possible.

If the price is too high to you, don't buy it. If enough people feel the same way, the seller will either "eat" the supply, or adjust the price to attract buyers who then determine if the value of the item at the new price is amenable to them.

 

[Moe Maishlish]

I`m all too familiar with this stuff...
1) Auto-Mechanics/Garages
Mechanics now charge a "Black book" price for the amount of labour it`s going to take to finish a job. You take your car in to get your exhaust repaired, and on the computer it says something like "1.2 hours". So, whether the job takes 1.2 hours or not, they charge you the hourly rate at the price quoted at in the book.
It`s CRAP!
This past weekend I took my car in to get the radiator replaced (amoung several other things). On the workorder, there was a quote of 1.7 hours to do the work, amounting to about $125 for total labour (not including parts). As I have a growing interest in auto-repair, I stood by and actually watched as the mechanic replaced the radiator. It took him about 10 minutes. Total. Not 1.7 hours.
RIPOFF! FRAUD!!!
2) Banks, ATM Machines, Service Charges, and "Specialy" Accounts
Year-to-year, banks consistently turn a huge profit. Yet, the cost of banking continues to rise, and I continue to ask myself where we are benefiting from our business, and these so called "service" charges.
Last month, I was informed by my bank (CIBC) that the old-format accounts were being switched over to two different styled accounts. The Savings account, and the Waived account.
With the Savings account, you`re charged $0.40 for every transaction (deposit, withdrawl, bill payment, etc.). That`s expensive for someone like me who has at least one transaction a day. This account pays a tiny interest rate.
The Waive account is different, in that so long as you maintain a minimum of $1000 in your account, you are not charged per transaction (although I believe that there is still base monthly service fee). However, as soon as your account goes below $1000 for that month, you`re charged $0.40 per transaction for the rest of the month. Oh yeah, the interest rate on this account is 0.0%. Yipee!
So with Savings, the bank is telling me "Give us your money, we`ll keep it for you (and make whatever money we can off of it) so long as you don`t touch it, and we`ll reward you with a pitiful excuse of an interest rate!"
With the Waive, the bank is telling me "Sure, we`ll do you the favour of holding your money for you, so long as you actually have enough money for us to hold (otherwise, it`s not really worth our time). In the meanwhile, we`re not giving you a cent of interest."
Since when did it start costing money to have money? Oh yeah... I forgot about income tax...... :frowning:
Moe.

 

[John Tillman]

My 17 yr old son just got a $3900 insurance quote to insure a 93 Taurus. He works in a local supermarket for like minimum wage and will attend local college in September.

He has no accidents or manslaughter charges... just a normal kid. Ripoff? Fleecing or rape is more like it.

 

[Leila Dougan]

Moe, I had no idea banks were so expensive. I've never used anything other than a credit union and by the looks of things, will always continue to do so.

 

[Ted Lee]

don't know if this was already mentioned or not, but when it comes to fast food, you are paying for the convenience.
i'm paying extra because i don't feel like geting up, buying the ingredients, making the meal, then doing the dishes.
recently, i took my girlfriends family to a sushi restaurant. by the time we were done, it was probably close to 150 bucks (i should know...i paid ). the whole time i was thinking that 150 bucks would feed all of us for close to two weeks. i was laughing that ironic laugh, but my wallet sure wasn't...
really the same thing even applies for fast-food. a typical meal is probably about 6 bucks? maybe less, but we'll say 6 as an average. now...how much does a loaf of bread and some sandwich meat cost? maybe 6 bucks? that combo will last you several days instead of just one meal. go figure.
eating out is expensive...but as long as people are willing to pay, then it'll continue.
remember the first thing you learned in economics class? where supply crosses demand you have equilibrium.

