Do you have time to worry to dispute transactions?

[Deactivated] on 27/08/2019 - 16:20

Just wondering how many of you dont worry about small expenses deducted out of your account or overcharging because you dont have time to sit on a phone to a Call Centre for 45 minutes or so.

Happened to me a few times in the last month and if I was working long hours I wouldnt have had time and probably let it go which these big companies seem to hope for .

Some examples, Commonwealth Bank Comminsure sent me a letter to say I was I was entitled to a 90 cents refund due to cancelling my home insurance, on reading the letter ,they dont issue cheques under $5, so to get a refund you must call them.

So how many would bother to sit on the phone for 20 minutes or so ,plus feel like a stingy ozbargainer in askng for your 90 cents back !! I did though …

Second was a telstra bill ,there was a late fee of $10, on checking last mnths bill I didnt pay late ,so rang them got it refunded.

Ola rideshare was the same , deducted $3 from my account, had to spend 20 minutes or so on their live chat going thru 100 questions before they gave me $3 credit

I know a lot of you dont have time especially for small amounts, begs the question how much extra these corporatins make with busy people being charged needlessly or overcharged?

General Discussion

Comments

  • AdosHouse on 27/08/2019 - 16:29
    +6

    1. Comminsure, wouldn't bother.

    2. Telstra, would, my freaking $10

    3. Ola, yes, principle of the matter.

  • crentist on 27/08/2019 - 16:47
    +6

    I'm pretty lazy about this kind of thing, but have done the odd Uber correction or late credit card payment waiver.

    But my mum used to always check Coles/Woolies receipts and dispute any mistakes, or bring back bad fruit etc. Even if it's only a few cents.
    Not for the money, just the principle of not giving the mono/duopolies an inch

    • 87percent on 27/08/2019 - 17:43
      -3

      I always wondered why fruit was exempt from ACL.. if it's too sour or something like that, surely it's not fit for purpose

      Same with eggs and bread. If you buy them and en egg cracks on the way home, or bread gets squashed

      • [Deactivated] on 27/08/2019 - 17:46

        If an lemon is too sour, it still lemons.

      • HighAndDry on 27/08/2019 - 17:49

        ACL works on reasonableness. You buy fruit knowing it could be too sour, or that eggs can be broken and bread squashed.

        Bad fruit is still covered, but not just… too-sour-fruit.

      • garetz on 27/08/2019 - 18:43

        If you dont know how to pick fruit to your taste, its a skill that can be learnt.

      • ssquid on 27/08/2019 - 20:41
        +2

        Always check the eggs in store to make sure they're not already cracked/broken.

        If you break them or squash the bread on the way home, that's your fault.

    • [Deactivated] on 27/08/2019 - 18:03
      +2

      I also check my receipts, IGA supermarkets are the worst in overcharging

      • Ozpit on 28/08/2019 - 08:44
        +2

        I don’t shop at IGA, but Coles are serial offenders for scanning the original price on sale items. Most people don’t check their receipts or can’t be bothered going back for a refund. But I always do, both on principle and to get the item for free.

        Bloody annoying if you don’t realise until you get home. It happens to me so often I now always check the receipt after going through the checkout or when I get back to my car.

  • Tech5 on 27/08/2019 - 17:03
    +1

    I just do a chargeback instead, much easier

  • AlienC on 27/08/2019 - 17:25
    +2

    I have a lot of free time atm and can be very compulsive about these kind of things and sometimes the principle does matter especially if you feel sleighted.. doesn't matter at that point if it is $1 or $1000.. the principle for me takes precedence.

    But yeah I have a thing for tying up loose ends and being sure trying to minimise my "leakage" or wastage; it is more so a behaviour habit enforcing thing more than the money but I mean money buys us goods and services and the more money you have the more goods and services you can have or give to others and in my own personal experience there are some stupid people out there who do not know how to manage their finances or budget for anything at all accordingly.. if you could see the wastage my housemates and some parts of my family make with food alone you would cry and be mad that someone is starving out there right now because of food inefficiency.

    • jelko on 27/08/2019 - 18:37
      +1

      Nobody is starving out there just because others are wasting food.

      • AlienC on 27/08/2019 - 18:46

        My bad you are right.. it is just wasteful and bad distribution of food.

        We will fix this problem eventually but we are just at the beginning of the very initial phases right now.

        It will pick up more in years to come most definitely.. hopefully by the time we both die there will be some serious efforts and discussion on the topic like there is say for renewable energy but for now it is still a sleeper issue.

