Not all companies are out to get us, but not all have our best interests at heart either.
Some industries are particularly happy to take advantage of our misfortunes to make a profit.
Here’s how to fight back.
Check out our evil week tag page.
These are just some of the ones that we should look out for.
Redditor arrghbrainssays:
I’m a funeral director.
Our entire
industry
is basically a pyramid scheme.
…Oh, what’s that?
I told you embalming is a legal requirement for public sanitation?
That’s utter bullshit.
It has not a single thing to do with public health.
It’s a
cash cow,
plain and simple.
It is barbaric, costly, and does not keep the body from deteriorating.
But we’ll tell you just about anything you should probably hear to get you to agree to it.
I’ve seen funeral directors force-feed families absolute horseshit saying
anything
to get them to sign a contract.
The Funeral Consumer Alliancesaysthat funeral purchases are “unlike any in their potential to harm the consumer.”
You thought car salespeople were bad?
Debt, however, is more constant and common for many of us.
Debt collection abuses cause harms that financially vulnerable consumers can ill afford.
But it doesn’t end there.
“The debt just gets sold to another party,” says Ira Rheingold of NACA.
“It keeps getting revolved and winding up on credit reports.”
Credit reports showing phantom debts can make it
difficult to obtain employment
.
The hardship of contesting inaccurate debt collections becomes a tax on people’s time.
After the last financial crisis, mortgage refinancing scams (or “loan modification scams”) ramped up.
Contact your creditor directly and/or report the call to theFTC.
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau providessample lettersfor different situations.
If the debt collection goes to arbitration proceedings,know your rightsbefore you get involved.
Try these steps toget a debt collector off your backor try tosettle the debtsdirectly with your creditor.
View all mortgage and debt reduction offers with lots of healthy skepticism.
You’re probably best off avoiding debt reduction services altogether andmanaging your debt yourself.
Cybercriminals will alsopounce on health scares like Ebolato spread malware.
Medical professionals can also scam us.
Some doctor’s offices, likewise, participate in Medicare and Medicaid fraud.
And, of course, there is also the moral issue of ripping off taxpayers.
Medical discount cards are another example of health fraud.
Choosing Wisely lists themedical procedures you should question.
In general, anything that’s monitored or regulated bythe FTCis something we all need to be wary about.
Photos byDaquella manera,Orin Zebest,StockMonkeys.com.