 

[MickeS]

I called a bank about stopping payment on a check. The charge was going to be $25! What do I get for that? I'm guessing that a person accesses my account on ris () computer, then types in a request that the check be stopped.
Of course, I was informed there was a way to get around it: if I have one of their "preferred accounts" (or whatever term they use) I don't get chasrged. Of course, I had to have an average monthly balance of a few thousand dollars to get one of these accounts... :grr:
And it's not like I can NOT pay the fee, if I want my check stopped there's nothing else I can do. That is a ripoff for sure.
Oh, and don't get me started on the little monopolies the cable companies have... if I want Comedy Central, I have to buy the whole package, and no other provider to choose from. Rip-off?
/Mike

 

[Ryan Wright]

This is hilarious.
No more than 5 minutes ago, I got off the phone with the manager of the McDonalds down the street from my place of work. I've eaten there - at the same damn McDonalds - for over five years now. Multiple times per week, no less! Within the last three weeks or so, something has gone wrong with their fries - a supersize fry is now only about 2/3 full.
Well, today was the last straw. I called the manager and explained how much I like her store (I do) and that her employees were top notch (they are). I then politely explained my fry problem and asked if she would look into it. She said she would.
With any luck, I'll go there tomorrow and my $1.79 Supersize Fry won't turn out to be a $0.99 medium fry, as it has been for far too long now. If not, I guess I'll find a different place to eat from now on... Of course, there's also the little fact that I worked for the company that provides McDonalds with their fries. That $1.79 order of fries costs them about a quarter including the box, the oil, and the labor. Still, they're oh so good.

Mechanics now charge a "Black book" price for the amount of labour it`s going to take to finish a job. You take your car in to get your exhaust repaired, and on the computer it says something like "1.2 hours". So, whether the job takes 1.2 hours or not, they charge you the hourly rate at the price quoted at in the book.

A few years ago, a shop tried to charge me $35 (half an hour labor) to replace the thermostat in my car as part of a larger service order. I've replaced the thermostat in that car; it takes me less than 30 seconds with one hand tied behind my back. No tools necessary. Open cap, pull old one out, push new one in, put cap back on.
I refused to pay that $35. Pissed 'em off, in a bad way. A few threats were thrown back and forth, but I got my car back and $35 off my bill.

 

[RobertR]

don't get me started on the little monopolies the cable companies have... if I want Comedy Central, I have to buy the whole package, and no other provider to choose from. Rip-off?

That's another thing we agree on. Cable companies are official, legally sanctioned, government protected, government encouraged monopolies. The ironic thing is that some of the people who claim to despise market monopolies love monopolies that are created by a non-market mechanism.

 

[MickeS]

Well, that's easy for them to do, since the rest of us are paying all their other costs with our tax money.
/Mike

 

[Carl Miller]

I don't recall this one being mentioned though it absolutely should be...

Diapers!

It's been a few years since my wife and I had to buy them, but I remember complaining bitterly about how much they cost.

Clearly a rip off, and one which you have to buy.

 

[Patrick Sun]

I was raised on cloth diapers (probably explains a lot about me).

 

[Dick]

And speaking of insurance...How can it be that one's insurance premium goes up after an accident that was NOT HIS FAULT? Both victim and perpetrator have to pay more for their insurance. Why? Any reasonable explanation? I think this should be way-y-y illegal.

 

[Dome Vongvises]

That settles it. My goal in life is now to become THE MAN. Those guys are making money off of everything.

 

[Steve Schaffer]

Maybe I'm just senile, but I've never understood bottled water, it's free out of any nearby tap.

As a California resident, my biggest ripoff is accompanied by an audible click every time my AC kicks on. The rates we pay for electricity are demonstrably the result of sheer graft and corruption and we'll never see a dime in recompense.

Those complaining about the cost of car repairs or sandwiches or coffee should just do it themselves.

 

[Malcolm R]

With any luck, I'll go there tomorrow and my $1.79 Supersize Fry won't turn out to be a $0.99 medium fry.

