uExpedia Launches “Upgrade Options” Tool To Show Airlines’ Hidden Feesr

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• While most consumers know that airlines tack on fees for checked baggage, more leg room, and reservation changes, among other things, it can be difficult to gauge how much those “extras” will add up to when booking your trip on a third-party site. In an effort to be more upfront with customers, Expedia says it will now disclose airline fees right on its website. 

  Expedia launched a new set of tools on Tuesday that lists airline ancillary fees before a passenger actually purchases their ticket, Fortune reports.

  The tool, dubbed “Upgrade Options,” is intended to help would-be passengers customize and understand the full cost of their trips.

  
  
  At first, the new service will be a partnership between the booking site, Delta Air Lines and AirBerlin in Europe, the company says.

  Greg Schulze, Expeida’s senior vice president of global tour and transport, says the company hopes to include other airlines in the company months.

  “There is a huge amount of data we are collecting, along with information we have to help travelers to make informed decisions,” he tells Fortune. “We are starting to be more confident in ourselves in helping travelers compare options.”

  While Upgrade Options features a plethora of airline ancillary fees, Expedia has singled out checked baggage costs in a separate tool to be released later this year.

  The “Baggage Calculator” provides flyers with a list of fees and policies for different airlines.

  Expedia hopes the added transparency to the flight booking process helps set it apart from competitors in the third-party booking industry.

  Expedia to reveal airlines’ “hidden fees” in new feature [Fortune]

  
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by Ashlee Kieler via Consumerist

uInterContinental Hotels Surprises Loyalty Members With Customer Care Number Connecting To Adult Chat Liner

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• So you thought you wanted to check on your reservation with InterContinental Hotels Group, huh? Too bad: if you’re a member of its Spire Elite loyalty program, that customer care number on your card will connect you not to helpful hotel associates, but to an adult chat line promising “interesting and exciting guys” and “hot ladies” who want to talk to you.

  Consumerist reader E. wrote in to alert fellow Spire Elite members that the customer care number included on IHG’s cards will connect them to the phone sex hotline, so we called it to confirm.

  “Welcome to America’s hottest talk line!” a recorded greeting chirps. “Ladies, to talk to interesting and exciting guys free, press 1 now. Guys, hot ladies are waiting to talk to you. Press 2 to connect!”

  Once you’ve made your choice, there’s a message about calling another number to reach the chat line directly, as well as prompts to record the name you’d like to use. Because I wasn’t in the mood for a chat, that’s where I hung up.

  So what gives? E. says he received the card about a month ago, and called IHG’s executive resolution team to alert them of the issue after he tried to use the number this weekend. He says he was told that they already knew of the mistake but “had made the decision not to alert members.”

  While the message is somewhat tame, E. points out that it could cause a “huge problem” for a member trying to check on reservations: for example, if you’re calling from your work phone, or perhaps if you’re on speaker phone in your car with your mother-in-law.

  We reached out to IHG for more information on the situation and how they’ll handle it, as well as whether or not the company will be taking steps to correct the number and reissue cards. We’ll update this post when we hear back.

  In the meantime, members who want to use the phone to check reservations or get help can call the number listed on IHG’s rewards club site instead: 1-888-211-9874, or email at ihgrewardsclub@ihg.com.

  
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by Mary Beth Quirk via Consumerist

uSettlement Between New York, Tobacco Companies Provides $550M For Smoking-Related Health Costsr

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  A decades-long dispute between the New York Attorney General’s Office and major tobacco firms over payments the companies were required to make for smoking-related public-health costs, but refused to dish out, has come to an end. A new settlement between the parties directs the tobacco companies to deliver $550 million to the state, New York City and other counties. 

  New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman announced Tuesday that the state had reached a deal with the companies regarding their violation of the 1998 Tobacco Master Settlement Agreement.

  Under that agreement, tobacco companies were required to pay billions of dollars to states and territories over 25 years to help cover the public-health costs of smoking-related illnesses.

  Despite that arrangement, the companies have been able to withhold a portion of New York’s nearly $775 million annual settlement payments to the state, NYC and the counties outside the city every year since 2003.

  They have also been able to require multi-year arbitrations of New York’s entitlement to keep the portion of each individual year’s payment that was not withheld. The companies argued it was within their rights to withhold the funds because New York failed to properly enforce the MSA with other manufacturers.

  As a result of the drawn out legal battle, more than $700 million in New Yorkers’ money has been put in escrow. Previously, in 2013, the AG’s office was able to unlock about $92 million in withheld funds.

  Under the newly announced settlement, Schneiderman was able to negotiate that tobacco companies release 90% of currently held funds from other years.

  The state will receive about half of the $550 million in settlement funds. One quarter will go to New York City, and the remaining quarter is to go to counties outside the city.

