Consumer Revolt Spurred Via the Internet

sas-dot writes "UK's newspaper Independent outlines the brewing consumer revolt being fomented on the web. 'Consumer militancy' is becoming ever more common, as individuals join forces on the internet to fight back against the state and big business. Businesses from banks to soccer clubs have been the target of these groups, in each case facing the fury of consumers who feel they have been wronged. For example, 'A mass revolt has left the high street banks facing thousands of claims from customers seeking to claw back some of the £4.75bn levied annually on charges for overdrafts and bounced cheques. More than one million forms demanding refunds have been downloaded from a number of consumer websites. The banks are settling out of court, often paying £1,000 a time.' Are these kinds of organized 'advocate mobs' going to be the future of internet activism?"

Comments

Re:Must just be in England...

[UbuntuDupe]

I thought the main complaint about immigrants was that they don't give anything back.

Well, when it comes to big businesses, it's damned if you do, damned if you don't:

-Bank of America gives CC's to illegals.:

"OMG j00 are teh violatign teh immigration rulzorz!"

-Bank of America refuses to give CC's illegals.:

"OMG y wont j00 extend tehm credit just bcuz tehy are from teh DIFFREN COUNTRY!!!!!!111"

Oh, and just a nitpick: from what I read here, they're not *specifically* giving cards to illegals, just to people without a SSN. (I know, I know, "Yeah, and let me guess: you're not a mail-order bride pimp, you're a foreign romance counselor, right?")