As a Burger King employee in my younger years, I was regularly scolded by my managers for filling the fry cartons "too full." I figured that whatever size the customer was paying for, it was for that size carton to be "filled." Silly me. :rolleyes
There are many managers in fast food restaurants who will try and convce you that a full portion of fries is not supposed to "fill" the size carton you've paid for.
And I agree with Patrick about the diapers. Cloth diapers are available. They're reusable and more environmentally friendly than all those little plastic wrapped poo-bombs most parents toss in the landfills. But for most, the convenience and disposability is worth the extra cost.
For insurance, it works like most any retail purchase. Shop around from various agencies and get multiple quotes. You'll be amazed at the differences for the same coverage. I was.

 

[AjayM]

How can you really define being ripped-off? Obviously anytime you are forced to purchase a product/service (like cable or electric, etc) that can certainly lead to being ripped off. Were you ripped off if you bought something but didn't do your homework ahead of time and paid to much? Or are you just stupid (I've done it more than a few times)? Let's look at some of the things mentioned in this thread.

Subway is a private company so we can't be nosy and go through their financials. However, once you add up salaries of workers, the ingredients themselves, building costs, building upkeep, electric, phones, etc and that sandwich price starts to look more reasonable. It goes even deeper than that because the time to serve one customer is fairly high for a food place that claims to be fairly "fast-food"'ish. I used to go to Subway almost every day for lunch, and the time from when my "order" is taken to when I've paid the bill and have the sandwich is easily 4-5x more than when I go to McDonalds (more labor = more cost).

McDonalds is a public company, the bottom line at McDonalds for last year was 10% profit, which is pretty decent these days....but puts a little perspective on things when you consider how much the actual food costs.

The Rolex is harder. If you buy a popular model used for $6k, in a couple years it will probably be worth $7k (it has made you money now, that's pretty far from being a rip off). Now if you buy one new it may not make you money, but is still far from a "rip-off". Now if you spend $6k on a Rolex and then find out it's fake, then you were ripped off.

Insurance is always a good one, but have one car totaled out in your professional life (when you are driving a nicer car) and maybe 2-3 accident claims for your life and you probably will have be getting close to the total amount of insurance you have paid. Then mix in all the overhead work to make an insurance company run and those numbers start to make more sense. A friend of mine has had 2 totaled cars (one cheap around $4k-accident another $20k-theft), has had 3 comprehensive's (all around $7k each one theft recovery the others "act of god" damage) and no other accidents. That means his insurance company has paid out $45k...he's been driving for 10 years, and has probably averaged a payment around $1500/yr. Now his case is fairly extreme but not overly so. Looking at some bottom lines, Progressive insurance made 6% profit last year, Allstate made 3%.

I've always defined "ripped off" as paying for something and then not getting what you thought/expected. For instance, paying to get into Disney World and 90% of the rides are closed....or Buying a $6k Rolex and it being a fake.

Andrew

 

[Garrett Lundy]

b. Modern cremation practices. Why not cremate like the Hindus in India do for free, instead of paying $500-2000 to have love ones turned to ash through a machine?

Around here it will cost you $350. Cremations in India are not free, nor would they even be competitive. First they have to transport the deceased to a river (Typical cremation ritual site in India). Then they have to buy fire materials, and In an area thats been deforested for thousands of years, burning-wood is not cheap. Nor are you going to have enough to cremate a body totally (Most people would be amazed at how hot/how long it takes a body to turn to ash). And this is why the sacred rivers of India (Ganges? not sure on the spelling), are usually litter with "slightly singed" corpses just floating around.
Oh the things you learn as a mortician's son
Rip-Off's.
Insurance, Taxes, Fast-Food (Ok, most food), Banking, Cable, Satelite, XM-Radio, Designer Clothes, New cars, Desighner water, The ARMY, credit cards, CD's & DVD's (I am a firm believer that a optical-disc product costs less than $.05 to create), tattoo ink, pure-bred house pets, the postal service, the phone company, gasoline, mechanics, the power company, the list go's on and on and on

 

[Josh Lowe]

Federal/state personal income tax - the greatest ripoff of the 20th century, hands down.

"Personal income tax is a 20th century experiment, most people have forgotten that or want it to be forgotten. It is an experiment that has failed." -- Alan Keyes