        Once we realise that maximising efficiency in everything is paramount the quality of living in the world will improve drastically or stop degrading rapidly.

        We are pretty wasteful atm but it is expected with the great advances in technology and production we have had for the past 100 to 200 years.

  • HighAndDry on 27/08/2019 - 17:32
    +10

    Prevention is better than cure…. but I do it if:

    1. It's more than a few dollars, or
    2. I've got a lot of free time, or
    3. I really don't like the company.
    • [Deactivated] on 27/08/2019 - 17:48
      +2

      Exactly. I get my refund and switch providers/supplier/whatever.

      My folks always give me grief about not buying from the cheapest but I just want to know exactly how much I'm paying. I prefer that over feeling like I have to scrutinize every invoice.

    • AlienC on 27/08/2019 - 18:47

      Well said.

    • Zachary on 27/08/2019 - 20:14

      4 - I need/want my money back regardless the amount
      5 - Principle
      6 - I don't have anything better to do at this moment in time
      7 - May as well get this over with before I forget

      Edit: dont know why it reset to 1 when i explicitly typed 4….

  • [Deactivated] on 27/08/2019 - 21:28

    If they have live chat-> Yes , always.

    If not, only if it's more than a few dollars and I have the time to dispute their mistake.

  • AdosHouse on 27/08/2019 - 22:24
    +4

    I have spent hours and more chasing chasing a small amount of money before, but it was about the principle of it.

    I had gone to a chemist for something to help with sleep, i wasn't sleeping well. A pharmacist suggested these pills, I trusted them and bought them, I think about $15. I got home and read the bottle and it was freaking homeopathic pill, so basically sugar pills. This got to me because I sought advice from someone who I believe would have knowledge in these matters.
    Anyway I called the pharmacy asking for a refund, denied. Called the head office, and argued with them for about 45 minutes and they finally relented and told the store to refund me. So then I had to drive 30 minutes each way to pick up my ~$15. Still was about the principle.

    Really sucked arguing with the head office because they were like, it has been medically proven to work, plenty of people recommend it, etc. It has no frigging active ingredient.

  • voteoften on 28/08/2019 - 08:06

    In regards to correcting things or finding out info, I have found that messenger is fabulous. I’ve never used it that I can recall in correcting billing mistakes but for all the other PITA admin of life, it works really well and fast.

  • Whisper Quiet on 28/08/2019 - 08:29
    +2

    Always find it weird that 10-20 years ago there was hardly any of these issues of overcharging, scanning wrong prices,etc. You would think that with the better tech these days it would have lessened these problems or cut them out altogether but it's made it worse. I do think some of its done on purpose though, to try and scam people who can't be bothered getting it back.

    • [Deactivated] on 28/08/2019 - 09:02
      +3

      I agree …call me paranoid but i really think they prey on time poor people and people who dont check their bills & statements .

      Some people just use direct debit and never check their bills

      Lucky i went through the charges on my Telstra bill…then i noticed the late fee !!!
      Never been late in paying….had i not bothered scrutinising the bill or time poor I would of lost my 10 bucks …10 bucks is 10 bucks

      Also a company called Wish which is a online company took $4 extra my account the other day…a lot of people wouldnt of worried about that,too time consuming …but i disputed it

      Same as a $2.50 fee from the Commonwealth Bank for a direct debit that didnt go thru, but ….it all adds up !!

      As for the 90 cents that the Comminsure owe me…they ‘re idea is to keep it …if they kept everyones 90 cents they would
      have hundreds of thousands in profit

      And its understandable because many people are working long hours or 3 jobs and have no time me to scrutinize bills ,they trust the big company like electricity or telcos to do the right thing

  • eyeballz2770 on 28/08/2019 - 12:56

    It's always the principle for me. Every few years, something goes wrong in the ANZ computer and charges me $0.01 on my Access Account. It doesn't accrue interest and I've never even been close to a 0 balance. I call and have them reverse it every time.

    I always point out overcharges at Coles & Woolies because they have a rule that says the item is free if they've scanned the wrong price. Haha, I managed to get a VHS copy of Star Wars in the 90s for my husband because it was on sale for $19.95 and I was charged $24.95 at Woolies. My poor husband was nearly scarlet with embarrassment during the refund.

    • voteoften on 29/08/2019 - 16:49

      I think there is a dollar limit per free item. Does anyone know what the max is?

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