Consumers often their own best advocates

So here's to Kate Davis, who very patiently, yet quite scathingly, pruned a national florist whose delivery arrived at the wrong house on the wrong day. She emailed the company, "A 50 percent refund is a reasonable suggestion on my part. I am no longer interested in using my time or the company's time to satisfy this desire. I encourage your corporation to consider letting one person manage each customer, in order to avoid the treatment of customers as digits."

Davis earned her sought-after refund and a $10 credit to the Web florist.

And a shout-out to Paula Cracas, who pulled off the biggest, though necessary, trick in appealing to a major, out-of-state corporation: She whittled the description of her problem (a disastrous foreign trip and tour) down to its essence. She earned a $2,775 refund -- and "concern"! -- from her credit card company.

"The San Francisco Better Business Bureau advised me to take the $700 offered disgruntled tour members," Cracas wrote, "but I was not willing to settle because of the principle of advertising one thing and not delivering what they advertised. ... And I won the admiration of my son who said 'Paula against Goliath, and Paula won.'" You got that right, son.

Last, cheers to John Lovegrove, who wouldn't let a loss, no matter how small, keep him from sleuthing a prepaid calling card caper that ultimately turned out to be a local store's mistake. His case offers some valuable insight into prepaid cards, which have gained popularity in recent years.

Lovegrove regularly buys $10 prepaid international calling cards for calling his parents in New Zealand. At nearly 5 cents a minute, he usually gets about 10 good chats a card.

But recently he noticed the card he'd bought at the Oak Grove Fred Meyer was nearly drained after three calls. He contacted the help line listed on the card and was told the per-minute rate was about 15 cents. He's well aware rates can change at any time, but he pointed out that the retailer's website still showed a 5-cent rate from Oregon to New Zealand.

Lovegrove spoke to multiple folks at Fred Meyer-parent Kroger Co.'s calling-card department to no avail. He then headed back to the store, where he was told it didn't offer customer service or refunds on the cards. Determined, he turned again to the website (krogerphonecard.com/kroger/home).

Lovegrove checked his balance online and studied the screen.

It Would Be a Pleasure To Use International Calling Cards In ...

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Frommer's Walt Disney World and Orlando 2011

Most long-distance and international calls can be dialed directly from any phone , though most Orlando hotels require a credit card imprint upon check-in ...

Android for Work, Productivity for Professionals

You can also download the Calling Card app from the Android Market for using ... it doesn't support forwarding to international numbers at this time. ...

Frommer's Italy 2010

International information is available at 176 but costs .60€ a shot. To make collect or calling-card calls, drop in .10€ or insert your card and dial one of ...

Frommer's London 2011

To make an international call from Britain, dial the international ... It may be a lot cheaper to use your own calling-card number or to find a pay phone. ...

Frommer's Washington, D.C. 2011

Two Washington-area airports sell cellphones and SIM cards. Look for the Airport Wireless shops at Dulles International Airport (& 703/661-0411) and at ...