  Additionally, the deal eliminates the possibility of future arbitration proceedings and ensures that future payments be issued following a set formula.

  “Big Tobacco must pay for the damage it has done and continues to inflict on communities across New York State,” Schneiderman said in a statement. “My office will continue to hold these companies accountable … to ensure that the people of New York are compensated for the enormous harms they have suffered.”

  
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by Ashlee Kieler via Consumerist

uApple Music Managed To Keep 6.5 Million Paying Customers So Farr

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• It probably won’t surprise you to learn that millions of trial Apple Music users decided to cancel their service instead of keeping their accounts and paying ten bucks a month. However, Apple reports that six and a half million users decided to keep the service. Or forgot to cancel their accounts before billing started, but from Apple’s point of view, those customers’ money is just as good.

  For some perspective, competitor Spotify has 75 million users, 20 million of whom pay for their subscriptions. The rest have accounts with advertising and fewer features. Apple decided not to create an ad-supported tier in their streaming service, instead giving all users a free three-month trial. They say that the service has 15 million users who are either paid or still in a free trial.

  The company is developing a version of its app for Android smartphones, which may also pull in more subscribers than the mobile version has now, when it is limited to Apple’s devices.

  Apple Music now has 6.5 million paying users [Ars Technica]

  
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by Laura Northrup via Consumerist

uIs A Kilt A Costume? Busch Gardens Says So, Denies Entry To Man Wearing Scottish Garbr

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  What passes for a costume for one person might just be considered a normal outfit for others, but at Busch Gardens in Williamsburg, VA, there’s no gray area when it comes to men wearing traditional Scottish garb: a park guest said he was denied entry because he had a kilt on.

  That goes against Busch Garden’s anti-costume policy, the park said, especially during its Howl-O-Scream Halloween event.

  But the Norfolk, VA man says he wasn’t trying to dress up as anything other than who he is. He’s of Irish, Scottish and English descent, and six years ago, he started wearing a kilt about every other day to do things like go grocery shopping and other mundane, everyday tasks, to show his pride.

  “I’ve been a customer for decades and a regular pass holder, and this has left a terrible stain on the honor of my culture as well as my ethnic pride,” he wrote on his Facebook post along with a video of his outfit.

  Busch Gardens’ official costume policy says the park doesn’t allow costumes any time of the year to “ensure the safety of guests and team members,” but especially not during Howl-O-Scream.

  “The park does not wish to alienate anyone who wears traditional clothing representing their culture or heritage,” Busch Gardens said in a statement. “However, if the clothing could confuse guests into thinking the wearer is part of the official Howl-O-Scream experience then we will not allow it in the park.”

  Kilt-wearing man denied entrance to Busch Gardens [WVEC-13, link includes autopay video]

  
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by Mary Beth Quirk via Consumerist

ueBay Suspends New User, Won’t Tell Her Whyr

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• When a company decides that they don’t want to business with you, do they owe you an explanation why? One new eBay customer signed up for the site and bought a few things. Then she received an e-mail telling her that her account was suspended, but eBay wouldn’t explain the suspension. Why?

  Naturally, she called eBay after receiving an e-mail telling her that she was suspended “indefinitely.” Their explanation was even more confusing: they told her that eBay representatives weren’t allowed to tell her what was happening, and to stop calling to ask.

  She then took her case to the local CBS station: specifically, consumer reporter Kurtis Ming, who learned that account shutdowns with no recourse happen fairly often to eBay customers. Kicking customers off the site with no recourse seems counter-intuitive, but eBay does it pretty often.

  In a statement, they told the TV station:

  …the majority of the time we are transparent around account restrictions or suspensions…. However, when a suspension is due on the basis of risk, we keep reasoning general as we don’t want these individuals circumventing the suspension.

  This turned out to be the case: having a TV station on the phone made eBay look more closely at the case, and the company realized that they had mixed her up with an account connected to fraud. That could be a person at the same address or who used to live at the same address who has been suspended, or someone with a similar name.

  eBay reinstated her account, but the customer says that she’ll go elsewhere for her future Tupperware purchases, thanks.

  Call Kurtis: Blacklisted From eBay And Nobody Will Tell Me Why [CBS Sacramento]

  
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by Laura Northrup via Consumerist

uAmazon Expands Restaurant Delivery Service To Portland, ORr

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• Consumers in Portland, OR, hungry for a nice dinner, but too tired to actually head out into the world, can now order via Amazon’s newly expanded Prime restaurant delivery service. Using the Prime Now mobile app, members of Amazon’s $99/year subscription program can view participating restaurants, browse menus, place orders and track the status of their delivery. Once an order is placed, Amazon delivery drivers pick up and deliver the food within an hour or less. The service first launched last month in Seattle. [Amazon]

  
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by Ashlee Kieler via Consumerist