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She says bus caused up to $9k in damage to her viola, but CTA offers just $1,500
Dear Fixer: On April 29, I was riding the No. 6 bus from Hyde Park to downtown with two colleagues. We are musicians. We were on our way to a conference, with our violas in tow. We were in the middle part of the articulated …Read More
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Runaround ends in Sprint discount
D ear Fixer: My soon-to-be ex-husband and I have been Sprint customers for many, many years. We have received a 25 percent discount through my job. Now we need to separate this account into two. I called Sprint in June about my leaving the account …Read More
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Good news at end of headlight tunnel
Dear Fixer: I divide my time between Orland Park and Las Vegas. My problem began back in October 2011, when the high beam/DRL bulbs went out on my 2008 Toyota Avalon. My car had 62,447 miles on it at the time. I had this fixed on Oct. 6 at a local Toyota dealer in suburban Chicago. The cost was $161.46. After I got it fixed, I received a “warranty enhancement notice” pertaining to high beam/DRL bulbs. It said that if the consumer had already had repairs done, they could apply to get their money back. I did, and I received
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7 years of helping consumers
D ear Readers: Arlene is in her apartment, Patricia still has her house and Michael left us one year ago but frequently laughed about his brush with celebrity.
British Airways sets speed record in fixing priest’s non-refundable dilemma
D ear Fixer: I was to attend an international meeting in Rome from Sept. 12-21. I made my travel arrangements with British Airways. Unfortunately, I entered the hospital on Sept. 4 with acute bronchitis. I was released on Sept. 7, and my doctor advised me …
Points-transfer nightmare
Dear Fixer: In June 2009 I purchased two TVs from Best Buy through a telephone order. My deceased husband had a Best Buy Reward Zone card, and the person who took my order on the phone said I could use that card to get points …
Collection agency called off
Dear Fixer: My 81-year-old mother was called by a collection agency that told her she owed more than $600 for cable service to an address on West 57th Street in Chicago. She has lived in the same house in unincorporated Glenview since 1961. She called …
Some mobile phone relationships are just not meant to be
THE FIXER: Customer’s T-Mobile service plan and Walmart-bought phone deal doesn’t work out.
T-Mobile lets client off hook
Dear Fixer: I have had a T-Mobile account for the past 10 years, and up until recently my service has been fine. I moved on July 1, and for some reason I get no service in my new apartment. I live in a two-flat building …
Waive fee? Get it in writing
D ear Fixer: I attempted to make reservations online for my wife and 4-year-old daughter to fly to Japan in October on American Airlines, using frequent flier miles accumulated in two of my other children’s accounts. The problem is that the website would not let …Read More
A lesson in student loan torture
Dear Fixer: I’m at the end of options for dealing with a tremendous inaccuracy in my student loans. If there’s any way that you could help, I would be so grateful. The short story is that I now owe $68,000 MORE in student loans than …Read More
FIXER: Some problems just can’t be fixed
Dear Readers: The Fixer’s got the Labor Day week off, so to kick off the party we’ve decided to run some of the goofier letters we’ve received over the years. These are letters that never made it into the column. And while these problems probably …Read More
Deflated by overdrawn fees
Dear Fixer: I was on my way to take my son to his doctor’s appointment when I got a flat tire. Luckily — or so I thought — I was two blocks away from an NTB tire shop. I had my flat tire fixed and …
Buyers bugged by pests in newly purchased furniture
D ear Fixer: Several months ago, I purchased a piece of furniture from T.J. Maxx. It’s a chest/cabinet that appears to be hand-carved, possibly made in India. I recently discovered some very fine sawdust in several places surrounding the chest. I investigated and found out …
Romance scams one of the oldest, cruelest tricks around
Dear Readers: In this column we hear about a lot of problems that are unfair and annoying, but not necessarily life-or-death situations. Today, we bring you a story of a fraud that could happen to anyone who falls in love. And it has an ending …Read More
Women’s Workout World steps up for stroke victim
Dear Fixer: I joined Women’s Workout World in August 2011. My membership was payable on a month-to-month basis. The month after I joined, I went into the hospital for routine hernia surgery. There were some complications and two days later, while still in the hospital, …Read More
Sister struggles to get reimbursed for late brother’s cable payment
Dear Fixer: My brother passed away in March. A week later, I paid his final cable bill to Comcast, for $131.72. I wrote a check from my account.
United charges for extra legroom customer didn’t ask for
Dear Fixer: In April, I purchased two airline tickets on United Airlines in two separate online transactions. I did not select a seat assignment. After I finished and printed the confirmation, I noticed a $29 charge on each ticket for extra legroom. I immediately called …
Insurer’s website causes in-network, out-of-network confusion
Dear Fixer: My in-network doctor wrote an order for me to get a mammogram, so I logged on to the United Healthcare website to look up in-network providers. The closest one was a radiology practice in Arlington Heights. I had my mammogram performed at that …
Airlines urged to permit families to sit together
Dear Fixer: I read your column all the time and you are amazing. I am actually writing on behalf of my children and grandchildren, but also for the benefit of all children. My problem is with the airlines! My son purchased tickets from American Airlines …
